b4fef8933b0d4d2ce96bec63b0e1ce14f3d49eb5
FieldNotes/Bicycle.md
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| 1 | +--- |
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| 2 | +title: Cycling in Alabama |
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| 3 | +--- |
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| 4 | + |
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| 5 | +I try to ride a bicycle instead of driving whenever it's practical, but I like to follow the law precisely, especially given that Alabama uses pure "contributory negligence" to resolve court cases over injuries (this means that if a cyclist was hit by a car and the cyclist was found to be even 1% at fault, they could not recover damages). This page covers my notes on authority to operate a bicycle in Alabama and what our rights and responsibilities are on the road. |
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| 6 | + |
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| 7 | +I am not a lawyer, this is just my read on the law. You should contact a lawyer if you have any doubts about interpreting the Code or need specific legal advice. |
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| 8 | + |
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| 9 | +## Alabama Code sections |
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| 10 | + |
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| 11 | +* **General authority to operate on the road, general grant of rights and responsibilities of motor vehicle operators to bicyclists.** [AL Code § 32-5A-260 (2022)](https://law.justia.com/codes/alabama/2022/title-32/chapter-5a/article-12/section-32-5a-260/) |
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| 12 | +* **Requirement to ride on the right side of the roadway, authority to operate in a paved shoulder, authority to use right-side signaling.** [AL Code § 32-5A-263 (2022)](https://law.justia.com/codes/alabama/2022/title-32/chapter-5a/article-12/section-32-5a-263/) |
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| 13 | + * Section (a) requires that we ride as close to the right side of the roadway as "practicable." What is "practicable" is at our discretion, though: it's fine to ride far left enough so that you won't get doored by a car, and it's fine to ride in the center of the lane if there's no paved shoulder and no room for cars to safely pass you. |
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| 14 | + * Section (c) requires us to use a "usable path for bicycles adjacent to the roadway" if it's provided. I interpret this to include paved shoulders, if they are wide enough to act as a space for bicycles and don't have e.g. rumble strips covering the entire shoulder. Since we are required to use such a path, it follows that we are allowed to use such a path. |
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| 15 | + * Section (d) allows us to use our right arm to signal a right-hand turn. |
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| 16 | +* **Requirement to use a light at night.** [AL Code § 32-5A-265 (2022)](https://law.justia.com/codes/alabama/2022/title-32/chapter-5a/article-12/section-32-5a-265/) |
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| 17 | +* **Authority to operate electric bicycles, waiver of requirement for licensing/registration/insurance.** [AL Code § 32-5A-267 (2022)](https://law.justia.com/codes/alabama/2022/title-32/chapter-5a/article-12/section-32-5a-267/) |
Home.md
| ... | ... | @@ -11,6 +11,7 @@ The content here is constantly changing, but I have tried to organize things to |
| 11 | 11 | Field notes are short, to-the-point, and informal. I use them to document my experience with something or how to perform a particular task "in the field." These are roughly in reverse chronological order, but some may update from time to time. Use the "History" button in the upper right to see a complete change feed. |
| 12 | 12 | |
| 13 | 13 | * [Useful RSS feed URLs](FieldNotes/RSSFeeds) |
| 14 | +* [Bicycling in Alabama](FieldNotes/Bicycle) |
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| 14 | 15 | * [Using CloudFormation to maintain Athena tables](FieldNotes/AthenaViaCloudformation) |
| 15 | 16 | * [How I use Taskwarrior](FieldNotes/Taskwarrior) |
| 16 | 17 | * [Using TPM-backed SSH keys on NixOS](FieldNotes/TPMKeys) |