From the Archives: Biking faster than 6mph? Madness! Madness I tell you!

For many years, bicyclists in DC enjoyed a period of lawlessness wherein they wore leggings and crazy mustaches and generally DNGAF. But that all came to a crashing end in 1896 with the first regulations of bicycles on the road. Those regulations, which were made available in churches all over the city, provided that

• There was a 6 mph speed limit in intersections, 12 mph between intersections and 15 mph "outside the city" (which was basically north of Florida Avenue)
• Only the person or persons propelling the bike could ride on it (Being pre-Kidical Mass by a few years)
• The bicycle must always be under the control of the rider.
• Sidewalk cycling was illegal. So when someone yells at you to "get on the sidewalk", tell them to take it up with John Wesley Ross.
• "No bicycle, tricycle, or other vehicle may be ridden or driven so as to collide with any other horse, or such vehicle or vehicles, or any person, and the driver or rider of such horse or vehicle shall make way for pedestrians at the street crossings."

The fine for violations was between $1 and $10. That last one seems like a pretty good law. Wish we still had it. 

Comments

[SJE]

Wow. So the original rules allowed you slow down, but not stop, at intersections.

[Jeffb]

This was 1896. According to Google first stop sign didn't appear until 1915.

[DE]

A bicycle was considered a horse, apparently. I did not know that.

"No bicycle, tricycle, or other vehicle may be ridden or driven so as to collide with any other horse"

[SJE]

I wonder if the Wall St Journal and the AAA (Ambulatory Animal Association) was decrying the war on horses.

[Crickey7]

Without radar, how would they have known the speed?

[DE]

They run a horse next to you that is showing 6 mph on its speedometer. If you're going faster than that other horse, you get a ticket.

[scoot]

Hmm... one cannot safely ride through intersections using the new bike infrastructure any faster than 6 MPH either. Coincidence?

[SJE]

The speed cameras were a dead giveaway, however. Great big accordion cameras with plate film and gunpowder flashes.

[washcycle]

I don't know, but I once posted a report from the DC Police in the early 20th Century and they reported the number of "scorchers" (fast cyclists) they had ticketed.

[SJE]

They might have been called that after getting burned from the camera flash