WKTR-TV3 asks: “Are Virginia Beach drivers killing without consequence?” Yes, they are:

“City records show that nearly 40 Virginia Beach drivers have killed bicyclists and pedestrians in the past 10 years and faced not even a traffic ticket. Seven more faced charges for driving away after the accidents, but nothing for the crashes themselves. Only two motorists faced reckless-driving charges for killing pedestrians. The last time that happened was 10 years ago.”

Commonwealth’s Attorney Harvey Bryant claims that the law doesn’t support prosecuting these cases. A report by the Virginia Transportation Research Council points out “due care” statutes that are in the Uniform Vehicle Code, but not in the Code of Virginia; and that Virginia is one of only 4 states that don’t explicitly require drivers to exercise due care around cyclists and pedestrians. Thanks to Bruce Drees for finding this, and posting it at The Hampton Roads Cyclist, where he concludes:

“…law enforcement shifts the blame to the legislature for not enacting sufficient legal protections. Yet advocates seeking legislative remedies have been rebuffed on the premise that the existing reckless driving law is sufficient and that it’s the enforcement types who are not doing their jobs.”

and,

“Can we get a little help here?”

Please share this story, and leave some good comments at WKTR.

Event to Celebrate  Bicycle Advocates Guide

On Thursday, November 4, Fairfax Advocates for Better Bicycling  (FABB) will host a reception to celebrate the launch of their statewide, “Guide for Reviewing Public Road Design and Bicycling Accommodations for Virginia Bicycle Advocates,”    The event will be held from 9 – 10:30 am at the Patrick Henry Library, 101 Maple Avenue, Vienna, VA 22180. 

The guide demystifies and streamlines the confusing road design, approval and funding  process in Virginia with easy-to-follow flow charts, handy check lists and explanations that make sense to those who don’t have a degree in engineering.  The guide is a great resource for those wanting to get involved  to influence local projects.

FABB is hosting the celebration to thank all of those who supported the project. 

“The local officials gave us many useful insights.  We appreciated all of their support in working to improve the quality of community dialog”, said FABB’s Bruce Wright. 

The guide was published in July of 2010.

Richmond City Council unanimously passed a pro bike and pedestrian resolution that could help foster  regional cooperation for a connected network  of bike paths and trails in Central Virginia. 

The resolution, sponsored by 9th District  Councilman Doug Conner, calls for efforts to:

connect trails, bikeways, paths, rails-to-trails, rails-with-trails and greenways with neighboring localities, to partner with national organizations to connect our trails, bikeways, paths, rails-to-trails, rails-with-trails and greenways with national trails and greenways

Similar pro-bike resolutions have been passed by Ashland and New Kent counties.

Barbara Duerk and Dave Walsh are teaching two Traffic Skills 101 courses, in Roanoke and Lexington. Each course is 9 hours long: 3 hours on a Thursday evening, plus 6 hours during the day on a Saturday, with an hour break for lunch. Cost is $35.

Traffic Skills 101 is the new name for the Road I course by the League of American Bicyclists.

Learn to ride confidently, competently, safely, and legally in traffic, fix flats, and check your bike for good working order.

The Roanoke course will be this Thursday, Oct. 28, 6-9pm, and Saturday, Oct 30, 9am-4pm at Sharebike, at the corner of Jefferson and Elm in downtown Roanoke.

The Lexington course will be Thursday, Nov. 4, 6-9pm, and Saturday, Nov. 6, 9am-4pm, location still to be determined.

We strongly support the League’s Smart Cycling program. A majority of VBF Board are certified League Cycling Instructors (LCI). If you’re offering a League course anywhere in Virginia, please let us know — we’re happy to help you promote it.