Motorcycle riders get free pass on red lights

[MORTARDUDE]

Motorcycle riders get free pass on red lights
Bikers can ignore signal if sensor fails to work

By Associated Press
June 7, 2003

Beginning July 1, Tennessee motorcyclists can legally run red lights - if they stop first and "exercise due care" - under a bill signed into law by Gov. Phil Bredesen.

Motorcyclists had complained they were forced to wait excessive periods of time at stop lights because sensors that control the lights don't recognize motorcycles, which are now made mostly of aluminum and fiberglass rather than ferrous metal.


For Nashville area resident and motorcyclist Steve Lundwall, the law can't begin too soon.

"Sometimes I put down the kickstand and just wait (at a stoplight)," said Lundwall, a business analyst in Nashville and state director of Concerned Motorcyclists of Tennessee, a group that helped push the bill through the Legislature.

The new rule isn't as popular with members of the state's law enforcement and transportation community, who say it will be difficult to enforce.

"It almost takes it out of our hands to write a ticket for motorcycles running a red light," said Lt. Bob Lyons of Nashville's traffic division. "How do we know if he's been sitting there or not?"

Sgt. Jeff Keeter, a motorcycle officer in Nashville for six years, said he's felt the frustration of being stuck at red lights, but he thinks the law may cause accidents.

"We'll have motorcycles trying to cross six lanes. I don't have much confidence in drivers or riders. I can't believe this was even considered."

Lydia Lenker, the governor's spokeswoman, said the bill was signed because "research did not show an increased safety risk."

At least one other state, Minnesota, has passed a similar law, said Wayne Shaub of Brentwood, legislative chairman for Concerned Motorcyclists of Tennessee.

Bill Moore, chief engineer with the Tennessee Department of Transportation, earlier told a Senate committee there could be safety concerns. The Senate passed the bill 28-1 last month.

"We don't want to see anyone injured or killed," Moore said. "We don't have the greatest safety record in Tennessee, and we don't think this would improve it. They're trading convenience for some safety issues."

In 2000 there were 1,751 motorcycle accidents involving 65 fatalities, not all of which were motorcyclists. Fatalities could include pedestrians or automobile drivers or passengers, Moore said.

The Tennessee Department of Transportation did not take an official position on the bill and has not done in-depth research on it, said TDOT Commissioner Gerald Nicely.

Some senators, concerned the measure would give motorcyclists license to run red lights, added an amendment to tighten the law. It says bikers cannot use the law as a defense to run any red light they wish to by saying they believed the light was controlled by sensors that did not recognize their motorcycles.

Sen. Bill Clabough, R-Maryville, sponsored the bill.