According to a news article from The Daily Review, Alameda County in Northern California is proposing a law that would require “organizations with advertised rides and 50 or more riders” to pay costly fees for permits and informational road signs along the route.
The article states that “For years, bands of bicycle riders have irritated residents living along rural roads”.
County Supervisor Nate Miley said “we want people to ride bicycles, and not to impose unfair burdens on people who live along (rural) roadways.”
Is it really an “unfair burden” for local drivers to have to slow down for a few seconds, and be a little more careful when driving? I’m not sure how they are measuring this “burden” that these “bands of bicycle riders” are causing.
Should bicyclists pay extra for their right to travel on public roads than other road users? The Supreme Court has stated that the right to travel “is a right that has been firmly established and repeatedly recognized”, and went on to say that the right to travel “is a right broadly assertable against private interference as well as governmental action.”
I’m not a lawyer, but it seems like these types of laws that aim to restrict groups of people from traveling on the road is a slippery slope. There is a lot of traffic on the freeway that is a burden to a lot of people. Maybe the government should set up checkpoints and charge people extra if it is determined that your car trip isn’t as nessesary as someone elses. Not a good idea.
I wonder how many of the complaints are due to organized tours versus your average weekend club ride with groups smaller than 50 riders. This type of law is only going to cause a burden on charity rides, and probably will not do much to solve conflicts between bicyclists and local residents who think bicyclists shouldn’t be on the road.
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