Texas 2013 - 83rd Regular

Texas House Bill HB2225 Compare Versions

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1	1	83R22748 JXC-D
2	2	By: McClendon, Martinez, Harper-Brown H.B. No. 2225
3	3	Substitute the following for H.B. No. 2225:
4	4	By: McClendon C.S.H.B. No. 2225
5	5
6	6
7	7	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
8	8	AN ACT
9	9	relating to the operation of a motor vehicle in the vicinity of an
10	10	unprotected road user; providing penalties.
11	11	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
12	12	SECTION 1. Subchapter I, Chapter 545, Transportation Code,
13	13	is amended by adding Section 545.428 to read as follows:
14	14	Sec. 545.428. UNPROTECTED ROAD USERS. (a) In this section,
15	15	"unprotected road user" means:
16	16	(1) a pedestrian, including a runner, physically
17	17	disabled person, highway construction and maintenance worker, tow
18	18	truck operator, utility worker, other worker operating legally in
19	19	or near the road or right-of-way, or stranded motorist or
20	20	passenger;
21	21	(2) a person on horseback;
22	22	(3) a person operating equipment other than a motor
23	23	vehicle, including a bicycle, handcycle, horse-driven conveyance,
24	24	or unprotected farm equipment; or
25	25	(4) a person operating a motorcycle, moped,
26	26	motor-driven cycle, or motor-assisted scooter.
27	27	(b) An operator of a motor vehicle passing an unprotected
28	28	road user operating on a highway or street shall:
29	29	(1) vacate the lane in which the unprotected road user
30	30	is located if the highway has two or more marked lanes running in
31	31	the same direction; or
32	32	(2) pass the unprotected road user at a safe distance.
33	33	(c) For the purposes of Subsection (b)(2), when road
34	34	conditions allow, safe distance is at least:
35	35	(1) three feet if the operator's vehicle is a passenger
36	36	car or light truck; or
37	37	(2) six feet if the operator's vehicle is a truck,
38	38	other than a light truck, that is a commercial motor vehicle as
39	39	defined by Section 522.003.
40	40	(d) An operator of a motor vehicle that is making a turn at
41	41	an intersection, including an intersection with an alley or private
42	42	road or driveway, shall yield the right-of-way to an unprotected
43	43	road user who is in the intersection or in such proximity to the
44	44	intersection as to be an immediate hazard.
45	45	(e) An operator of a motor vehicle may not overtake an
46	46	unprotected road user and subsequently turn in front of the
47	47	unprotected road user unless the operator is safely clear of the
48	48	unprotected road user, taking into account the speed at which the
49	49	unprotected road user is traveling and the braking requirements of
50	50	the turning vehicle.
51	51	(f) An operator of a motor vehicle may not maneuver the
52	52	vehicle in a manner that:
53	53	(1) is intended to cause intimidation or harassment to
54	54	an unprotected road user; or
55	55	(2) threatens an unprotected road user.
56	56	(g) An operator of a motor vehicle shall exercise due care
57	57	to avoid colliding with any unprotected road user on a roadway or in
58	58	an intersection of roadways.
59	59	(h) A violation of this section is punishable under Section
60	60	542.401 except that:
61	61	(1) if the violation results in property damage, the
62	62	violation is a misdemeanor punishable by a fine not to exceed $500;
63	63	or
64	64	(2) if the violation results in bodily injury, the
65	65	violation is a Class B misdemeanor.
66	66	(i) It is a defense to prosecution under this section that
67	67	at the time of the offense the unprotected road user was acting in
68	68	violation of the law.
69	69	(j) If conduct constituting an offense under this section
70	70	also constitutes an offense under another section of this code or
71	71	the Penal Code, the actor may be prosecuted under either section or
72	72	both sections.
73	73	SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 2013.