from country roads due to safety concerns.
(Photo: FoxTV/St. Louis)
-Watch video below-
When a ban on people riding bicycles went into effect in the small casino town of Black Hawk Colorado last month, it seemed like an anomaly. Many people were outraged by it and advocates are still working to overturn it, but it seemed like just a case of small town politics gone awry. Now, Black Hawk’s city leaders must be feeling a bit of validation after a much larger and more formal ban is being seriously considered by the Council of St. Charles County, Missouri.
A County councilman, Joe Brazil, introduced the idea on the grounds that the roads are simply too narrow to accomodate anything other than people in cars. He says it’s a safety issue (and not just for people on bikes). In the video below from local TV coverage, Brazil says:
“There’s no shoulders, there’s limited sight distance, and the speed limit is 55mph. It’s very dangerous to be riding bicycles on these roads and you’re putting the motorists in danger.”
Brazil and other supporters of the ban are using the story of a young girl who crashed her car into a tree in 2003 and sustained serious injuries after swerving to avoid someone on a bike (her badly swollen and stitched up face and her mangled car make an appearance in the TV coverage).
Interestingly, Councilman Brazil opposed a county smoking ban back in April on the grounds that smoking is “a matter of a personal choice”.
There was a St. Charles County council meeting on the issue last night and judging from news reports, the room was packed. The issue has been tabled until next month and the council is considering adding more roads and highways to the bike ban list. Here’s a video with comments from Councilman Brazil and others both for and against the ban:
Everyone who cares about biking in America should watch this video. I found it to be scary and surreal. Have we really come to a point when we will simply give our roads over to the fastest vehicles? This same line of reasoning could be used to close all types of roads where there are fast-moving cars and no room for anything else.
I feel for the young woman who was hurt trying to avoid someone on a bike, but using that example as a reason to ban people riding bikes is absurd. How many deaths and injuries have occurred on those same roads between two people in cars? Rural roads are the main cause of traffic fatalities in America. We should do more to ban speeding than to ban people using a vehicle that is incapable of it.
For Portland-area readers, did you notice how similar these roads look to the Willamette Valley and rural roads throughout our region? If you think this is something other countys across America won’t consider, you’re fooling yourself.
Everyone frames this as “motorists” and “bicyclists” — but this is not about mode labels, this is about people and mobility. Our shared roads (being different from interstate highways and biking trails) are built to move people from one place to another. It’s an extremely slippery slope to even consider policy that would ban one type of user simply because they travel more slowly than another and are seen as an inconvenience to maintaining a certain speed.
If Mr. Brazil is concerned about safety, perhaps he should focus on educating people to slow down and operate vehicles with caution and consideration for others.
I hope the Great Defender of Non-motorized Transportation, US DOT Secretary Ray LaHood, is paying attention to St. Charles County. If he truly believes his headline-making proclamation about the “end of favoring motorized transportation” he should hop on a train to Defiance, Missouri and find an empty tabletop for next month’s council meeting.
Nothing smacks more of favoring motorized transportation than trying to outlaw other modes simply because they are perceived as a nuisance to going fast.
— Learn more about the proposed St. Charles County ban via the action alert from the Missouri Bicycle and Pedestrian Federation. Learn how people that ride bikes in the St. Louis area are reacting to the proposal by reading this thread in the St. Louis Biking forums.
UPDATE: St. Louis Today reports that the Missouri DOT says St. Charles County has no authority to enforce a ban like this. But Mr. Brazil is undeterred.
Thanks for reading.
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Thanks for cogently articulating this as a public access issue rather than a modal issue.
If Ray LaHood hasn’t heard about this yet, he probably will soon. St. Charles County borders his home state. Given the politics of Missouri, though, any attention from anyone in the Obama administration on this matter may serve to make this a Democrat vs Republican issue, even though the majority of cyclists who ride on Missouri roads are likely as Republican as Brazil.
insane.
IANAL, however I am not sure these laws will hold up to constitutional muster. Roads are public and paid for with public tax dollars.
You can’t selectively decide who gets to use them.
There is for sure some sort of aspect of discrimination, or interstate commerce, or freedom to travel or what have you.
Funny thing is… many of the drivers that I’ve met in Oregon already think that it’s illegal to ride on the highway.
In reality, it’s not cycling that’s dangerous on those roads, it’s driving a motor vehicle that is dangerous. Might as well make it illegal for the sun to shine because the light might blind drivers and make them crash into things.
Drivers are holy and blameless creatures and must be protected from slowpokes.
Wow. What tyranny of the majority.
Blaming a bicyclist for causing a 16 yo girl to lose control of her Lexus SUV. How does that work exactly?
All the roads on the ban are the only connectors for very popular cycling routes that are no different than any other state highway in the area, Missouri, Illinois, or Kansas, etc.
I called Joe Brazil last Friday (I live in STL) and he doesn’t even understand the concept of road cycling.
He just repeated his statement that “we have spent millions of dollars on parks with bike paths and the Katy Trail {Rails-to-Trails project) and we simply can’t have cyclists on the roads.”
He also repeatedly stated that “cyclists are a danger to motorists”.
This is really close to home for us but I hope others can find a way to support our cause, calling, writing, or whatever can be done.
Brad,
thanks for your comment. i hope you keep us posted as things develop down there. I’m glad you brought up the Katy Trail. It’s a common line of reasoning for politicians and some others to think ‘we made you your own trail, so go use it and stay off of ours.’
I wonder if Mr. Brazil and others would apply the same reasoning to motorized vehicle traffic. After all, ALL OF US have contributing billions in tax dollars to build and maintain the Interstate Highway System… so perhaps motor vehicles should be relegated to only using those?
I wonder if the county is also banning the Amish buggies, considering they are an identical hazard.
I can just imagine an armchair of TV viewers cheering Brazil as he champions for motorist safety by removing the bicycle threat from the roadways. Should it come to pass, a dark day for the bicycle indeed.
This is bat#$%t crazy. These are the kinds of people who burn books too. Absolutely ignorant and insane.
If we banned travel on every road there was an accident on there would be no more roads to use.
It’s awesome that they want to improve the roads with shoulders, but a shoulder is not exactly a recipe for safety. If they really cared about safety they would lower the speed limit, educate and enforce the law.
Does this ban prevent all slow-moving vehicles from accessing the rural roadways in St. Charles County? If so, how will farm vehicles operate on the roadways out there? Or is it really a proposed ban zeroed in on bicycles and not a discussion about fast vehicles interacting safely with slower vehicles?
shirtsoff wrote:
Yes. this is just about bicycles: The proposal reads: “Prohibit bicycles on Highway DD, D, F, Z & 94 from Hwy. 40 to County line until shoulders or bicycle lanes are in place.”
and to get a better idea of what we are dealing with…
Joe Brazil was very opposed to the smoking ban that was recently put into place because it was making restrictions on personal freedoms.
There was at least one voice of reason on the council who said that she hadn’t formed an opinion on this issue yet because they hadn’t discussed it during other meetings and no studies have been done yet. She pointed out the fact to Joe Brazil that his opposition to the smoking ban goes against his stance on this cycling ban.
So there is a glimmer of hope if a real effort can be made to squash this thing.
none of these bans will stand up in court
BURR,
Do you want to be the one to test the case? Ask Chipseal about how that’s going for him in Texas.
The county roads here in Missouri are definitely dangerous – for anyone. One reason why they’re so narrow is so that they can accommodate storm water ditches. Because of the sharp drop-offs, any deviation of driving/riding straight on these roads can lead to vehicles dangerously veering off the road rather quickly. I’ve had a few close shaves myself due to opposing traffic hugging or crossing the center lines.
Coming from Oregon, where I saw bicyclists on nearly every road at one point or another, I know how to safely share the road with (the few, brave) bike riders I encounter. Many people haven’t figured out how to do that.
If Missouri really wants to solve the problem of bicyclist and motorist safety on these roads, their counties need to invest real money into covering storm water ditches and widening these roads. The rails-to-trails idea is a good start, but those old lines usually don’t connect anywhere in a viable way; therefore, they don’t really serve any other than purely recreational bicyclists. I’d love to see real bike lanes on actual streets and roads here; barring that, if there are at least shoulders to ride on, then we can reduce accidents dramatically.
How about banning 16 year old kids from operating speeding heavy machinery?
Have to say – riding the TransAmerica in 1998, Missouri was my least favorite state. People I encountered talked about doing cyclists harm more than any other place I rode.
A typical encounter went something like,
“Oh you riding a bike?, You know we run cyclists off the road around here. Ha Ha”
So yeah, this does not surprise me one bit.
ick.
What a ***personal insult deleted***!!! I don’t even have words to describe how dumb and frustrating it is that anyone actually thinks that is a good idea.
Whenever I see stuff like this I think of a quip I overheard when some people were discussing bikes: “I swear, sometimes I think every one of these proposals was thought up by some cranky old dude who got cut off in traffic by a rude cyclist.”
they continue to mention the high speeds on the road but never mention that lowering the speed may be an option…
Get to know MO- Joe:
http://interact.stltoday.com/blogzone/chas-beat/politics/2010/01/judge-rejects-county-councilman-joe-brazils-defamation-suit/
The 1982 death occurred when Brazil was a senior at McCluer North High School during a prank in which sand was dumped on a parking lot. Norval Pierce was killed when he jumped or fell from a dump truck Brazil was driving and the truck ran over him.
What can we do here or anywhere else other than St. Charles to combat this ban? What’s next? Banning people from walking along roads or crossing them? This is absurd and it must stop!
“There’s no shoulders, there’s limited sight distance, and the speed limit is 55mph.”
If that’s the case, then the speed limit should be much lower than 55 mph. Joe Brazil sounds like a typical tea-bagger. ***personal insult deleted***
Folks. I realize there are strong feelings about Mr. Brazil, but direct personal insults are not helpful and I won’t allow them to stay (if I miss some, please let me know). In these situations, the best “win” is to try and promote your position without tearing down or disrespecting the other side. Once you start calling people names, they will either retrench and retaliate or they will disconnect from the dialogue — both of which do not help the situation. Thanks!
I Googled Joe Brazil, and found (as I suspected) he’s a Republican. Usually they are the ones decrying “the nanny state”. Given his stance on the smoking ban, I guess personal liberty is trumped by his behind-the-wheel convenience.
Is it true that texting and hand-held cell phones are OK for drivers in MO?
As I learned Vehicle Operation 101, you should never travel at a speed where you cannot safely react to anything that might be on the roadway in front of you. If you can’t stop in the portion of road that you see before a blind curve or the crest of a hill, you can’t avoid whatever is up there that you can’t see.
By Mr. Brazil’s logic, the ban needs to extend to deer, dogs, fallen tree limbs, farm implements, and any sort of pedestrian (children, locals checking their mailbox…).
To some extent the narrow road argument is a red herring (others have noted thoughtfully how speed is a much better variable to home in on). When I was last in Germany, driving on a country road I grew up on I stopped, got out, and measured the width of the road (with my feet/shoes). I knew it as a narrow road, but to my surprise it turned out to be 9′ wide, including both fog lines. While not heavily traveled, it was a two-way road, and the only route by which to access the hamlet where I was staying. Gives one pause.
And yes, bicycles were both common and accepted on this road alongside cars and the occasional truck.
Several areas of the state have some texting/cell phone while driving restrictions but as far as a state law there is a State law for anyone under 21 specifically for texting while driving in MO (does not apply to over 21 for some dumb reason). These accidents are usually handled under the existing “Careless and Imprudent Driving” laws.
There is also no word on whether the shoulders they are planning to build will be suitable for road cycling as they are typically gravel unless in a city or town.
Missouri state law allows cyclists to “take the lane when necessary” so even if gravel shoulders are in place we will still be in the lane.
Several supporters spoke up during the meeting, including the father of the girl that crashed her car and said that they intend to hit cyclists in the roadway instead of avoiding them. The father of the girl said he was instructing his children just to hit the cyclists instead of swerving out of the way.
And the poster child for the ban was a 16-year old driver who crashed seven years ago… I’d think that with no better evidence of a problem in the interim, the seven year gap shows that there ISN’T a problem …
Generally, state laws trump local laws in traffic matters, but I haven’t been able to find much in Missouri statutes that would prevent a county from banning bicycles. But I also haven’t found much that would prevent a county from banning any vehicle — car, tractor, horse-drawn carriage, etc. — from its roads.
This question may end up having to be defined at the state level, and at the federal level to the extent that counties receive federal road funds.
How wide are the roads in question? Commenter Stanley Kost #17 says,
“The county roads here in Missouri are definitely dangerous – for anyone. One reason why they’re so narrow is so that they can accommodate storm water ditches. …”
So Stanley, I’ll ask you…how wide are the roads County councilman, Joe Brazil is talking about? He, or someone else believing a ban of bikes on county roads is in order, is going to have to produce stronger evidence that a true danger that can’t be remedied outside of a ban, exists.
Washington County here in Oregon has been largely agricultural for many years. For many years up until the last couple decades, many of it’s roads were kind of narrow, had little shoulder and sloped into ditches as you describe. Allowing for occasional exceptions, I think that people using bikes and people operating motor vehicles mostly got along fine together on these roads.
There’s always someone that’s going to be frustrated about going a little too slow, or being temporarily held up behind a slower vehicle while waiting for a break in traffic to make a pass. This isn’t a sufficient reason to eliminate the opportunity for people to use a primary mode of transportation on the road. Not everyone can afford a motor vehicle, or has access to public transportation.
Just mark the roads we CAN use and WHEN on GPS units and give the maps out to cyclists and we will be happy to stay off whatever road you want. Have the GPS monitor us if you like to keep us in line–do the same with motorists. Just give us some way to get where we’re going. Where joint use is mandatory, put in a bike lane & share the road signage. Cyclist are happy to obey traffic laws promulgated by local authorities. We’re also happy to vote against them in the next local election.
there is majority rule and there is logic.
One wonders here what would happen if logic overwhelmed the perspective that is assumed to carry the day simply because the majority are assumed to drive (and not bike) and therefore side with a perspective that advantages that approach.
Logic here and in other instances discussed here would suggest to me that if something must be banned it is the car, or at least the speed or manner of driving that is associated with the ‘danger.’ Without seeking to assign blame, the girl who crashed because her passing maneuver was unsuccessful would almost certainly not have died if she had been riding a bicycle. The overall level of danger present would decrease in patently obvious ways if cars–the mode that makes speed the norm–were reined in rather than bikes whose presence it seems to me is difficult to equate so obviously with danger.
I do want to point out that cycling in central MO specifically in and around Sedalia, MO is amazing. I’ve been missing it ever since moving to Saint Louis.
The roads are great, share the road signs are going up everywhere, the Katy Trail runs through the middle. No different than these on the bill though.
I put on a Criterium and Road Race there 2 years in a row a couple years ago before moving.
If you get a chance to be in the area stop by Pro-Velo in downtown Sedalia and say high to Ebby and Norm.
Stay in Hotel Bothwell and go for a bike ride. If you stay at Hotel Bothwell and you tell them you are cyclists they will stock Gu or Gels or what ever sports drink you want within reason to make your stay more accommodating. Its great and former U.S. Presidents and Elvis have stayed there. Its also across the street from the bike shop.
So my point is that its not a state wide problem. Missouri as a whole loves cycling there are just a few ill-informed persons who sometimes have positions of power but you’ll find that anywhere.
I meant ‘she would have been less seriously injured.’
Yikes. Somehow speed has managed to become a legal or natural right, one which is most evident when people are frustrated with traffic jams or when we open the throttle on rural roads. I remember when biking in Montana, drivers would give me tons of space if they could, but they’d never slow down if they couldn’t.
I’ll agree with Stanley (#17): Midwestern rural roads are dangerous, if only because the lack of both cars and bicyclists can lull anyone into a false sense of safety and solitude. Most if the rural county roads I’ve ridden in Wisconsin don’t have the same drainage problem, however. The best approach to this more general issue is taken by WSDOT, who not only do a pretty good job making sure rural highways have decent shoulders, but also publishes a statewide map showing the best routes for bicycling (http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/bike/statemap.htm).
Having ridden across Missouri, I can understand the fear of unseen objects over the next rise or around the next bend. It is hilly with mostly 2 lane blacktop and fair distances between destinations. It was also the only state in my transcontinental ride where anyone threatened our group’s safety by throwing bottles and cans from passing vehicles. The Council of St. Charles has an opportunity to educate road users of all kinds how to share the resources they’ve all paid to use. Lowering speed limits would be great but a basic Share-the-Road campaign would go a long way toward ensuring the safety of all users by educating the citizenry rather than dividing it up into factions. If you pass this ban, you will be fighting over it at your expense for a long time to come. Much more cost effective (and re-election secure) to have everyone slow down a bit, save money, and watch out for their neighbors. I am astonished that in this time of increasing concern for energy security, public health and domestic economic well being that such a ban could be considered. Totally bassackwards but don’t be ashamed because you found a teachable moment. Use it.
How did we get here? To a society that prizes freedom, mobility and no personal responsibility for drivers of autos?
I think the elephant in the room in this case is that EVERYONE realizes, even if only subconsiously, that driving in traffic is so dangerous that it is almost impossible to do it without screwing up if anything out of the ordinary happens.
Sure there are some Top Gun drivers that will never get in or cause a crash. The realization that you could die on the road from your own or someone elses screw ups must cause a denial that reaches all the way way back to the motive: “I must drive therefore I am a safe driver”.
And so drivers deny that they could possibly be to blame for an “accident” because to admit that is to admit that they could have just as easily been snuffed out.
Makes me want to be able to opt-out of road taxes.
I’ll semi-agree with 9watts back apiece that narrow width roads being a strong reason to ban bikes, may be overstated. Haven’t personally been there, but what I’ve seen of roads in film footage of various places in Europe, England, Switzerland…France, Italy…show narrow, even single width road that people are accustomed to using all modes of transportation on…foot, bike, motor vehicle, horse/mule and wagon.
Advent of the cheap automobile…the model T in this country, has likely played a major role in people losing respect for walking and biking. This has happened in China, and it may happen in India with introduction of the Tata car.
On the other hand most of us reading probably recognize that some of the people that ride bikes do a number of things that generate animosity from other road users, directed towards bikes as transportation. Here’s a recent thread from over at bikeforums that gives a possible example of this:
<a href="link“>Massachusetts Road Biking Scenario, what do you think/bikeforums, posted by ‘covalent jello’
Did something wrong with the link…I’ll try it again:
Massachusetts Road Biking Scenario, what do you think/bikeforums, posted by ‘covalent jello
Bicycles are dangerous. Children should be able to drive SUVs without bicycles on the same roads. Think of the children!
Must be really funny looking roads if they’re too narrow for bicycles yet wide enough for luxury SUVs.
What would have happened if the Lexus SUV driving 16 year old girl (now 23?) had encountered a broken down vehicle instead of the bicycle?
Don’t drive too fast for conditions.
Don’t cycle too fast for conditions.
Car head. The obvious potential solutions here are a) raise the legal driving age to one that better ensures drivers have the maturity necessary to exercise good judgment while “operating speeding heavy machinery”, b) Lower the speed limit on narrow roads with blind corners.
Banning bikes from non-interstate highways is the most backwards “safety measure” ever conceived. If bans like this start going into effect unchallenged, the domino effect could be horrendous.
Next thing you know they’ll be banning mountain bikers from trails used by hikers.
Oh, wait…
http://www.tourofmissouri.com/
TOUR OF MISSOURI SET TO CANCEL FOR 2010
Event Will Cancel If Sponsorship Funding Not Released by Tourism
May 27, 2010 (St. Louis, Mo.)
— After a seven-month negotiation with State Tourism, which included a bi-partisan state senate and house approval of $1 million in support for the Tour of Missouri sponsorship, the United States’ second biggest professional cycling event and one of the top stage races outside of Europe, will be officially cancelled should earmarked funds not be released by Tourism and the Governor, according to the board of directors of Tour of Missouri, Inc.
“This may be a win for the Missouri Tourism Commission and the Governor, but a huge loss for the state of Missouri and its citizens,” said Mike Weiss, chairman of the Tour of Missouri, Inc. “It has been an insanely complicated battle for something so beneficial, and it’s left all of us absolutely baffled. This event, in three short years, has blossomed into the crown jewel for the state of Missouri with a broadcast to 150-plus countries, visitors from more than 40 states, direct economic impact of more than $80 million dollars over three years, and garnered state legislative support, only to have funding held up by the director of Tourism and the Governor for 2010.
Weiss added: “What has been lost in the mix is whether this money is better spent on things like print ads or a multi-dimensional approach that garners regional and international publicity for our state. The ROI is evident but we haven’t been able to plead our case to the Governor because he won’t take our meetings despite all the public support.”
Weiss and Vice Chairman Brent Hugh acknowledged and expressed gratitude to the enormous public support and the bi-partisan state senate and house leaders that supported the legislation to appropriate $1,000,000 to Tourism earmarked for sponsorship of the event. They have been declined meetings with the Governor regarding the decision.
“All you really have to do is look at the hundreds of comments posted on various news sites and social media forums to see the overwhelming support for Tourism to fund this event,” said Hugh.
Weiss noted that the $3.5 million event budget is less than 30 percent funded by the Missouri Tourism sponsorship and that most of the corporate and city funding has been tied to the assurance of endemic support from the state.
“The success of the Tour of Missouri the past three years has been a result of the public-private partnerships, thanks in part to the initiative of the State, ” said Chris Aronhalt, managing partner of Medalist Sports, Inc. the event’s managers. “The leadership and support unfortunately appears to no longer exist, which is an integral element of a successful event of this nature. Of course, we are very disappointed, but we are also proud of the Tour’s meteoric rise in the sports world, as well as grateful for the long lasting relationships made along the way.”
Weiss said Medalist Sports of Atlanta and its marketing partner KOM Sports Marketing of Colorado Springs are “the only group in the country that could have brought the Tour of Missouri to its world-class level” in such a short period of time.
“From the first-class marketing of the event, to the world’s best teams, to the flawless execution; the teams, athletes and spectators loved this event,” said Weiss. “In three short years, along with the host cities and corporate partners, Medalist and KOM really made this event shine internationally. As a Missouri native, I thought it was great to have a world-class event roll into town every year. I think everyone who experienced this event was very impressed. This race is the rare world-class professional sporting event that everyone could enjoy for free.”
Grew up in MO. Loved the bike tours between the wineries. Lots of black top and VERY few cars out in the country. No cans or bottles thrown at me, but everybody I know experienced it.
hey Brent,
In Texas there’s a town called Anna, and they where able to prevent cycling down the major roads in their town even though state law would allow bikes to ride there.
Gives a new meaning to the phrase: “Black Hawk Down”
Brazil didb’t hold himself accountable when he drove a dump truck over a highs school student, so why would anyone think he would care to hold another driver accountable for killing a cyclist?
Just a question Brazil, when you dream a night, do you hear the kid’s screams, or do you just pretend the truck noise covered it up?
“Brazil didb’t hold himself accountable when he drove a dump truck over a highs school student, so why would anyone think he would care to hold another driver accountable for killing a cyclist?
Just a question Brazil, when you dream a night, do you hear the kid’s screams, or do you just pretend the truck noise covered it up?”
Huh? I’m no fan of Brazil, but I think you’re making some assumptions here. What makes you think he didn’t hold himself accountable? What makes you think it didn’t affect him like it would anyone else? The article above is about him trying to clear his name when someone accused him of being drunk when it happened. Something which is totally false. Where’s your compassion?
If you start acting like the people you despise, you’ll become them.
My point is simple, Brazil himself should know that reckless and childish drivers–and not their victims–are responsible for their actions.
I am no fan of reckless and childish cyclists either but the point at hand is Brazil’s flawed decision making. Now his flawed and illogical thought process raises its ugly head again, at least this time, no high schoolers are in eminent danger.