Editor John Balentine’s recent editorial, “It’s a two-way street,” notes correctly that bicycling is a healthy and environmentally friendly form of transportation, and that bicyclists do have a right to use the road. However, some of his terminology such as “hogging the road,” and especially the admonition for bicyclists to “realize their place in the hierarchy” is indicative of the wide gulf between how bicyclists really keep themselves safe in traffic, and what looks safe or dangerous, considerate or rude, to the general public.

There is simply no legal basis for the idea of any hierarchy among people using a public road, whether by bike, on foot, or in any kind of motor vehicle. The right of ALL people to use public roads for travel by any means is actually well established in the law. In fact, the most heavily codified portion of the law is dedicated to motor vehicles due to their danger to vulnerable, non-motorized users as well as other motorists, not because their drivers have more rights than other road users. The idea that motorists are entitled to pass a bicycle at all times has no legal basis, but its prevalence in the public mind contributes to many negative incidents between motorists and bicyclists. Motorists need to treat bicycles like any other slow moving traffic – slow down, and wait for a safe place to pass.

Mr. Balentine rightly encourages riders to heed the law. Following are a list of situations in which Maine state law is fairly clear about bicyclists’ use of the travel lane.

In Title 29-A, Chapter 19, Section 2063, Maine law states that a bicycle must be operated “on the right portion of the way as far as practicable except when it is unsafe to do so as determined by the bicyclist.” It further explicitly enumerates many examples of when it would be unsafe to stay right, including passing a parked car. In Section 2070, the law states that a motorist “shall exercise due care by leaving a distance between the motor vehicle and the bicycle … of not less than 3 feet.” Importantly, Section 2070 also states that it is legal to cross a double yellow line to do so, if safe.

In the incident that prompted the editorial, the bicyclist identified the row of parked cars as a potential hazard, and he made an operational decision that was legally his to make, based upon the circumstances in that time and place. Being “doored” can result in serious injury to a bicyclist and damage to the bike. It can even be fatal, as in the case of John Kavanagh in Durham, N.H., last August. Hitting a door usually causes a bicyclist to be thrown into the adjacent travel lane where he could be run over by a large vehicle, like a school bus. The presence of the bicycle lane in the “door zone” does not change these dynamics, and the bicyclist was correct to avoid it.

The only individual in this incident who broke the law was the bus driver, who passed in a manner that was neither safe, courteous, nor legal. He squeezed his bus between the bicyclist and the last car in the oncoming lane. What prevented him from waiting two more seconds for that last car to pass?

Motorists should understand that when a bicyclist is riding near or in the middle of a lane, they very likely are doing so because they know it would be unsafe to try to share a narrow lane (another exception listed in Section 2063). The appropriate response is to change lanes to pass, when safe.

It is unfortunate that there are many bicyclists who do not follow the law, who violate red lights and other traffic controls, travel the wrong way in traffic, and generally ride unpredictably and unsafely. The important distinction to be made is between those who ride their bicycle safely and legally, which in some cases may include riding in the middle of the travel lane, and those who ride illegally, unsafely and unpredictably. I work with organizations like the Bicycle Coalition of Maine and the American Bicycling Education Association to educate bicyclists about safe and legal behavior, as well as improve enforcement of laws against actual dangerous and illegal behavior.

I agree that simply showing some courtesy, caution, and a bit of patience on both sides will help create an environment that is safe for all users of the roadway. Please understand that when you see a bicyclist controlling their space, they are not only keeping themselves safe, they are also trying to help the motorists around them avoid costly mistakes.

John Brooking is a Westbrook resident who has commuted by bicycle year-round since 2002. He teaches cyclists to be safe and confident in traffic using the CyclingSavvy program of the American Bicycling Education Association.