California cyclists may soon be allowed to treat stop signs as yields according to a new bill.
You’ve seen it, or probably done it yourself if you’re a cyclist. It’s called the "Idaho Stop."
"You approach a stop sign controlled intersection, you slow down, you see if there is any traffic coming and if there’s no traffic, you keep rolling safely through," Dave Schneider of the California Bicycle Coalition said, explaining the method to KCBS Radio.
Currently, bicyclists running stop lights and stop signs is illegal, but Assembly Bill 122 would legalize the practice. "It will allow people on bikes to do legally what everybody already does anyway," Schneider said.
The California bill passed the legislature with bipartisan support and now awaits approval by Gov. Gavin Newsom. Concerns about teaching children bike safety has been the only pushback against the legalization.
Though some may believe otherwise, Schneider emphasized that the bill will not eliminate the need to observe traffic safety. "You want kids to know, as adults should, that you cannot necessarily count on other people on the road obeying the law. They need to check and make sure there is no traffic before they go anywhere," he said.
California would only allow the practice for stop signs not for red lights.
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