Iowa Senator Bill Dotzler (D-31) has filed SF2076,
the “Change Lanes to Pass Bicycles” bill. The law would require motor
vehicles to use the opposite side of the road or an adjacent travel lane
to pass people on bicycles. It also recognizes that paved shoulders and
bike lanes are adjacent travel lanes, and prohibits motorists from
steering unreasonable close to people riding bicycles in those lanes.
UPDATE:
SF2076 has been scheduled for a subcommittee meeting tomorrow at 10:30
AM at the Iowa State Capitol. These meetings are open to the public to
attend. Sen. McCoy (D-Des Moines) is chairing the meeting. Sen. Kraayenbrink (R-Fort Dodge) and Sen. Quirmbach
(D-Ames) are on the committee. If you are from their district, please
contact them directly and let them know you are from their district.
EMAIL REQUEST: Send an email to the following in the Iowa Senate Transportation Committee. ACT NOW, the first funnel date is February 19.
Copy and paste these email addresses:
tod.bowman@legis.iowa.gov,
robert.dvorsky@legis.iowa.gov, tim.kapucian@legis.iowa.gov,
chris.brase@legis.iowa.gov, michael.breitbach@legis.iowa.gov,
jeffdanielson@gmail.com, dick.dearden@legis.iowa.gov,
randy.feenstra@legis.iowa.gov, wally.horn@legis.iowa.gov,
tim.kraayenbrink@legis.iowa.gov, matt.mccoy@legis.iowa.gov,
herman.quirmbach@legis.iowa.gov, roby.smith@legis.iowa.gov
MESSAGE: Please write in your own words why changing lanes to pass is a good law. A few points:
- Easy to teach, enforce, and follow.
- Consistent with law for passing motor vehicles.
- Already in the DOT driver’s manual.
- 50% of fatal bicycle crashes in the past 10 years are overtaking crashes.
ASK: Please pass SF2076.
LEGSLATIVE FORUMS IN YOUR AREA: You can always show up to a forum and ask about Change Lanes to Pass Bicyclists. Check out our list of legislative forums.
Thanks for your help! We will keep you updated as this progresses. Keep up to date at our legislative web page.