Shollenberger Januzzi & Wolfe, LLP

Has new bicycle law made for a ‘win’ on Pennsylvania roads?

What makes a law successful? It has been more than a year since Pennsylvania enacted a traffic safety law intended to prevent bicycle accidents. Motorists are required to leave at least four feet of space between their vehicles and a bike. Not dong so would result in a fine.

Few tickets for the violation have been issued.

Does the lack of tickets mean that the traffic safety law hasn’t been successful? Is law enforcement in the state choosing not to enforce the law? That could be the problem, but there are other possibilities as well. The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette collected various opinions about the driving law:

A bicycle accident is very likely the result of what happens when a driver fails to respect the rights of bicyclists and/or pedestrians. Even though cyclists can be made to feel like second-class citizens compared to motorists, they have legal rights when they’ve been victimized by a careless driver.

Source:  Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, “Review finds Pennsylvania’s new bike safety law not closely enforced,” John Schmitz, May 24, 2013