CABO

California's bicycle clubs organized into a state federation in 1972 to protect bicyclists' interests statewide and to encourage, maintain, and improve bicycling conditions.

CABO (the "A" is pronounced long) fosters and promotes a favorable climate for bicycling in California by representing the interests of cyclists before the appropriate governmental bodies to protect their rights and promoting laws, policies, and actions that treat cyclists equitably.

In addition to the usual officers, CABO has Area Directors which mirror the boundaries of the twelve Caltrans districts. All are unpaid volunteers.

http://www.facebook.com/pages/California-Association-of-Bicycling-Organizations-CABO/201496730343

The so-called “California Stop”/rolling stop is commonly done by motorists and bicyclists. It can often be safely accomplished, though the behavior is illegal because under California law a full stop is required. When challenged about the extent to which I ride a bicycle legally – especially related to stop signs – I disclose that I ride/drive my bicycles in the same manner that I drive my cars. This usually gets a nervous laugh response because the motorists in the audience, although irate about the behavior of “all those bicyclists” realize that they have rolled through stops too. Read more…

The City of Irvine recently applied for to the League of American Bicyclists (LAB) for Bicycle Friendly Community (BFC) status.  This application came as a surprise to many club leaders and other cyclists we spoke with, who had no idea that Irvine was pursuing such an award. Read more…

I am pleased to announce that the California Association of Bicycling Organizations will benefit from the Traffic Engineering expertise, substantial history and involvement with bicycling advocacy of Robert (Bob) Shanteau. Read more…

I have been selected by the League of American Bicyclists as the 2009 League State Ambassador for California to help the League and all of us to protect the rights of cyclists. The first California State Ambassador in this new program from the League. Read more…

This was provided about a special meeting of the Calif Traffic Control Devices Committee, an important advisory body to Caltrans. The meeting was about potential trials at expanding experiments at allowing Neighborhood Electric Vehicles (NEV) to operate in Bike Lanes. NEVs are road legal small vehicles resembling gold carts. Read more…

The article below is from the November 2008 bulletin of the CABO member club the Los Angeles Wheelmen, the “Gooseneck” by Laverne Boethling.

At the end of the article Laverne states that she/we appreciate all Ruth did for their club… I will add that Ruth served more than the LA Wheelmen with her dedicated, outspoken and well informed advocacy to all California bicyclists through her participation with CABO. Read more…

This article was in the outdoor section of yesterday’s Orange County register.  It’s an article describing how to be safe while running at night – but did the author really have to disparage bicycling at night?  Here’s a video showing it can be done safely:

On Friday, October 31, at approximately 3:30 PM, I was bicycling northbound on [street name removed].  Approaching the railroad tracks, the bike lane disappears and the outside lane narrows to a width that is unsafe to share side by side with a motor vehicle.  I checked for traffic to the rear and then merged to the center of the outside lane.  This is a defensive bicycling maneuver (supported by traffic law) to discourage motorists from passing too close within a narrow lane.  After my merge, I noticed in my mirror that one of your drivers was approaching from behind in the outside lane.  He saw me, safely changed lanes well in advance, and left plenty of passing clearance.  However, the driver honked his horn as he passed in apparent ignorance or disapproval of my right to use the road. Read more…

CABO was informed that a cyclist was cited for violating CVC 21202.  He felt that he was unfairly cited, fought the citation in traffic court and lost.  We can’t reveal specifics of the case because the cyclist is currently preparing an appeal.

The text of CVC 21202 is available here: http://www.dmv.ca.gov/pubs/vctop/d11/vc21202.htm. A discussion regarding the applicability of this law is here:  http://www.cvcbike.org/club/bikelaw.htm

21202.  (a) Any person operating a bicycle upon a roadway at a speed less than the normal speed of traffic moving in the same direction at that time shall ride as close as practicable to the right-hand curb or edge of the roadway except under any of the following situations:

(1) When overtaking and passing another bicycle or vehicle proceeding in the same direction.

(2) When preparing for a left turn at an intersection or into a private road or driveway.

(3) When reasonably necessary to avoid conditions (including, but not limited to, fixed or moving objects, vehicles, bicycles, pedestrians, animals, surface hazards, or substandard width lanes) that make it unsafe to continue along the right-hand curb or edge, subject to the provisions of Section 21656. For purposes of this section, a “substandard width lane” is a lane that is too narrow for a bicycle and a vehicle to travel safely side by side within the lane.

(4) When approaching a place where a right turn is authorized.

(b) Any person operating a bicycle upon a roadway of a highway, which highway carries traffic in one direction only and has two or more marked traffic lanes, may ride as near the left-hand curb or edge of that roadway as practicable.

If the cyclist’s appeal is successful, justification is needed in order to get the decision published.  We need examples where other cyclists may have been unfairly cited – or even if stopped, delayed or harassed in any way by a law enforcement officer – for allegedly violating CVC 21202.  Please post here and/or contact us at cabobike -at- cabobike -dot- org as appropriate.