A University of Oregon student was killed while bicycling on Jan. 25, the second student killed while bicycling this academic year. While the circumstances of the crash involving Erick Munene Njue have not been published, the location of the crash brings to mind a common and unsafe situation seen by Eugene bicyclists daily.

If you are a motorist, you have no duty to stop in order to allow a bicyclist to proceed through an intersection where there is no stop sign or signal for your direction of travel, or, in other words, where you have the right of way.

This is because, according to Oregon law, a bicycle is a vehicle. A motorist would not stop to allow a vehicle to cross Pearl Street at 16th Avenue, for example. Stopping in this situation would be unsafe for everyone. The leading motorist, stopped for no reason, may be rear-ended by following motorists. Motorists in adjacent lanes of travel would wonder why there is a stopped vehicle in the street. Most of all, a bicycle crossing in front of a stopped vehicle cannot be seen well by following motorists.

So motorists, please, do not stop for bicycles when you have the right of way.

Mark Corley
Eugene