Q: Motorcyclists, as well as cyclists and pedestrians, are made safer when wearing bright, reflective clothing. Maybe it’s not a “cool” look, but you’ll be more visible and live longer.
Craig King
A: Motorcyclist visibility is essential. I’m not the right person to comment on the “coolness” of bright, reflective clothing for motorcyclists, so will leave that to others.
Q: Most pedestrian deaths are at night. This can be fixed quite easily. Cell phones come with flashlights. I’d suggest we have a law requiring you to use a flashlight or your cell phone’s flashlight when you’re crossing the street at night.
It’s just common sense.
Jim Wissick
A: Using a flashlight while crossing the street at night is a good idea, even without a law
Q: A bicyclist can be in the traffic lane for many valid reasons. Perhaps they are planning to make a left turn. Or there may be obstacles in the bike lane which make the bike lane unusable for a stretch. (A pile of leaves may look innocuous to a driver, but could hide a serious hazard to a cyclist.) You can be sure, however, that bicyclists are not in the vehicle lane just to annoy you!
You rightly pointed out that using the bike lane to pass a cyclist on the right is illegal. But it is much more: It can be deadly for the cyclist. After the cyclist passes the obstacle, they would return to the bike lane, not expecting a car to be passing them on the right. They could move directly in front of the car trying to pass, with potentially deadly consequences.
Martin Delson
A: Important points, thanks. Readers in recent columns have also raised awareness about the danger and frequency of obstacles in bike lanes.
Q: Since adding the Real ID last year, I have been able to leave the non-Real one in my car and the Real one in my purse. This has been lovely, as I have not had to carry a purse for errands and meeting friends for a walk.
I recently renewed my license. In a few weeks, I will have only one that’s not expired. If I were to be stopped by an officer and only had the expired copy in my car, would that be legal, since any check by the officer would show I have a current license? I hate leaving a wallet or purse in a car, given so many break-ins currently.
Louise Roon
A: The DMV says that a valid driver’s license must be in a driver’s possession any time they drive and they must present that license upon request by law enforcement.
Look for Gary Richards at Facebook.com/mr.roadshow or contact him at mrroadshow@bayareanewsgroup.com.
