In a unanimous vote, the Ann Arbor City Council eliminated their bike registration ordinance according to the Ann Arbor Chronicle. According to the Chronicle, the current registration ordinance wasn’t working.

At a February meeting of the council — in the context of discussions on a possible revision to the registration program, as well as a revision to all the city’s ordinances on bicycling — Carsten Hohnke (Ward 5) had reported that the registration program had in recent years, not resulted in the return of stolen bicycles to their owners. The return of stolen bicycles to their owners is an often-cited benefit of the program.

Specifically, Hohnke had said that from September of 2007 to the present, 39 stolen bikes had been recovered and returned to their owners — but in none of those cases had the bicycle registration program been instrumental. The return of those bicycles had been the result of regular police work.

The city staff is apparently looking at a new and improved bike registration ordinance, though it’s unclear why they would if the police have not needed it to return stolen bicycles.

The Ann Arbor Chronicle recently published this interesting article on local bicycling history, but especially on bike law and bloomers.

The 1876 Ann Arbor city charter contains no mention of bicycles — it wouldn’t be until two years later that A. A. Pope manufactured the first bicycles in the U.S. The invention spread across the nation, threw city fathers into consternation as they scrambled for their city charters, and incited Ann Arbor’s “Bloomer War.”

The Chronicle also notes that Ann Arbor’s recent debate on banning sidewalk bicycling is not new.

In Michigan, state law does not prohibit bicycling on sidewalks though it does allow cities to prohibit it. Some have prohibited sidewalk riding citywide (e.g. Royal Oak) while others have limited the ban to their business district (e.g. Ferndale.) Often such bans provide exceptions for children.

State law also requires these city specific regulations to be adequately signed, otherwise they’re not enforceable.

The intention of these laws is not always clear, though it seems reducing pedestrian-bicyclist conflict is often cited. Are they also intended to promote safer cycling by reducing vehicle-bicycle collisions? Studies have shown that riding on sidewalks is significantly more dangerous than roads.

A recent review of police crash reports in Royal Oak and Troy found that nearly all crashes occurred on sidewalks or in crosswalks.

It should be noted that many Metro Detroit outer-ring suburbs ignore national AASHTO guidelines and best practices by designating sidewalks and sidepaths (locally known as “safety paths”) as bicycle routes. In these cases it could be argued that vehicle mobility — getting bicyclists off the road — is the fundamental justification, not safety.

There’s a popular bumper sticker that says “Same Roads, Same Rights, Same Rules.”

It sounds good, but it’s clearly not true and often not even desirable..

During an internet discussion about making drivers more aware of bicyclists’ rights, someone suggested having a required question for those renewing their driver’s licenses: Do bicyclists have the same rights to the roads as drivers?

They thought the answer was “Yes”, but they were mistaken.

Similarly, some have said bicycle advocates shouldn’t pursue rolling stop or vulnerable user legislation because it would make cyclists a separate group. Too late. We are a separate group despite what the bumper sticker implies.

Same Roads?

Michigan Bicyclists have access to nearly all of Michigan’s roads, but there are major exceptions including all limited-access expressways and ramps, such as I-75 and M-14. The tunnel and bridge between Detroit and Windsor are not open to bicyclists either.

And of course you can ride a bike on state trunkline M-185 but you can drive on it. That’s the road around Mackinaw Island.

Same Rights and Rules?

While bicyclists have similar rights as motorists, there are limitations. We must ride to the far right where practicable. We cannot ride on limited-access expressways. We have no special privileges in funeral processions.

Bicyclists do have rights that motorists do not. We can generally ride on the sidewalk and in crosswalks unless prohibited by a local ordinance. We can park on sidewalks. Turning vehicles must yield to us in a crosswalk. We can ride two abreast. We can ride in bike lanes and on shared-use paths.

We don’t need a driver’s license, registration or proof of insurance. We can’t get points on a driver’s license.

State law also allows local governments to further regulate bicycle use.

Then there are the state laws that we are encouraged to break, such as passing vehicles while riding on paved shoulders.

And of course, in Michigan bicycles are not vehicles. Bicycles are devices. As a result, bicycles are generally not burdened by vehicle regulations. For instance, it’s legal for cyclists to run studded tires.

A better bumper sticker

A more accurate slogan, and one we’ve seen on the back of Windsor Transit buses is “Share the Road — It’s the law.”

This message can be reinforced with “Share the Road” signs as well.

Bicyclists are a special class and rather than advocate against it, we should advocate for regulations that encourage more cycling and safer places to ride.

The state park funding (aka Recreation Passport) legislation, Senate Bills 388 & 389 , were adopted by the full Senate this morning with a vote of 24-11 and? 23-12?respectively. Now both bills go to the full House for a vote in the near future.

This vote was a major step forward towards sustainable state park funding.

There’s no knowing how the House will vote, though we did seem to have good support for similar legislation in the House’s Great Lakes and Environment committee.

It is expected that Senate bills 388 and 389 for the Recreation Passport will be voted on by the Michigan Senate and House this Thursday, November 12th, 2009.

There is a summary analysis on-line as well. This analysis provides all the details of what these bills would do if passed and signed into law. There’s also additional information (as well as media coverage links) on the Citizen’s Committee for Michigan State Parks web site.

We urge you to please contact your state senator and state representative and ask that they support these bills to help fund our state parks.

This funding is absolutely critical as the state parks have been kept afloat for years by relying on previous fund balances. Those fund balances are now drained. We should also note that since 2004, no state taxpayer money has gone towards our state parks.

This funding would also be a huge boost to Michigan trails, not only in state parks, but in state forests as well. Those trails are significantly unfunded.