Cyclists in South Dakota saved their rights to use the public highways as vehicles. Chalk up the statehouse victory to some fast moving bicycle advocates.
When the House recently passed a bill, HB1190, that would ensure that drunken driving laws didn't apply to bicyclists or folks on horseback, they did it by changing the law to omit bicycles and horses as vehicles.
Some sharp-witted cyclists realized this could threaten their rights on the road and mounted a lobbying campaign in the Senate to block the bill. KELO TV reports a Senate committee amended the bill on Wednesday by removing bicycles and horses from the drunken driving laws, but maintaining their status as vehicles with rights to the public highways.
The MinusCar Project website reports that a state senator commented that he'd had more communications on the bicycle issue than education funding and abortion.
(Update, Feb. 16, 2006: In July, new law goes into effect that removes bicycles, trikes and horses from drunken driving statutes; Kelo TV.)
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