Animated Traffic Law

RFB means Rapid Flash Beacon. See the link below for a visual. These are usually placed at marked crosswalks on very busy streets where there is no traffic signal to stop traffic. They are implemented where it is difficult for pedestrians to cross the street safely.
What’s the law surrounding these? In a nutshell it’s this: when these lights are activated by a
pedestrian desiring to cross the street there is no legal requirement for a motorist to stop UNLESS the pedestrian has prudently placed his/her foot into the street prior to that vehicle’s approach of the crosswalk. (this is how a pedestrian establishes right-of-way in all 50 states and D.C.) Technically, these flashing beacons are traffic control devices with NO legal punch.
In other words, they’re just there to raise awareness that a pedestrian is trying to cross the street safely. Be a sport, hit your brakes.

Motorized bicycles, such as mopeds or bikes with electric motors, are a bit of a
conundrum for law makers around the country. Is it legal for a motorized
bicycle to use bike lanes? I’m not going to cover all fifty states and DC here, but
I will give you the general drift of the legislation being drafted. It is as follows:
The operator of a motorized bicycle may use a bicycle lane IF the engine is not
being used to power the cyclist down the road. If you are manually propelling
your bicycle, even if it is equipped with an engine, you may use the bike lane.
But once the engine is engaged instead of your legs, the operator
needs to exit the bike lane and enter the roadway.

Blind spots – those annoying black holes where the vehicle in the lane next to you suddenly
disappears, or worse, appears. Let’s cut to the quick, who’s in the wrong, the guy riding in
the blind spot or the one not knowing that he’s there? After the crash
the bill for the evenings event goes to the driver of the vehicle that changed lanes
and collided into the knucklehead riding the blind spot.
In other words, the burden of the blind spot lies squarely on the shoulder of the driver
who can’t see the black hole called car.

Attention motorists! If bicyclists are allowed on the sidewalk in your city then odds are
very high they are allowed to ride their bicycles across the street within a crosswalk -
be it a marked crosswalk or unmarked crosswalk. (see our animation, “Every Corner
is a Crosswalk” on Home page). Again, a bicyclist does NOT need to dismount from
their bicycle when in a crosswalk.
When a state or municipality allows bicycles to ride on sidewalks it is giving bicyclists
the same rights and duties as pedestrians while riding their bikes on those sidewalk or
IN A CROSSWALK.
So, as motorists, we need to extend to bicyclists
the same courtesy as we do someone walking, skating or in a wheelchair.
We do this by slowing/stopping to allow a safe crossing.

You’ve heard the classic driver ed mantra: “When at an intersection look left, right and then
left again.” Why? The reason is simple, traffic is not static and so the picture we get with
our initial view of what’s happening in the street is not complete. Cars, peds and bikes are all
moving at different speeds. So when at an intersection, where road users are traveling in all
directions, blind spots abound. In fact, the slower the speed limit the longer those blind spots exist.
So why “left” twice and not “right”? Because in the US, vehicles closest to us are coming from our left.
If perpendicular to a one-way street where traffic is coming from your right, it would be wise to look
right, left, right instead.

When motoring about town, windows down, and with “man’s best friend” hanging out the window,
you might want to give wide berth to that bicyclist you’ll soon be overtaking. Why? Because your
great protector is liable to give an even greater bark when passing that bicyclist, who,
in what your furry friend perceives, is now in its new found territory. The result? A very startled bicyclist
and possible collision or crash. You don’t want to be a part of the equation. Be safe, steer clear
of bicyclists when traveling with your dog.

An experienced driver, like someone experienced in life, can often predict what to expect – or at least come close. Hence, cynicism in life, but avoiding collisions while driving. Experience is a great predictor of what might be around the corner. It can helps us prepare for the “unexpected” by bringing to memory what has already happened to us in similar situations. Our experience then serves as a kind of tour guide to what is likely to occur in a particular situation, be it a skid, hydroplaning or red tail lights. Nascent drivers are at one end of the Bell Curve for a reason – they don’t have the experience of what to expect.

It’s tough to drive a motor vehicle in direct sunlight. Without a good pair of sunglasses and a low hanging visor it can, at times, be near impossible to see. Think bicycles and pedestrians when visibility is compromised due to sunlight. Slow is the way to go in those moments. The last thing any of us
want to do is have a collision – especially with someone as vulnerable as a pedestrian or bicyclist.
And it is just as important to reverse roles when the setting sun is at your back. Cut oncoming
traffic some slack at that time of day – they may literally be blinded by the light.

One of the basic tenets of driver safety education is to “keep your eyes moving.”
This means a couple of things. First, as we drive it is important that we are continually looking ahead,
to our sides and to our rear. The beauty and the beast of driving is that the playing field is
forever changing, especially when driving in a congested urban environment. The eyes and mind
must be attentive to the ubiquitous changes in traffic (of all kinds), road markings/conditions and signals.
Add to this the tendency of drivers to subtly steer in the direction we gaze. It is for these reasons
we should not let our eyes rest on any one place longer than 2 seconds. It simply is too dangerous.

Sidewalks are non-directional, meaning a bicycle (when allowed on) or a pedestrian
may go in any direction desired. Many road users believe a bicycle is required to
travel on a sidewalk only in the direction of road traffic. Not so. Not so in any state where
bicycling on sidewalks is allowed. Sidewalks are non-directional. Anyone legally using
them is free to shake, rattle and roll anyway they want.