Cyclists in the US state of Iowa have reacted with anger after a bill that was originally designed to improve safety by making drivers change lanes to overtake cyclists has been altered with an amendment that would make it compulsory for cyclists to wear hi-vis clothing.
The HF 2341 bill was introduced to the state legislature earlier in February as a way of improving cyclists’ safety by forcing drivers to move onto the other side of the road when overtaking.
However a new amendment to the bill says that cyclists must also wear high-vis clothing on roads with a speed limit of 45mph or above, with this also applying to organised events such as road races where there are fewer that 500 competitors.
“If a person doesn’t have sufficient high vis clothing they could be found at fault even though they did nothing wrong other than not have the right clothes on. We don’t like that,” was the assessment of Quad Cities Bicycle Club president James Hudson, a view shared by many of his club’s members.
“Both me and my wife have been hit by cars, even when wearing hi-vis,” cyclist Dean Matthias told Our Quad Cities. “It doesn’t mean a single thing if the person in the car is not looking.”
American cyclists hit back over plans to make hi-vis clothing compulsory
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American cyclists hit back over plans to make hi-vis clothing compulsory
Postby Ross » Thu Mar 01, 2018 5:37 am
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Re: American cyclists hit back over plans to make hi-vis clothing compulsory
Postby Mububban » Thu Mar 01, 2018 12:21 pm
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Re: American cyclists hit back over plans to make hi-vis clothing compulsory
Postby bychosis » Thu Mar 01, 2018 12:43 pm
Yes, and they don't seem to be calling for pedestrian to be wearing hi-vis which is a logical step.Mububban wrote:Terrible idea that sounds good and logical in theory to those who know nothing about cycling.
Hi-vis is becoming a bit of white noise while out and about. It's everywhere on people working outdoors and if there is more it is possibly less likely to be noticed.
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Re: American cyclists hit back over plans to make hi-vis clothing compulsory
Postby queequeg » Thu Mar 01, 2018 12:56 pm
Yes, Hi-Vis is the new Urban Camouflage. Throw on a bright yellow or bright orange vest and you can pretty much go unnoticed anywhere you go.bychosis wrote:Yes, and they don't seem to be calling for pedestrian to be wearing hi-vis which is a logical step.Mububban wrote:Terrible idea that sounds good and logical in theory to those who know nothing about cycling.
Hi-vis is becoming a bit of white noise while out and about. It's everywhere on people working outdoors and if there is more it is possibly less likely to be noticed.
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Re: American cyclists hit back over plans to make hi-vis clothing compulsory
Postby Mububban » Thu Mar 01, 2018 2:28 pm
I am planning to buy some hi viz socks as apparently having fluoro on moving parts ala legs is much more effective than static on a jersey.
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Re: American cyclists hit back over plans to make hi-vis clothing compulsory
Postby eldavo » Thu Mar 01, 2018 3:00 pm
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Re: American cyclists hit back over plans to make hi-vis clothing compulsory
Postby RonK » Thu Mar 01, 2018 3:16 pm
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Re: American cyclists hit back over plans to make hi-vis clothing compulsory
Postby find_bruce » Thu Mar 01, 2018 3:20 pm
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Re: American cyclists hit back over plans to make hi-vis clothing compulsory
Postby Neddysmith » Thu Mar 01, 2018 3:29 pm
Not wrong, late last year i was travelling straight on a rd in overcast conditions but not dark with my headlights on and a driver pulled out approx 15m straight in front of me, tboned their A pillar and they had to be cut out of their car,as i was travelling at about 50k.Mububban wrote:Terrible idea that sounds good and logical in theory to those who know nothing about cycling. If the driver isn't looking for anything on two wheels, you can miss a 7 foot rider on a penny farthing wearing a bright orange gorilla suit. Hell, I recently saw a collision between two cars where the at-fault driver "didn't see" the big SUV she hit with her Commodore.
Their response, Oh i didnt see you, I was in a lifted hilux with headlights on driving basically directly at you
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Re: American cyclists hit back over plans to make hi-vis clothing compulsory
Postby bychosis » Thu Mar 01, 2018 6:39 pm
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Re: American cyclists hit back over plans to make hi-vis clothing compulsory
Postby DavidS » Thu Mar 01, 2018 9:39 pm
I would have thought the court should give them a choice: we will accept this defence but only if you agree that, given you clearly cannot see enough or don't pay enough attention to be driving a vehicle requiring a licence, you lose your licence for 10 years and must undergo an eye test to get it back in 10 years at which time you will, of course, be on P plates.
Seems reasonable.
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Re: American cyclists hit back over plans to make hi-vis clothing compulsory
Postby Patt0 » Wed Mar 07, 2018 2:31 pm
Further proving the point, that vehicle is usually driven by Fluro clad drivers.Neddysmith wrote:Oh i didnt see you, I was in a lifted hilux with headlights on driving basically directly at you
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Re: American cyclists hit back over plans to make hi-vis clothing compulsory
Postby Tequestra » Wed Mar 07, 2018 3:29 pm
Reasonable and logical to my way of thinking. If there were more cyclists than car drivers in the electorates across Australia, I suspect that it might become acceptable for the judiciary to penalise car drivers with fines and/or license suspensions if their inattention or poor vision leads them to drive over or pull out on a bicycle and there is contact.DavidS wrote:... you clearly cannot see enough or don't pay enough attention to be driving a vehicle requiring a licence ...
"I didn't see them", is no excuse for anyone in control of a tonne or two of heavy metal, and I'm glad to read that it has already been noted more than once here that hi-vis vest or not, if the car driver is not able to see a full-sized cyclist on a full-sized bike at 15-20m away, then they have confessed that they do not have the visual capacity to drive a car on public roads. Hopefully, six months off might help them to improve their eyesight (attention-span and care-factor), next time they drive?
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Re: American cyclists hit back over plans to make hi-vis clothing compulsory
Postby mikesbytes » Wed Mar 07, 2018 4:21 pm
Perhaps cars should be painted in hi-vis paintMububban wrote:Terrible idea that sounds good and logical in theory to those who know nothing about cycling. If the driver isn't looking for anything on two wheels, you can miss a 7 foot rider on a penny farthing wearing a bright orange gorilla suit. Hell, I recently saw a collision between two cars where the at-fault driver "didn't see" the big SUV she hit with her Commodore.
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