IMPACT OF BICYCLE ROLLING STOP LAWS ON SAFETY-RELEVANT BEHAVIORS IN THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST

Abstract

Bicycle Rolling Stop (BRS) laws refer to legislation that allow bicyclists to treat stop signs as yield signs. Many states have passed statutes or attempted to pass similar statutes with varying permissive actions for bicyclists in response to stop signs. Previous research has focused on crash data analysis and the factors the motivate bicyclists who perfor a rolling stop when it is illegal under prevailing law, but no research has identified the safety effects of BRS laws. To that end, this research used stakeholder interviews, an online survey, and a networked driving and bicycling simulator experiment to evaluate the safety implications of the BRS law. Seventeen interviews were conducted with identified stakeholders, including emergency response and law enforcement personnel, legislators, avid cyclists, and non-cyclists. A total of 550 survey responses were collected from residents of Idaho, Washington, and Oregon. Sixty participants successfully completed a networked simulator experiment in which a “live interaction” occurred at a stop-controlled intersection between a participant in the driving simulator and a participant in the bicycling simulator. The results from these different methods consistently concluded that more outreach is needed with regard to BRS laws. This research also provides bicycle advocacy groups, transportation agencies, and decision makers with information to support future legislative decisions, program educational initiatives, and design enforcement practices regarding BRS laws.