Boston Injury Attorney Blog

Massachusetts bikers, motorists and pedestrians may soon have additional company on the road. The City of Boston will be receiving a $3 million grant award from the Federal Government for a bike sharing program. It is expected that the program begin in the spring of 2011. Under a bike sharing plan, people would pay for a membership, for unlimited access to a network of bikes and stations. The bikes can be rented at one station and returned at another.

Local sponsors have already pledged $2 million. This money, together with the grant money, will be used to purchase 500 bicycles and 50 rental stations, which is expected to make Boston more bike-friendly.

According to the Boston Globe, bicycle sharing was established in Europe. In the United States, the first programs began this year in Minneapolis and Denver and another is pending in Washington, D.C.

Advocates see it as a missing link to connect MBTA subway and bus routes, which is why the Federal Transit Administration selected the Boston bike sharing program. For Boston, bike sharing will be a viable component of a robust, green public transit network.

The City will have a year to make the streets more inviting for cyclists. By fall, it is expected that Boston will have created 35 miles of bike lanes, up from zero, and added 750 public racks.

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Collisions occur in Massachusetts between bicyclists and motor vehicles nearly every day. In Massachusetts, all bicyclists must obey all traffic laws of the Commonwealth including red lights, stop signs and riding with traffic. All bicyclists should stay to the right of the roadway, except for left hand turns, or where bike lanes direct otherwise and bicyclists must ride in a single lane.

Many towns, such as Cambridge, discourage the riding of bicycles on sidewalks. If a bicyclist is involved in an accident resulting in bodily injury or property damage in excess of $100.00, a bicyclist must notify the police in writing on a Cambridge Police Bicycle accident report. Cambridge also requires bicycle registration. Everyone 16 years old and younger is required by law to wear a bicycle helmet while riding a bicycle on a public way. It is also a good idea for everyone to wear a helmet at all times while bicycling. Parents of children under the age of 16 years of age shall be held liable and fined according to M.G.L. c. 85, s11B for all violations of these laws.

The Boston Globe recently reported on an award of nearly $100,000 to police departments thought the state to provide overtime funds to address pedestrian and bicycle safety through enforcement and education. With the money, police departments are putting officers at busy intersections, issuing more citations and handing out bicycle helmets for young riders and hosting public events to reinforce their message for bicycle safety.

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