On Thursday, the Austin City Council will be considering passage of our own local safe passing law. The proposed Council action is as follows:
- A safe passing law requiring motorists to give bicyclists at least three feet of clearance when passing. (The ordinance will be based on Bike Texas’s legislation passed in the session but vetoed by Gov. Perry, so it will likely include other vulnerable road users like pedestrians.)
- A ban on texting while driving (and riding a bike).
As most of you recall, safe passing legislation which passed overwhelmingly by both houses of the legislature this spring was vetoed by Governor Perry. We later saw some of the nasty, anti-cyclist rants that the governor’s office received in response to the proposed law.
Unfortunately, similar forces are at work slamming our City Council’s attempt to set right, at least locally, what the Governor did. LOBV President Rob D’Amico told us that the comments Councilmembers are receiving on this proposal are “are decisively anti-cyclist in nature.”
The cycling community needs your help to make Austin’s streets safer for everyone. Please contact the the City Council to let them know your support the safe passing law and texting while driving ban.
How to have your voice heard
1. Send an email to the City Council
Write the council now at http://www.ci.austin.tx.us/council/groupemail.htm and tell them you support these measures.
2. Call the City Council
If you have the time, a phone call would help as well. Here’s the contact info for all the council members. They all serve at-large so you can call any of them or all of them. Just ring their office and tell them you support the safe passing law and texting ban.
Mayor Lee Leffingwell- (512) 974-2250
Place 1 Councilmember Chris Riley- (512) 974-2260
Place 2 Councilmember Mike Martinez- (512) 974-2264
Place 3 Councilmember Randi Shade- (512) 974-2255
Place 4 Councilmember Laura Morrison- (512) 974-2258
Place 5 Councilmember Bill Spelman- (512) 974-2256
Place 6 Councilmember Sheryl Cole- (512) 974-2266
3. Sign up to support the items at Thursday’s meeting
Sign up in support of the item for Thursday’s council meeting. (You may sign up simply as a supporter, or to speak. You may yield time to another speaker but only if you are in the room when they speaker speaks. The meeting starts at 10 a.m. Thursday at City Hall, but you may sign up in the city hall lobby kiosks as early as Wednesday.)
on Aug 25th, 2009 at 7:11 pm
[...] Apparently, and I do hope this is just an abundance of caution, Austin’s safe-passing ordinance (basically a citywide version of the safe-passing bill vetoed in the eleventh hour by Governor Perry) is in danger. Find out what you can do, courtesy of Austin on Two Wheels. [...]
on Aug 26th, 2009 at 11:42 pm
[...] Action Alert: Austin safe passing ordinance at risk, your action … by elliott (The ordinance will be based on Bike Texas’s legislation passed in the session but vetoed by Gov. Perry, so it will likely include other vulnerable road users like pedestrians.) A ban on texting while driving (and riding a bike). As most of you recall, safe passing legislation which passed overwhelmingly by both houses of the legislature this spring was vetoed by Governor Perry. We later saw some of the nasty …. [...]