Stop/Yield Before Entering a More Important Road
Drivers entering or crossing a roadway must yield to the traffic that has priority (see § 20-158). Stopping improves the reliability of the yield by increasing the amount of time that the driver has to see and recognize approaching traffic while in a position of superior vantage.
Approaching bicyclists are sometimes less noticeable than other traffic. Bicyclists are narrow, and often ride close to the edge of the road, where they may be outside the driver’s focus of attention down the center of the lane, or may be screened by obstructions at the road edge. Knowledgeable bicyclists will often ride farther into the roadway to increase their visibility to others.
In some communities it is legal for bicyclists to ride on sidewalks, and some communities designate paths alongside roads as bikeways. Bicyclists traveling both ways on roadside facilities often surprise motorists at driveways and intersections; many car-bike collisions occur in these places. Experienced bicyclists typically avoid riding on sidewalks in order to avoid the increased injury risk associated with sidewalk bicycling.
When yielding at stop signs and red lights, it is important to come to a complete stop and scan both ways down the sidewalk or path for approaching pedestrians and bicyclists. Understand that bicyclists may still use the roadway even if a parallel path has been designated as a bikeway.
