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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]This Idaho Stop business is really pernicious. You can’t tell one group of people they don’t have to follow the rules without everyone else asking why they can’t do the same. It really teaches the public that traffic laws don’t matter.[/quote]

The thing is for cyclists, sitting idle in a street or sidewalk is much more dangerous. That's why states are following the Idaho stop now, and it reduces traffic fatalities. I get that your feelings might be hurt that cyclists get something for them for once, but if it saves lives, I really don't care.
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No matter how many times you say “the thing is” doesn’t make it true. [/quote]

It literally is true. Facts don't care about your feelings, they're facts.

"Idaho first passed this law in the 1980s, hence why it’s called the Idaho stop. Idaho saw a 13% decrease in bike crashes after the law was passed. Delaware passed a similar law five years ago and saw a 23% decrease in bike crashes. Nine states total allow the practice."

https://dcist.com/story/22/09/21/dc-moves-to-ban-right-turn-on-red-allow-idaho-stop-cyclists/[/quote]

More than a quarter of all the cyclists who die in traffic die in intersections so, yes, of course we should tell cyclists to ignore those signs designed to make them be more careful when crossing intersections. Makes a lot of sense.[/quote]

What percentage of those deaths are the result of a turning car failing to yield to a bike with right away, where there isn't even a stop sign or light to stop at? That's what happened to my spouse when they were hit -- they were going straight through an intersection with no stop signs and a car turned left right into them. The saving grace was that the car turned such that their bike ran into the car and flipped them up and over the car. Still awful, but if they'd been hit from the side by the car, even at a relatively slow speed, it potentially could have been catastrophic.

Cyclists utilizing Idaho stops at four way stop signs are only going to get hit if cars aren't stopping at those intersections at all.

So the problem is really not with cyclists utilizing an Idaho stop to avoid having to stop their momentum entirely in certain situations -- the problem is, and has always been, that cars disobey traffic laws at the expense of the safety and well being of cyclists, pedestrians, and other vehicular traffic.[/quote]

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