SB 959 - Bill relating to W&OD Trail stop signs

We've mentioned several times that the STOP signs on the W&OD Trail road crossings are not enforceable. The latest incident we discussed was about a ticket issued to a cyclist on the Trail in Falls Church. That ticket was dismissed on the recommendation of the Commonwealth Attorney.

SB 959 is a bill making it's way through the Virginia legislature that "Allows local governing bodies to adopt ordinances requiring users of shared-use paths to stop before crossing highways at marked crosswalks." According to the Virginia Bicycling Federation, yesterday the bill made it out of the Senate Transportation Committee. The bill would in effect make the W&OD Trail STOP signs enforceable.

As we've stated earlier, we think police use the STOP signs as a way of harassing cyclists during "sting" operations along the Trail. We think the current law, which is being modified by the proposed bill,  is sufficient to handle situations where a trail crosses a road with a crosswalk. Pedestrians, and cyclists, must not "enter or cross an intersection in disregard of approaching traffic" and motorists "shall yield the right-of-way to any pedestrian crossing such highway." We can't dart out into the crosswalk, but once in the crosswalk motorists must yield. The STOP signs just complicate the situation and have been used as an excuse by motorists not to stop for bicyclists in the crosswalk.

The bill was sponsored by Senator Favola based on a request by the Loudoun Sheriff Department. This is the same department that ticketed cyclists for not putting a foot down at an intersection along the route of the  Reston Century this year.  Loudoun sheriffs are also notorious for targeting cyclists on the MS 150 in 2009. A representative from the department spoke in support of the bill. Thankfully a rep from NVRPA spoke out against the bill.

We have contacted Senator Favola's office and stated our concerns. We're hoping she will abandon the bill.

W&OD STOP sign ticket dismissed

Falls Church police writing a ticket
at Great Falls St.

The cyclist who was cited by Falls Church police for failure to stop at one of the STOP signs along the W&OD Trail at Great Falls St. contested his ticket in court. The ticket was dismissed on the recommendation of the Commonwealth Attorney. Here is an account of what transpired:

Just wanted to let you know that I had my day in court today. While I was ready to plead my case to the judge, I was told by the officer that I can speak with the Commonwealth Attorney present before the hearing begins. Was I glad that I did.

There was a long line so it took a bit before it was my turn. I told her that I was ticketed for rolling through a stop sign on the bike trail on my bike, she paused for a bit, and asked was I aware that there was a stop sign. I told her yes, and not stopping was a bad judgement on my part. But I also explained to her that my past experiences with these intersections and the confusing predicament that I often found myself in can make it difficult to obey the posted sign when it comes to my own safety. She then asked for the ticketing officer to explain what he saw, and his stance was simply that I failed to obey posted sign.

It was what she asked next that I found to be quite interesting. She asked the officer whether or not this intersection was a city street crossing another city street or a crosswalk crossing a city street. At first, the officer didn't seem to understand her, and was trying to say that it was a busy intersection. She repeated the same question again, and he just seemed to be unwilling to acknowledge the fact that the intersection was a crosswalk to street rather than street to street. I ended up chiming in and stated that the intersection was a pedestrian/cyclist crosswalk crossing a city street.

At that point, she made a comment along the line of "I think I see what's going on here", told me that she felt that I know what I did was wrong, and will be more cautious in the future. In the end, she gave me the "benefit of the doubt" and will recommend to the judge that the charge be dropped. That is precisely what the judge did!

Required by Law signs removed from W&OD Trail Stop signs

What's missing from this sign?

The Stop signs on the W&OD Trail have been the subject of much debate over the years. See our numerous posts about the signs. Below the signs was another sign, "Required by Law." We've wondered about those signs since the Stop signs are not VDOT-approved signs and there is some doubt about their enforceability.

The other day our riding partner noticed that the "Required by Law" signs have been removed. The photo on the right was taken at the Hunter Mill/W&OD Trail interaction. What we would really like to see are Yield signs; they warn cyclists but don't allow police to write tickets for not coming to a complete stop. The Stop sign saga continues.

Dr. Gridlock wrote about this topic again today.

The continuing saga of Stop signs on the W&OD Trail

In today's Washington Post there is a letter from our friend Rhonda Krafchin to Dr. Gridlock about motorists who stop abruptly for cyclists on the W&OD Trail. Her concern is: "If I’m obeying my stop sign, I may have a driver to my right come to an unsigned stop. Before I proceed, I need to be clear what a driver to my left is doing, and that driver may not be stopping." That's why I always recommend that cyclists proceed through a crosswalk "one lane at a time." Once you're sure you've controlled that lane, proceed to the next one.

However, I appreciate motorists who stop to allow me to cross at a crosswalk. For one thing, once I"m in the crosswalk they are required by law to yield. The Stop signs just confuse the issue. The discussion about the W&OD Trail Stop signs has a long history and won't be resolved soon. We wrote the following letter to Dr. Gridlock regarding the situation:

Dear Dr. Gridlock,

You summed up the situation in the first line of your comment on the letter from Rhonda Krafchin in Sunday's Post: "Thus, we continue our conversation about who’s supposed to do what at crossings and when they’re supposed to do it." While I understand Rhonda's concerns, I also appreciate motorists stopping for pedestrians and bicyclists at crosswalks. 

The stops signs on the W&OD Trail adjacent to crosswalks are a contradiction. Normally a stop sign indicates a road user must wait until traffic clears before entering the intersection. From 46.2-821: "Before proceeding, he shall yield the right-of-way to the driver of any vehicle approaching on such other highway from either direction." A pedestrian (and bicyclist) has the right-of-way in a crosswalk once they've entered the crosswalk. From 46.2-924, "A. The driver of any vehicle on a highway shall yield the right-of-way to any pedestrian crossing such highway: 1. At any clearly marked crosswalk, whether at mid-block or at the end of any block;" Trail users can't disregard oncoming traffic before entering the crosswalk, but they aren't required to stop if there is no crossing traffic.

VDOT recently conducted a study of the zig-zag markings adjacent to crossings on the W&OD trail. As part of their study they recognized this contradiction: "RECOMMENDATION 5. A review of the Code of Virginia should be undertaken with respect to those sections dealing with trail users on multiuse pathways and their obligation to comply with non-signalized traffic control devices. The purpose of the review should be to determine if legislative changes could help alleviate the confusion about right-of-way, and if so, to suggest appropriate legislative change proposals. Such a review could be initiated, or led, by VDOT’s Traffic Engineering Division with assistance from staff at VTRC. A cursory review of the Code language in this study suggested that trail users on multiuse pathways may not be obligated to comply with non-signalized traffic control devices where the trail intersects a roadway. In addition, the research found there is confusion among motorists and trail users about right-of-way laws regarding the W&OD Trail where a STOP sign is directed toward the trail users. This confusion could compromise safety at these and other similar multiuse trail/roadway intersections."

A major problem with the W&OD Trail stop signs is that police have used them as an excuse to target cyclists for not coming to a complete stop, even when there is no crossing traffic. However, in at least one instance, a cyclist was ticketed by police who used 46.2-821 as the reason. That ticket was dismissed since a trail is not a "highway."

Bruce