Tuesday, February 09, 2010

Cell phones and bike lanes

On a ride downtown today, I encountered two vehicles stopped in bike lanes. One belonged to a driver making a short pick-up who promised not to do it again. The other belonged to a driver on a cell phone, who presumably thought of stopping in a bike lane as a way to dodge the new distracted driving law. I have bad news for any driver who thinks that:
78.1  (1)  No person shall drive a motor vehicle on a highway while holding or using a hand-held wireless communication device or other prescribed device that is capable of receiving or transmitting telephone communications, electronic data, mail or text messages. 2009, c. 4, s. 2....
(6)  Subsections (1) and (2) do not apply if all of the following conditions are met:
1. The motor vehicle is off the roadway or is lawfully parked on the roadway.
2. The motor vehicle is not in motion.
3. The motor vehicle is not impeding traffic. 2009, c. 4, s. 2.
Parking or stopping in a bike lane impedes traffic; even if you get a sympathetic police officer who does not think of me and my two wheels as "real" traffic,  stopping in a bike lane leaves your car sticking out into the high carbon emission vehicle lanes. If you want to make a receive calls that badly, pull into a real parking spot. Alternatively, take the bus or get a cab.

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