Sentinel staff report–
May is Bike Month, and questions abound regarding what’s legal and what’s not when it comes to bikes on the roadways.
A common question involving bicyclists is whether it’s legal to ride on the sidewalk. To add to the confusion: the answer differs depending on what city you live in.
Officer Jonathon French, a member of the Citrus Heights Police Department’s Traffic Unit, told The Sentinel in an interview Friday that bicycles can legally travel on both sidewalks and crosswalks within the city limits of Citrus Heights. However it’s illegal to do so in Folsom, Galt and part of Davis, according to the Sacramento Area Bicycle Advocates website, sacbike.org.
French said the reason for the varying regulations is due to state law leaving it up to local cities and counties on whether to prohibit biking on sidewalks, but the general rule statewide is that biking on sidewalks is allowed unless otherwise prohibited by local ordinance.
While it’s also legal to ride in the opposite direction of the flow of traffic while on a sidewalk in Citrus Heights, French advised that it’s always safer for bikes to travel in the same direction as cars when on the sidewalk. He also clarified that riding against the flow of traffic while in the roadway is always illegal and also extremely dangerous.
French said the most common cause of collisions involving bikes is when a bicyclist is riding in the roadway against traffic. Other common causes of collision are biking at night without lights or reflectors, and biking without fully functioning brakes.
Other tips
- Kids under 18 are required to wear a helmet. Adults do not have to wear a helmet, but it’s still advised.
- Free helmets for kids can be picked up at the police station during regular hours.
- Pedestrian legal protections only apply to bike riders if the bicyclist is walking their bike.
- Reflectors and lights are required, but only if biking at night.
- Wearing of high contrast colors is recommended for bicyclists.
- Use of hand signals when turning or stopping in the roadway are required.
- Use of bike mirrors are recommended.
- Stopping or slowing down at intersections is recommended if biking in a crosswalk.
For drivers, French said motorists should be aware that a newer California law requires at least three feet of space between a bicyclist and a vehicle when passing, otherwise drivers must slow down and wait until it is safe to pass.
He also said collisions with bikes often happen when motorists don’t adequately look “left-right-left” when turning onto a street. The practice is especially important since bicyclists may be traveling the opposite direction of traffic while on the sidewalk.
French said bicyclists should know their rights on the roadway, but also bike with a “defensive mindset” and be willing to yield their rights in the interest of safety.
“All of the consequences fall on the bicyclist, regardless of who is at fault,” he said, noting that bicyclists are always at a much greater risk of injury when involved in a collision with a several-thousand-pound vehicle.
More information about bike safety is available at sacbike.org.
