| In the next few days, you will be getting a letter in the mail from me talking about Iowa Bicycling and the agenda for next year. We have some great things going on in Iowa and we have some things that need attention.
At our recent board of directors meeting, we discussed our legislative priorities. Our top priority is seeking double or triple fines if a bicyclist is injured or killed in a crash where the motorist is found at fault. We want the fines to be significant enough that people understand the laws and follow them. But no amount of money is going to reverse the injury or death following a crash. The IBC board proposed an additional measure to “suspend” the fine if certain conditions are met. If a driver has their license suspended for a year, takes a habitual violator driving course at a community college, and gives 100 hours of community service towards traffic safety, the fine could be suspended or reduced. The goal is to get bad drivers off the road, re-educate them, and make them help others not make the same mistake. This isn’t our only solution. We are working with drivers education programs to educate new drivers and educating bicyclists too. This isn’t going to be easy to move this through the legislature. We need your help. Your $35 donation or more can make a big difference. Visitwww.iowabicyclecoalition.org/join and contribute today. Sincerely, Mark Wyatt |
