Bikers Need To Have Licenses And Insurance - And Response (4)

  • Thursday, January 19, 2017

I am okay with Haslam’s idea of raising the gas tax and lowering the food tax.  But, I want to see a tax of bicycles since they have their own lanes now and they also have to be maintained.

How much revenue would that bring in?  I would think if we have enough bike riders to have the lanes in the first place, there must be enough to generate some money for road improvements.  They should be required to be tagged (small tags like motorcycles have) and to carry liability insurance as well.

The billboards today say “It’s the Law” regarding drivers to acknowledge these lanes, so they should be required to have the same licensing and insurance as a motor vehicle. 

Kim Wells
Chattanooga 

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The idea that bicyclists need to be taxed already exists in many forms. The truth of the matter is, taxes from automobiles really only pay for half of the cost of our roads. So where does the other half come from? We all pay it. When we pay taxes such as sales tax, property tax, or income tax, a portion of that tax goes back into the general fund, which is then used to pay for the rest of our transportation system.   

In addition, most bicyclists that I know still own cars and thus pay the same taxes that any other car-driving citizen does. And for the ones that do not own cars, I find it counter-productive to penalize someone that either can't afford a vehicle or chooses to use a more sustainable form a transportation.  

According to a recent study by the University of Tennessee, Tennesseans want more biking and walking opportunities in their communities. This study, which was just released this month, shows that 57 percent of Tennesseans are in support of more funding for biking, walking, and transit. This goes to show that we need more investment in sidewalks, separated bike lanes and off-street trails. These facilities make a huge difference in the safety and quality of transportation options around the state. 

Sure, these bike lane and greenway projects cost money, but they are smarter investments and have benefits for more than just bicyclists. These projects help alleviate congestion on the roadways, providing a safer way for other types of transportation. This lowers the overall costs of maintaining our roadways and helps mitigate the need for additional expensive projects to add more roads or widen existing ones. These investments are also shown to help improve public health and quality of life, which helps to keep overall health insurance costs lower. A third and mostly overlooked benefit is economic development. These facilities help connect both locals and out-of-towners with a more personal way to see the city and in turn generates tourism dollars that can be put back into the community. 

Chris Carr
Chattanooga 

* * * 

If sharing the road with others why should the bikes not have insurance since they can and are involved in accidents?  

Joey Blevins

* * * 

In my 49 years of driving, there have been untold pedestrians and bicycle riders step out, or pull out, in front of me, forcing my evasive action to prevent them causing an accident.  

Sadly, among the memories I have as a child of a few close calls for me, all would have been my fault. Yep, guilty as I charge here. 

In 2017, do bicycles with whom Chattanooga "Shares The Road" carry liability insurance to compensate auto and motorcycle drivers for the carelessness of bike riders with their head somewhere other than focused on their own situation and life? 

Notice: this does not label "one size fits all". I am asking for one thing and one thing only; every ‘driver’ who is after all, sharing the road, sharing responsibility and rules equally. 

Is that too much to ask? 

Jim Bowman 

* * * 

Would the advocates of licensing and insurance for bike riders include the children riding in their neighborhoods in this mandate? Mr. Bowman includes pedestrians in the "untold numbers" of people he has been forced to evade. Does he believe that pedestrians should have to be licensed and insured as well? There are considerably more pedestrians than bicycle riders. Taxpayer money is spent for all those pedestrian signals downtown. 

Most bicycle riders do own cars, pay license fees, and have insurance. For those that ride bicycles because they can't afford a car, licensing and insurance would no doubt be a considerable hardship. Is this such a problem that we need to make life harder for them?  

Steve Mahan
Red Bank


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