RE: Support for SB 672
Dear Governor Brown,

On behalf of the California Association of Bicycling Organizations (CABO), I respectfully ask for your signature on SB 672. This Legislation if signed into law will remove the 10-year Sunset on then-Assemblymember Fuller’s bill (AB 1581 2007-2008 Session) that required cities, counties, and Caltrans to provide traffic signals that detect bicycles and motorcycles when new or modified installation were made of on-demand/traffic-actuated traffic signals. The evolution toward more use of bicycles for transportation and lighter weight bicycles of less mass makes the requirement for adequate detection even more important for safety in the future. The original bill, AB 1581, passed unanimously in both Houses, with no No Votes but currently Sunsets on January 1st, 2018. The current bill, SB 672 also received significant support from both Houses.
Traffic-actuated signals were not originally designed with bicycles and motorcycles in mind. Many traffic actuated signals are activated by detecting a magnetic mass, which bicycles and motorcycles have much less of than automobiles. When an on-demand/traffic-actuated traffic signal does not detect and change for people bicycling, we are at best unreasonably delayed or at worst we must enter that intersection against a red light- a dangerous situation for anyone! Over the last 10 years, the use of traffic-actuated signals that detect bicycles and motorcycles has been successful at reducing these dangerous occurrences. Removing the Sunset will continue progress toward making travel safer for everyone in California at all intersections!
Please sign SB 672 that eliminates the sunset so that we can continue to improve safety for all roadway users.