Kybicycle01

Yes, I am aware of breaking the law using the right turn lane to go straight. It is down the list on ways to negotiate turns on this stretch of road. I don't have any problem with slowing or stopping before reaching the intersection to determine the safest line to take. I try my very best to follow the rules of the road.

My safety is absolute priority even if I break a law for a few seconds. Slower moving traffic areas, I always take the appropriate lane.

kickstart

You're doing it wrong, positive results don't count. You're supposed to ride in a way that makes a statement about your "rights", and then complain about the reactions of motorists..................well at least thats how the cool kids on A&S do it.

Standing by with mop and bucket.

raqball

Chicago Al 

+1 what ILTB said.

To the extent A&S conversations have any value at all, it's in actual on the spot observations by cyclists local to the many incidents that get posted about. Those of us hundreds (or thousands) of miles away tend to project our own experiences and prejudices (and emotions) and may get things completely distorted.

Thanks for a clear-eyed local viewpoint.

kickstart

I'm just having a little fun here, I'm willing to bet the "usual suspects" are probably much better riders then they are willing to admit, and much of whats said by them is rhetoric.

CB HI

Oddly, your prior description of how you would ride that highway matches up closer to the way the lady rides, than the way Kybicycle01 rides it.

She is legal and Kybicycle01 rides it illegal and it is Kybicycle01 that some consider the clear-eyed local.

CB HI

Also called trolling.

Metal Man

I'm guessing too that this is a case where a little maintenance on the berm might go a long way. Around here they dump that crap all over the road at the first sign of a flurry . That's after they dump their liquid garbage on the road when the weatherman says it might snow.
Last summer I tried to get a short stretch of road swept with no luck.

trailmix

What part of Nicholasville rd do you travel?

trailmix

I am a local cycle commuter and I have mixed feelings about this case. My hope is that the parties can reach a compromise that benefits everyone. Maybe she could agree to use the shoulder if the county agrees to sweep it once a week?
I am not sure what she is supposed to do on 27/Nicholasville Rd in the area north of Man-O-War Blvd. where the shoulder ends. Law enforcement really needs to enforce the speed limit(55) on that road, many people run over 70 in some places.

kickstart

Haha, glad to see you have a sense of humour too.

zymphad

Even if she wins and has the right to that lane, I don't see why she would cause more problems for herself. Just ride in the shoulder, looks clean to me. Though I would avoid a busy road like that and ride the extra miles on a safer road.

I hope this instead sparks movement for Jessamine to invest in infrastructure to allow cyclist to commute safely.No. Maybe legal. But slowing down 55 mph traffic to a crawl for her and forcing 55 mph traffic to go around her is not safe and it is dangerous to me at least. If you're driving too slow and holding up traffic, you would be asked to get off the road as well. Not just cyclist.

They ought to make it safe for cyclist to ride that road, either clean the shoulder routinely or pave a bicycle lane, the roads in US are super wide anyway.

trailmix

Supposedly WKYT did a piece on putting a bike lane on hwy 27 but I missed it because I was installing a new headset in my commuter, go figure.

CB HI

Motorist slow me down every day on my rush hour cycle commutes. Yes, it is legal for them to slow me down to a crawl, but should they not just get off the road so I can cycle at max speed to get into work as fast as possible?

No one has ever asked them to get off the road for my benefit.

mgw4jc

Love it. They should all be made to ride bikes. Then there would be no traffic jam or rush hour to begin with.

dynodonn 

It's unfortunate in what tens of thousands of motorists do daily on that stretch of road, with little regard and basically in total anonymity, a cyclist has had their personal identity given to many in the city, what clothes size she wears, where she works, what time she gets to work, and has to attend court proceedings to keep using that same road, etc...

wphamilton

True, and if slowing traffic down is such a problem then why isn't there a minimum speed limit on that road? Singling one person out means they just want to stop her ​from being slow, while everyone else still has the option.

mconlonx

Again, it's two lanes in either direction. There's a passing lane -- if cars can't pass the cyclist, it's not the cyclist's fault. Also, more drivers are slowed down by other motorists than they are every slowed down by cyclists. Should all those slower drivers get off the road, too?

kickstart

So it seems that some believe its ok for a single individual to use a public asset in a way that's detrimental to all other users simply because at times demand exceeds capacity in other places?

I wounder how many apologists would suddenly find the shoulder entirely adequate to ride on if it was motorists causing the backups and traveling slower than they could.

What happened to the equal "responsibility" to use the road in a way that's appropriate to the time, place, and conditions?

mconlonx

Slow motorists should pull over and use the shoulder so that those inconvenienced by them can pass?

kickstart

A motorist traveling at 10-15 mph on a 55 mph road would be obligated to take steps to minimize their impact. There's a significant difference between moving a little slower than traffic, and moving so slow that one becomes an obstruction to safe, reasonable use by others.

Tens of thousands of cyclists take the lane every day safely and productively without receiving complaints or citations.... because they do it in a manner suitable for their environment.

I-Like-To-Bike

Has the bicyclist in question ever said publicly why she chooses not to use the shoulder of the road in question?

mconlonx

Under what KY statute? I could not find one which outlined this obligation...

FBinNY 

Like many cases of conflicting interests this one may not turn on the law as much as on what's reasonable (this is why we have judges). For example, the obligation for slow vehicles to pull over and run on the shoulder and allow passing is usually only on 2 lane (total) roads, or where there's specific signage) This is a 4 lane road, so there's a passing lane available.

Reasonableness often means doing what one can to minimize impact on others. It's a question of balance. I don't think there are reasonable alternatives to this road (based on maps and other posts here), but if the shoulder is mostly decently paved (doesn't have to be perfect) that's a very reasonable alternative, and if the cyclist refuses to use it, I could see a judge saying, shoulder or other road.

Sometimes deals can be struck that are win/win, for example the county agreeing to keep the shoulder clean with a mechanical sweeper one a week or so, with the condition that cyclists use it. Long term, some improvements, in pavement, and signage at intersections would make everybody safer and happier.

mconlonx

Or they could paint sharrows down the right side of the right lane to let motorists know cyclists who take the lane are obeying the law...?