If the insurance industry thought this was necessary and they could make enough money off it, compulsory liability insurance would already be on the books for cyclists.
Give it a few more years. It will come. I agree that the odds of massive damage by a bicycle to my car is not all that great. I believe that in the past Oklahoma drivers were allowed to post a bond in place of buying insurance. The greater likelyhood is that I would be involved in an accident caused by me or someone else trying to avoid an errant bicycle and that the bicyclist would beat feet and never be found.
Consider how many motorists apparently ignore the compulsory liability insurance law. Compliance and enforcement would be a biznitch.
Enforcement is obviously a problem for auto insurance. That doesn't fly as a reason for me.
The “gotcha” on the stop sign fallacy is a car should NEVER pull alongside a bicycle in the same lane and the cyclist should NEVER pull alongside a car in the same lane. It’s no different than pulling your car up to another car in a single lane at an intersection. If you ever do encounter a cyclist doing this to you, don’t hesitate to roll down your window to advise them they need to brush up on their knowledge of traffic laws.
My guess is that most bicyclists don't know they shouldn't do that. A brief license procedure would take care of that. Perhaps an on-line reading assignment and take that info to a tag agent for a "state issued license". Most adults will be able to drive a bicycle although I understand getting used the pedal clips is difficult for some (like my sister-in-law). It might be a good idea for kids to prove they can actually ride. The town where I grew up had a township license for bicycles. It applied to adults as well as children but the real emphasis was for elementary school kids to know the rules of the road and to prove they could ride. Enforcement would be the same as motor vehicles. If you screw up, you get your license checked. I haven't had my license looked at by law enforcement in nearly 20 years. Banks, voting, using a personal check at stores etc are a different story.
Pulling over every so often on a one mile stretch of two lane road simply is not a wise idea if you look at all the debris along the road-side, if anything it would make it even slower for motorists at the end of the line if someone pulled over a couple of times. They law allows you to pass the cyclist when it’s clear. No different than someone on horseback, a tractor, or some other slow moving vehicle.
I don't mind following a bicycle for a bit and passing when it's safe for both of us. Some of the 2 lane roads get packed at times and there may be no opportunity to pass. Come on out and visit Guido or me at the wrong time of the day and you may soften you opinion some.
Insurance, license endorsement, tag, and inspection sticker still isn’t going to make you happy when you come upon a cyclist going 15 to 20 MPH on a two lane south Tulsa road now is it?
See above
Do any of you want extra permits, taxes, and insurance requirements for your hobbies or past times?
I know you are aware of taxes, insurance, recurrent training, licensing etc involved in flying. Bad choice to pick on in my case. I believe boaters are required to take some training in OK. My parents taught the Coast Guard Auxiliary safe boating course when we lived in PA. Chucking a rock with your lawn mower is probably covered by your homeowner's insurance if lawn maintenance is your hobby. Knitting, there's something that I believe can remain unregulated.
If you guys want cyclists off the road so bad, go lobby in OKC to get the laws changed.
You assume too much. I just want some common courtesy.