Cofflaw Bicycling: Illegal But Rational

As we head into the 67th Montana Legislative Session, we will be informing and educating legislators as they consider any legislation affecting bicyclists. We are working on several bills regarding bicycles and funding for infrastructure to provide safe active transportation. We sometimes hear from a legislator about improper, illegal or bothersome riding that they have seen or heard about. This interesting and well researched paper examines rule-breaking bicyclists and the factors associated with such behaviors. Nearly 18,000 respondents participated in this study which asks “are bicyclists making rational, albeit illegal, choices—similar to most drivers and pedestrians—or are bicyclists reckless and dangerous?

See the paper, published by the Journal of Transport and Land Use and an article from the excellent resource Cycling West.