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Idaho stop

Old 09-15-20, 11:47 AM
  #1  
HardyWeinberg
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Idaho stop

Idaho stop (treat Stop signs as Yield) legal in WA now

https://www.bellinghamherald.com/new...245635760.html
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Old 09-15-20, 01:00 PM
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Another state, after only 38 years! Pretty soon* we'll have a (Alice's Restaurant kind of) Movement!

*Pretty soon on a geological time scale. Why an eminently sensible idea hasn't already propagated far and wide I don't understand. Still, chapeau to WA.
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Old 09-15-20, 02:41 PM
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As great of an idea as I think the Idaho Stop is, not a single non-cycling motorist will know it's legal and become enraged calling cyclists scofflaws every time they see somebody do it.
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Old 09-15-20, 05:31 PM
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That reminds me, back when there was a push for this in CA, I was thinking about putting together a pitch to bring to a public city council meeting for my small suburban city (about 50K)
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Old 09-16-20, 08:43 AM
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Originally Posted by RoadKill
As great of an idea as I think the Idaho Stop is, not a single non-cycling motorist will know it's legal and become enraged calling cyclists scofflaws every time they see somebody do it.
Eh well, no big deal. A sizeable minority of non-cycling motorists don't know it's legal for a cyclist to ride on the streets and roads.
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Old 09-16-20, 09:04 AM
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I have to admit to occasionally taking my time accelerating through an intersection after coming to a full stop. I know it annoys the cars, but I kinda hope they realize that supporting a change like this will make it more obvious that there's some benefit to them as well.

....I'm a bad person, though.
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Old 09-16-20, 09:34 AM
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Originally Posted by Notso_fastLane
I have to admit to occasionally taking my time accelerating through an intersection after coming to a full stop.
I've heard this sort of thing (as well as a cyclist taking the lane to bypass an obstruction) referred to as a "traffic-calming moment".
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Old 09-16-20, 09:40 AM
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Originally Posted by RoadKill
As great of an idea as I think the Idaho Stop is, not a single non-cycling motorist will know it's legal and become enraged calling cyclists scofflaws every time they see somebody do it.
In the interest of "good optics", I'll generally not do this in front of motorists. Of course, the question is whether they appreciate that I am following the same laws so as not to appear "entitled".
(Full disclosure: I think bicycles *should* be entitled to special rules... but I still try to consider what the motorist might be thinking.)
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Old 09-16-20, 02:59 PM
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Originally Posted by pdlamb
Another state, after only 38 years! Pretty soon* we'll have a (Alice's Restaurant kind of) Movement!

*Pretty soon on a geological time scale. Why an eminently sensible idea hasn't already propagated far and wide I don't understand. Still, chapeau to WA.
After one year. Oregon passed it last year. Does not apply to red lights, though, only stop signs.
https://olis.leg.state.or.us/liz/201...Overview/SB998
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Old 09-16-20, 06:30 PM
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Originally Posted by sweeks
In the interest of "good optics", I'll generally not do this in front of motorists. Of course, the question is whether they appreciate that I am following the same laws so as not to appear "entitled".
(Full disclosure: I think bicycles *should* be entitled to special rules... but I still try to consider what the motorist might be thinking.)
You're not helping the case....
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Old 09-16-20, 06:31 PM
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As a resident of WA State, I applaud this decision (but what took them so long?).
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Old 09-17-20, 12:47 PM
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Originally Posted by sweeks
In the interest of "good optics", I'll generally not do this in front of motorists. Of course, the question is whether they appreciate that I am following the same laws so as not to appear "entitled".
(Full disclosure: I think bicycles *should* be entitled to special rules... but I still try to consider what the motorist might be thinking.)
I know some motorcyclists that think the same way about lane filtering/splitting since they passed that here in UT.

I'd rather the drivers get used to it. I haven't had any issues with it yet, but the UT DOT did a pretty good job advertising it when it passed and although their IG feed is full of people *****ing about how unfair it is, the actual drivers tend to be very compliant.
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Old 09-24-20, 11:56 AM
  #13  
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I will admit to slowing through intersections in front of following cars, but I turn my head in an exaggerated fashion to make it clear I'm looking in all directions before doing so. Haven't heard any complaints yet.
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Old 09-25-20, 04:11 PM
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At the stop sign I go through on my commute, many times cross traffic cars wait for me to get to the intersection, wave me through before they go. I suspect these drivers are either cyclists or being niceholes. It's sometimes a bit confusing cause I my natural reflex is to slow down to a pace to where I can wait for the car to go through but maintain enough momentum to go after the car passes. Granted it's usually just one car. And I always give a thank you wave.
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Old 09-25-20, 04:33 PM
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Don't like the idea of having different procedures for bikes and cars. Too much hassle -- better when my car habits carry over into cycling. I've never gotten comfortable with right on red. Also, I think that my traffic scan is better when stopped. Same rights, same rules, same habits.
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Old 09-25-20, 04:34 PM
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Originally Posted by burritos
At the stop sign I go through on my commute, many times cross traffic cars wait for me to get to the intersection, wave me through before they go. I suspect these drivers are either cyclists or being niceholes. It's sometimes a bit confusing cause I my natural reflex is to slow down to a pace to where I can wait for the car to go through but maintain enough momentum to go after the car passes. Granted it's usually just one car. And I always give a thank you wave.
Niceholes. Cyclists would know that you were trying to follow the rules of the road and taken their turn. I stop and wave them through because of Rule 1: Never trust a cager.
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Old 09-25-20, 06:05 PM
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Originally Posted by Korina
Niceholes. Cyclists would know that you were trying to follow the rules of the road and taken their turn. I stop and wave them through because of Rule 1: Never trust a cager.
Agreed. I never take advantage of a "nice" driver waving me through an intersection when it's really their right-of-way. Eventually some impatient driver right behind them will get exasperated and zip around them and hit me in the side. So I just stand there and wave them through as politely as possible.
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Old 09-29-20, 06:20 PM
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Delaware adopted the yield at stop signs a few years ago.

Some above are missing the point of the law. Going through stop signs is permissible when safe to do so, meaning no cars near. When a car and bike approach, it's not safe and the bike should honor the sign and stop. If the car waves you on, fine, but physics demands that the car has the right of way. The bike is +/-20 pounds and the car is +/-3000 pounds. It's like bringing a knife to a gun fight (actually a butter knife). In short, when bikes and cars are sharing the road in near proximity, bikes should follow the same rules as cars. The new laws apply when there are no cars near. It's also common sense.

Someone above asked why the law took so long. My observation is that many/most legislators haven't ridden a bike since they got their driver's license
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Old 09-29-20, 06:27 PM
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Originally Posted by MAK
Some above are missing the point of the law. Going through stop signs is permissible when safe to do so, meaning no cars near. When a car and bike approach, it's not safe and the bike should honor the sign and stop.
Yes, there's a legal definition of 'Yield' that remains the same. Yield never means 'go no matter what', it always means 'proceed only if safe'
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Old 09-30-20, 07:29 AM
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Originally Posted by MAK
Someone above asked why the law took so long. My observation is that many/most legislators haven't ridden a bike since they got their driver's license
And my own observation is that too many states could outsource licensing drivers to the same places that sell hunting and fishing licenses -- Walmart, for instance -- with no change in knowledge of road laws or driving skills.
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Old 10-07-20, 03:11 PM
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Originally Posted by MAK
Delaware adopted the yield at stop signs a few years ago.

Some above are missing the point of the law. Going through stop signs is permissible when safe to do so, meaning no cars near. When a car and bike approach, it's not safe and the bike should honor the sign and stop. If the car waves you on, fine, but physics demands that the car has the right of way. The bike is +/-20 pounds and the car is +/-3000 pounds. It's like bringing a knife to a gun fight (actually a butter knife). In short, when bikes and cars are sharing the road in near proximity, bikes should follow the same rules as cars. The new laws apply when there are no cars near. It's also common sense.
I see the Idaho Stop law most useful when dealing with 4-way stops. In this case, the car approaching the intersection on the crossing street must stop at the stop sign, which means they have no more right of way than we do. I still stop when the car is very close to the stop sign (who knows, they may just run it), but not if there's plenty of room between them and the corner.
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Old 10-14-20, 08:25 AM
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Originally Posted by aggiegrads
After one year. Oregon passed it last year. Does not apply to red lights, though, only stop signs.
https://olis.leg.state.or.us/liz/201...Overview/SB998
Previously (same governor) we got the ability to go through 'dead reds' in WA after waiting a cycle (of course some of them don't have cycles but...)
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Old 01-16-21, 12:06 PM
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Love it! It simply legalized what most riders already do, and should do. It's far safer and more fair. There's no logical reason cyclists should be treated as heavy machines.
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Old 01-16-21, 02:00 PM
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Originally Posted by PaulH
Don't like the idea of having different procedures for bikes and cars. Too much hassle -- better when my car habits carry over into cycling. I've never gotten comfortable with right on red. Also, I think that my traffic scan is better when stopped. Same rights, same rules, same habits.
Perhaps you shouldn't be driving if this is too confusing for you. Just sayin'...
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Old 01-16-21, 02:40 PM
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Originally Posted by Helldorado
Agreed. I never take advantage of a "nice" driver waving me through an intersection when it's really their right-of-way. Eventually some impatient driver right behind them will get exasperated and zip around them and hit me in the side. So I just stand there and wave them through as politely as possible.
The closest I’ve come to being killed on the bike was exactly this scenario.
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