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Conference committee agrees to bicycle control‑signal language, holds broader 'Idaho stop' change for more review
Summary
House additions creating bicycle control‑signal rules and outreach requirements were accepted for conferencing; a separate provision allowing bicyclists to cross intersections with a pedestrian walk signal (and related permissive changes) was held for additional testimony and timing concerns.
Conference negotiators resolved parts of the house’s bicycle package while deferring a more controversial riding rule for further study and outreach.
The house added two items the committee accepted for inclusion in conference: (1) a new definition and operating rules for bicycle control signals (traffic signals displaying a bicycle icon) providing green, yellow and red guidance and clarifying prohibited movements where bicycles would cross traffic lanes; and (2) an outreach requirement directing the Commissioner of Motor Vehicles and the Department of Public Safety to prepare educational materials in consultation with stakeholders by next April to explain bicycle intersection rules and safe passing distances for vulnerable road users.
A separate house provision that would explicitly allow bicyclists to cross an intersection when the pedestrian walk signal facing them turns on — and other permissive drafting sometimes described as an "Idaho stop" variant — drew more concern. Committee members said the panel had not taken sufficient testimony statewide, that some municipalities (for example, Burlington) permit similar practices while others (for example, Winooski) do not, and that motorists needed clear education before any change took effect. One member said the committee had discussed using outreach first and making the rule effective only after an educational campaign.
The committee agreed to accept the bicycle control‑signal language and the outreach language (house sections 41 and 42) into the conference draft, and to hold the more intensive operational change (house subsection c and related text, identified in the transcript as section 40) open pending additional testimony and a plan for public education. No formal vote occurred; staff were directed to provide information about municipal authority and outreach timing at the next meeting.
