Riding to right of white line

In the area where I live it is sometimes safer to ride to the right of the
white line on the berm of the road. Somewhere I read that since bikers have
the same responsibilities as cars that to ride to the right of the line is
breaking the law. If someone hit me, they could claim I was riding
illegally. I was wondering what the situation is. I live in Pennsylvania,
and I have a feeling the rules differ from state to state. Sometimes it is
dangerous to ride on the side because of all the junk and other stuff that
is located there.

Thanks

Tom

In article , tombates@city-
net.com says...
In the area where I live it is sometimes safer to ride to the right of the
white line on the berm of the road. Somewhere I read that since bikers have
the same responsibilities as cars that to ride to the right of the line is
breaking the law. If someone hit me, they could claim I was riding
illegally. I was wondering what the situation is. I live in Pennsylvania,
and I have a feeling the rules differ from state to state. Sometimes it is
dangerous to ride on the side because of all the junk and other stuff that
is located there.


Bikes do have the same rights and responsibilities as cars as far as
obeying traffic signs and signals, yielding the right-of-way, etc.
However, positioning in the lane is almost always (*always*, IME)
specified differently for bikes than for _motor_ vehicles. The most
common rules essentially say that you should ride as far to the right as
is practical. What is "practical" is up to your judgement, and will
vary with traffic, road and weather conditions, and may at times require
you to take the center of the lane.

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Mary wrote:
In the area where I live it is sometimes safer to ride to the right of
the white line on the berm of the road. Somewhere I read that since
bikers have the same responsibilities as cars that to ride to the right
of the line is breaking the law. If someone hit me, they could claim I
was riding illegally. I was wondering what the situation is. I live in
Pennsylvania, and I have a feeling the rules differ from state to state.
Sometimes it is dangerous to ride on the side because of all the junk
and other stuff that is located there.
Thanks
Tom



Most (if not all) state laws consider bicycles vehicles and are required
to obey the normal traffic laws/rules when riding on the road. I don't
think it's illegal to ride on the shoulder unless it's marked as an
emergency lane but most emergency lanes are only on interstate highways
and you probably arn't allowed to ride a bicycle there anyway.

Dan.



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mary (or maybe Tom) wrote:

In the area where I live it is sometimes safer to ride to the right of the
white line on the berm of the road. Somewhere I read that since bikers have
the same responsibilities as cars that to ride to the right of the line is
breaking the law. If someone hit me, they could claim I was riding
illegally. I was wondering what the situation is. I live in Pennsylvania,
and I have a feeling the rules differ from state to state. Sometimes it is
dangerous to ride on the side because of all the junk and other stuff that
is located there.

Thanks

Tom

In general, the white line has little or no bearing on where I choose to
ride. That's true if it's a fog line, or if it's a bike lane stripe.

I choose my road position based on how wide the useable pavement is. A
surface with gravel, potholes & trash isn't useable. Getting too close
to a pavement edge isn't good, either. White line or no white line, I
won't ride where it's too risky. And of course, if there's not enough
room for a car to safely pass, I'll take the lane.

I live just over the state line in Ohio, and I ride in Pennsylvania a
lot. I've never had any trouble with this issue. So don't worry. Just
ride where it's safe.


--
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Frank Krygowski [To reply, remove rodent and vegetable dot com,
replace with cc.ysu dot edu]

mary wrote:

In the area where I live it is sometimes safer to ride to the right
of the white line on the berm of the road. Somewhere I read that
since bikers have the same responsibilities as cars that to ride to
the right of the line is breaking the law. If someone hit me, they
could claim I was riding illegally.

Someone else being charged or blamed for an accident depends on whether *they*
were doing something illlegal, not you.

This is a common misconception about law. People seem to think that any mistake
they make invalidates any other claim they might have, like in children's games.
This is simply not true. The law is more sophisticated than that.

In your case, riding a bicycle or driving a car to the right of the fog line is
probably not illegal. What *is* illegal is not passing safely, or not
maintaining a safe following distance. So if someone hits you from behind,
they're almost always 100% at fault, unless it can be proven you were riding
erratically.

I was wondering what the
situation is. I live in Pennsylvania, and I have a feeling the rules
differ from state to state. Sometimes it is dangerous to ride on the
side because of all the junk and other stuff that is located there.

This is why you should ride in the lane proper, to the left of the fog line, but
"as far to the right as practicable" (as VA law says, and probably PA law too).
It is the responisbility of other vehicles to pass safely.

Matt O.

mary wrote:
In the area where I live it is sometimes safer to ride to the right of the
white line on the berm of the road. Somewhere I read that since bikers have
the same responsibilities as cars that to ride to the right of the line is
breaking the law. If someone hit me, they could claim I was riding
illegally. I was wondering what the situation is. I live in Pennsylvania,
and I have a feeling the rules differ from state to state. Sometimes it is
dangerous to ride on the side because of all the junk and other stuff that
is located there.

In California everything to the right of the white line on the right
side of the road is the "shoulder" (unless it is called a "bicycle lane"
or something else on a sign). Vehicles may not in general travel on the
shoulder, but an exception is written into the law for bicycles which
may (or may not at, their option) use it.

Assuming the definitions are the same I think the situation is identical
in Pennsylvania. Take a look at

http://www.massbike.org/bikelaw/palaw.htm

in section 3505 for the exception.

Dennis Ferguson

"Matt O'Toole" wrote:

This is why you should ride in the lane proper, to the left of the fog line, but
"as far to the right as practicable" (as VA law says, and probably PA law too).
It is the responisbility of other vehicles to pass safely.

What's a fog line?

In article ,
says...
"Matt O'Toole" wrote:

This is why you should ride in the lane proper, to the left of the fog line, but
"as far to the right as practicable" (as VA law says, and probably PA law too).
It is the responisbility of other vehicles to pass safely.

What's a fog line?

The line along the right (or left in countries which drive on the left)
edge of the outside lane, which separates the driving lane from the
shoulder.

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Michael Press wrote:

"Matt O'Toole" wrote:

This is why you should ride in the lane proper, to the left of the
fog line, but "as far to the right as practicable" (as VA law says,
and probably PA law too). It is the responisbility of other vehicles
to pass safely.

What's a fog line?

That's the common technical term for the white line along the side of the road.
Its purpose is to make the edge of the road more visible in fog, and/or at
night.

Matt O.

"mary" wrote:

Somewhere I read that since bikers have
the same responsibilities as cars that to ride to the right of the line is
breaking the law. If someone hit me, they could claim I was riding
illegally. I was wondering what the situation is. I live in Pennsylvania,
and I have a feeling the rules differ from state to state.

http://www.dot.state.pa.us/BIKE/WEB/bikelaws.htm has a summary of
Pennsylvania law that pertains to cyclists. Cyclists are permitted but
not always required to ride to the right of the line. Where bicycle
traffic is permitted on freeways, cyclists are required to ride in the
shoulder.

Colorodo (where I live) law states that cyclists must ride in the
paved shoulder if one is provided, with the usual provisos about
overtaking traffic, obstructions, etc.

RFM