Originally Posted by Scot_Gore
With this history in mind. It could be argued that the presense of dedicated bike infastructure secures our place on the road vs jepordizes it. Take a look at the places with mandatory side path laws. Are they the places famous for their bike infastructure or are they the places where almost none exist.
Without trying to be contradictory, Oregon does have a mandatory bike lane law. However, the statute states that before it takes effect, a public hearing must be held first declaring the bike lane safe to use. Unfortunately, the one time this was tested in court (Potter decision) the appelate court said that the fact that the bike lanes were approved by the city traffic engineer was ipso facto a declaration of safety. OTOH its pretty much a non-issue, except with two traffic cops named barnum and balzer who have made it their career goal to harass cyclists with tickets for everything from riding outside the bike lane to riding a fixed gear bike without a separate brake.