Another Tactic for Complete Streets Advocates?

Apr 18th 2010

By: Jack "Ghost Rider" Sweeney

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The following article appeared on the Streetsblog Network a few weeks ago…hat tip to longtime reader Raiyn for bringing it to my attention.

In the article, Transit Miami reports that the South Florida Bicycle Coalition is “seek[ing] legal action if FDOT does not include bike lanes in the Sunset Drive resurfacing project without the required design exception, traffic and impact studies.….” Read the full article by clicking here.

I’m somewhat torn about this technique…while I’ve long joked to fellow cyclists that we should file class-action lawsuits to get things going here in Florida, I’m all too aware that we’re an overly-litigious society and resorting to this tactic may hinder rather than help future projects.

What’s your feeling about lawsuits to “get our way”?

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Bikejax

April 18th, 2010 at 23:16

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I along the same lines as your thoughts on this subject. I’ve often wondered if maybe a class action just might be the thing to light a fire under FDOT buttocks.

I’ve also wondered why the attorney’s for cyclists and pedestrians killed or injured didn’t go after FDOT or local agencies for lack of or improperly designed infrastructure. Sure in almost every case it would be thrown out. But if enough people went after FDOT and/or local agencies, they would damn start thinking about bikes and peds each and every single time a roadway is in the design process.
2whls3spds

April 19th, 2010 at 04:28

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We have had the same issue in the NC area, at one time (may still be) a requirement that bike lanes and pedestrian facilities be considered any time money was spent on road improvements, in my part of NC they would just fill out a statement saying that they considered it but current use levels did not justify the expenditure. DUH! There wasn’t anything to use! Unfortunately cycling in this part of NC is considered a “nuisance”, they do a few miles of MUP and tell you to go away. Time will change that…eventually.

Aaron
Ghost Rider

April 19th, 2010 at 05:12

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It used to be that the Florida DOT had something along the lines of “bike lanes should be added where feasible” in their policies…and of course it was rarely feasible (half-assed excuses, etc.).

Matt from BikeJax pointed out, though, that they changed the wording to SHALL rather than “should”. Has this helped? I sure haven’t seen it — “shall” is a much more powerful word in this situation, but the FDOT violates their own policies every day of the week.
Dave

April 19th, 2010 at 08:23

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I’m not a big fan of lawsuits for no reason either. But in this case I say go for it.

How long do you wait for them to simply follow the law and their own rules? Seems like it’s been long enough.
Jack Bulkley

April 19th, 2010 at 09:45

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I am not a big fan of lawsuits, but in this case it seems justified. If the legislature passes a law, but the executive branch ignores it, someone needs to do something. Dragging in the judicial branch is the way our system typically works in this case. At the least (or in addition), complaining to the lawmakers that their laws are being ignored seems like a good idea. Doing nothing makes it seem like a law nobody cares about. If I was the DOT and a lawmaker called me and asked why we weren’t adding bike lanes, I would love to be able to say “it doesn’t appear anyone really wants them because nobody complained on the last X projects when we left them out”.
Kathryn / SFBC

April 19th, 2010 at 14:55

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We’re famous! Hey there~ yes, it’s true. We sued and it worked. More exciting is how that litigation has forced FDOT’s hand in working with us. The threat to sue – combined with some very strong advocacy efforts, media push and political leveraging locally in Tallahassee – is getting us sharrows in another project. I blogged about it today on TransitMiami here: http://www.transitmiami.com/2010/04/19/gus-pego-called-he-wants-sharrows/
I think the comments are spot on – sometimes you have to speak their language.
Thanks for the plug!
Kathryn
Executive Director
The South Florida Bike Coalition
Ghost Rider

April 19th, 2010 at 14:58

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Kathryn,

that’s AWESOME! We may just have to add that technique to our arsenal here in Tampa. I’ve got some cycling advocate friends that will be very interested to hear that lawsuits (or at least the threat of ‘em) work.
Kathryn / SFBC

April 19th, 2010 at 18:18

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@Ghost Rider – email me /find us on facebook & twitter /SFBikeCoalition
Donald Hayward

April 21st, 2010 at 08:38

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Although lawsuits are often criticized here in America (and perhaps rightfully so), they are important to any free country precisely for cases like this. They’re one of the few ways for citizens to hold the government accountable for doing what they are supposed to, short of impeachment and electing new leaders (which is a hard and sometimes fruitless process).

IIRC, there are two main types of lawsuits… those in which the plaintiff is seeking money from the defendant, and those in which the plaintiff is seeking to force the plaintiff to act in a certain way (or to prevent some action). In my mind, the latter is nearly always a legitimate case to be brought up (since it is a means of holding people accountable, rather than greed).

That said, I think that lawsuits should be pretty close to a last resort, but they should definitely be an option on the table if the government tries to blow us off as harmless or irrelevant.
spiderleggreen

April 30th, 2010 at 06:40

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Who’s got a problem with suing the government? If the government igores it’s own laws, it needs a tap on the shoulder.
2whls3spds

May 1st, 2010 at 05:01

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@spiderleggreen…a tap in on the shoulder? Around here they need a swift kick to their nether regions!

Aaron

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Another Tactic for Complete Streets Advocates?

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