It's official.  It took five years to get it passed, but the Governor  has now signed the Vulnerable User bill into law. Senate Bill 336 is now Public Act 14-31.

The vulnerable user law requires a fine to be imposed on reckless motor vehicle drivers who cause the death or serious injury of a pedestrian, cyclist, wheelchair user, or other vulnerable users who were using reasonable care.  The fine is capped at $1000.

Congratulations to us.  Just another reminder that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens really can make a difference. 

Word is that the House just passed SB 336, the Vulnerable User Bill!  More to follow.
Verify at http://1.usa.gov/1c13BXM.

We have just ONE week left in the 2014 legislative session to get our Vulnerable User bill passed.  The Senate has pulled its weight, now it's time for the House to get moving. 

This is the fifth year the Vulnerable User bill has been  proposed.  Wedon't want to hear that the House "ran out of time" yet again to vote on this important safety measure for cyclists and pedestrians.  And not having a VU bill, year after year, is hurting our bike friendly state ranking.   

Please email or call your State Representative and House Leadership--Reps. Brendan Sharkey and Joe Aresimowicz-- today to call the Vulnerable User bill, SB 336, for a vote.

We need safer streets this year.  From 2006 to 2012, more than 10,000 pedestrians and cyclists were injured or killed on Connecticut roads. 

• Click here for a starter message to personalize. Be sure to add your name and town at the end.
• Call or Email House Leadership:
• Rep. Brendan Sharkey, Speaker of the House (Hamden - Dist. 88) at 860-240-8500 or Brendan.Sharkey@cga.ct.gov
• Rep. Joe ARESIMOWICZ , Majority Leader (Berlin, Southington - Dist. 30),860-240-8489 or Joe.Aresimowicz@cga.ct.gov 
• Copy your state rep too. Find Your STATE Rep here. (Since this is a state bill, not a federal bill, contact just your state rep and not your US Senator or Congressperson. ) 
  
• Scroll down for background on the bill. 

Stay tuned!  Effective advocacy requires tenacity and dogged persistence, so it may be necessary to keep calling and emailing every day until the bill is voted on. 

Speaking up makes all the difference, and the more of us who do, the stronger our bike ped community is.  This is no time to sit on the sidelines!

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About the VU Bill, SB 336

• The need:  Careless drivers injure hundreds of people every year in Connecticut.  Federal and state data report that 10,793 pedestrians and cyclists were injured or killed in Connecticut from 2006 through 2012.   Unless there is evidence of drug or alcohol use, or a hit and run, careless drivers are rarely held accountable for their devastating, preventable, actions. 
• What would the bill do?  The VU bill would establish a fine of up to $1,000 for infliction of serious physical injury or death to a vulnerable user when a person fails to operate due care when using a motor vehicle.    The fine is not equivalent to the harm reckless drivers can cause, but it's a step in the right direction. 
• Who's a vulnerable user?  Vulnerable users are pedestrians, highway workers, wheelchair users, people riding or driving an animal, blind people and their service animals, and people who operate farm tractors, bicycles, scooters, roller or inline skates, and skateboards.   
• Progress to date:  The VU bill made it through the Transportation and Judiciary Committees and the Senate has passed it. The next step is for the HOUSE leadership to call the bill for a vote so the House can vote on it and pass it.  (CORRECTION:  We regret that we were given inaccurate information when we indicated that the bill was already on a consent calendar in the House. That is not the case as of April 30.)
• This is the fifth year the bill has been proposed.  It's time to pass it.

Great news!  The Senate passed the Vulnerable User bill 33-0, with 3 absent and not voting, last evening.  

Thank you Senators Beth Bye and Toni Boucher for sponsoring the bill.  
Thank you Senators Don Williams and Martin Looney for bringing the bill to a vote.
Thank you to all Senators for supporting the bill.
Thank you to all of our members who contacted Senate Leadership in the last few days. They heard us!

And now, on to the House.  Stay tuned for updates.

We have just two weeks left in the 2014 legislative session to get our Vulnerable  User bill passed.  That means it's time for the bike ped community (that includes you!) to turn up the volume! 
 
This is the fifth year the Vulnerable User bill has been  proposed. We don't want to hear that our legislators "ran out of time" again this year to vote on this important safety measure for cyclists and pedestrians. 

Please email or call Senator Don Williams and Senator Martin Looney today to call the Vulnerable User bill, SB 336, for a vote. 

• Senator Don Williams, President Pro Tempore of the Senate (Brooklyn-Dist. 29): 860-240-8634, williams@senatedems.ct.gov
• Senator Martin Looney, Senate Majority Leader (New Haven - Dist. 11):  860-240-0375, looney@senatedems.ct.gov
• Copy your state senator

Click here for a starter message that you can personalize.  Scroll down for background on the bill. 

Stay tuned!  Effective advocacy requires tenacity and dogged persistence, so it may be necessary to keep calling and emailing every day until the bill is voted on.

Speaking up makes a difference, and the more of us who do, the better!  Thank you for working with us to make Connecticut a better place to bike and walk.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

About the VU Bill, SB 336

• The need:  Careless drivers injure hundreds of people every year in Connecticut.  Unless there is evidence of drug or alcohol use, or a hit and run, careless drivers are rarely held accountable for their devastating, preventable, actions. 
• What would the bill do?  The VU bill would establish a fine of up to $1,000 for infliction of serious physical injury or death to a vulnerable user when a person fails to operate due care when using a motor vehicle.    The fine is not equivalent to the harm reckless drivers can cause, but it's a step in the right direction. 
• Who's a vulnerable user?  Vulnerable users are pedestrians, highway workers, wheelchair users, people riding or driving an animal, blind people and their service animals, and people who operate farm tractors, bicycles, scooters, roller or inline skates, and skateboards.   
• Progress to date:  The VU bill has made it through the Transportation and Judiciary Committees. The next step is for the Senate to pass the bill.  But first, Senate leadership needs to call the bill for a vote in the Senate. Once the Senate passes the bill, it will move to the House where House leadership will need to call the bill so the House can vote on it. 
• This is  the fifth year the bill has been proposed.  It's time to pass it.

Bike Walk CT send the following message to state senators, urging SB 336 to be raised for a vote and passed:

Please Raise and Pass SB 336, the Vulnerable User Bill -- This Year!

Dear Senator:

Bike Walk Connecticut urges the Senate to raise and pass SB 336, the Vulnerable User bill. This is the fifth year the bill has been raised.  The cycling and pedestrian community is highly committed to seeing this bill passed this year. 

Why? Because there were 10,793 Bike/Pedestrian Injuries & Fatalities in Connecticut from 2006-2012. Federal and state data report that 10,793 pedestrians and cyclists were injured or killed in Connecticut from 2006 through 2012.  Cyclists and pedestrians are vulnerable because they are not protected by a 2500-pound steel motor vehicle.  It's time to enact a law that raises awareness for all road users and holds reckless drivers accountable for their behavior. 

Adopting SB 336 Will Make for a Safer, More Bike-Friendly, More Livable
Connecticut.  Being more bike-friendly is good for our environment, good for our health, and good for our pocketbooks.  It's also good for the state's economy. Cycling is good for  tourism.  It's also a key ingredient in transportation-oriented development, vibrant communities and thriving, resilient commercial districts, and in attracting and retaining younger workers and the creative class who insist on realistic transportation options beyond the car.

Let's make this the year we pass it.  This is the fifth year the Vulnerable User bill has come before the legislature.  Every year the bill has enjoyed broad bipartisan, bicameral support.  The Vulnerable User bill is good public policy.  There are 10,793 good reasons--and counting--to make this the year we actually pass it.

SB 336 has the support of 22 different membership organizations.  Please see fact sheet for more information.

Thank you for working together for a more bikeable, walkable Connecticut. 

Sincerely,

Kelly Kennedy, Executive Director
Bike Walk Connecticut

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Bike Walk Connecticut is a statewide, member-supported 501(c)(3) organization that works to make Connecticut a better place to bike and walk.  
Visit bikewalkct.org for more information.

Ask Them to Support the VU Bill and Get it Voted On Now!

With the end of the legislative session less than a month away, we've been asked to rally the bike ped community to urge their elected representatives to bring the Vulnerable User bill to a vote.  The bill, which Bike Walk CT is heavily advocating for the fifth consecutive year, made it to the Senate Calendar and has just been referred to the Judiciary Committee.

If you want Connecticut to be a better place to bike and walk, it's important that hundreds of you to email or call your legislators to let them know the VU bill, Senate Bill 336, is a step in the right direction, that you support it and they should too, and ask them to urge legislative leaders to bring it to a vote soon. The legislative session ends May 7.  

Find out who your state legislators are and how to reach them at http://www.cga.ct.gov/asp/menu/CGAFindLeg.asp

If you send an email, please copy us at bikewalkct@bikewalkct.org.
For more information, see:  

• Senate Bill 336
  
• Fiscal Note
  
• Bill Summary
• Submitted comments

Good news!  The vulnerable user bill that the bike/ped community has been trying to get enacted for the past four years is making headway again in the 2014 legislative session.

Several dozen of you sent email messages to the legislature's Transportation Committee expressing your support for the bill.  (Good job--change doesn't happen if we are silent!)

Since then, the Transportation Committee gave it a favorable vote, which means it made it out of committee and can be taken up by the Senate.  Four legislators have signed on to co-sponsor it:  Senators Beth Bye and Toni Boucher, and Representative David Scribner and Roland Lemar.  The bill has also been given a fiscal note ($20,000 in revenue per year), and a plain language analysis. 

Now the bill has been added to the Senate Calendar, where it can be called for a vote any time.  Stay tuned for more updates.  
For more information, see:

• Who submitted comments on the bill?
  
• Senate Bill 336
  
• Fiscal Note
  
• Bill Summary

Thanks to all of you from the Bike Walk Connecticut community who have spoken up so far to get the Vulnerable User bill passed!  Public comments for SB 336 are posted on the legislature's website at http://1.usa.gov/1ou09VT.  Here's what's posted so far: 

Hartford, Conn. (March 5, 2014) - For the fifth consecutive year, the Connecticut General Assembly is considering a bill to help hold accountable careless drivers who injure or kill pedestrians, cyclists and other non-motorized “vulnerable users” of the state’s roads.

Bike Walk Connecticut, the advocacy organization working to make Connecticut a better place to bike and walk, supported the bill again this year in testimony before the legislature’s Transportation Committee on March 5.

The bill, SB 336, would allow reckless drivers to be fined up to $1000 when they cause the death of or injury to a pedestrian, cyclist or other “vulnerable user” who uses reasonable care on the road.

From 2006 to 2012, a total of 10,793 pedestrians and cyclists have been killed or injured while using Connecticut roads, according to federal and state crash data registries. 

A majority of vulnerable user accidents occur along “arterial” roadways—streets that are designed for speeding traffic with little or no provision for people on foot, on bicycles or in wheelchairs.  Excessive speed, distracted driving, and occasional outright driver hostility too often play a role in these tragedies.

Study after study reveals that more people would make more trips by bike or on foot and drive less if they felt safer in traffic.  Passing the Vulnerable User bill, and then enforcing it, will raise awareness across the board about the need to be alert for the various users of our public roads.

Vulnerable User legislation is good public policy.  Making Connecticut a better place to bike and walk will reduce traffic congestion; create more vibrant town centers; save money; and give us cleaner air and a healthier population. 

In the last two years, the Vulnerable User bill has had broad legislative support and passed the Senate unanimously, but it was not brought to a vote in the House in either year.   Bike Walk Connecticut and its members urge readers to ask their legislators to pass the Vulnerable User bill, SB 336, early this legislative session and get the bill across the finish line this year. 

Sources:   http://www-fars.nhtsa.dot.gov/; http://www.ctcrash.uconn.edu/; http://www.tstc.org/reports/danger12/; http://t4america.org/tag/dangerous-by-design 

# # #Bike Walk Connecticut (bikewalkct.org) is a member supported, not-for-profit organization that works to make Connecticut a better place to bike and walk.