Texas 2021 - 87th Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB1290 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	87R10798 SRA-F
2	2	By: Eckhardt S.B. No. 1290
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to the operation of a motor vehicle passing a pedestrian or
8	8	a person operating a bicycle.
9	9	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	10	SECTION 1. Subchapter B, Chapter 545, Transportation Code,
11	11	is amended by adding Section 545.0571 to read as follows:
12	12	Sec. 545.0571. MOTOR VEHICLE PASSING PEDESTRIAN OR BICYCLE
13	13	OPERATOR. (a) An operator of a motor vehicle shall exercise due
14	14	care to avoid colliding with a pedestrian or a person operating a
15	15	bicycle on a highway or street.
16	16	(b) For the purposes of Section 545.053(a), safe distance
17	17	from a pedestrian or any part of a bicycle is:
18	18	(1) at least three feet if the operator's vehicle is a
19	19	passenger car or a light truck; or
20	20	(2) at least six feet if the operator's vehicle is a
21	21	commercial motor vehicle as defined by Section 522.003 or a truck
22	22	other than a light truck.
23	23	(c) For the purposes of Section 545.057(a), conditions
24	24	permit safely passing a pedestrian or a bicycle to the right only if
25	25	the motor vehicle passes:
26	26	(1) at least three feet from the pedestrian or any part
27	27	of the bicycle if the operator's vehicle is a passenger car or a
28	28	light truck; or
29	29	(2) at least six feet from the pedestrian or any part
30	30	of the bicycle if the operator's vehicle is a commercial motor
31	31	vehicle as defined by Section 522.003 or a truck other than a light
32	32	truck.
33	33	(d) An operator of a motor vehicle passing a pedestrian or a
34	34	person operating a bicycle on a highway or street that has two or
35	35	more marked lanes running in the same direction shall move the motor
36	36	vehicle to a lane other than the lane used by the pedestrian or
37	37	bicycle operator while passing the pedestrian or bicycle operator.
38	38	(e) It is an affirmative defense to prosecution under this
39	39	section that at the time of the offense the pedestrian or bicycle
40	40	operator was acting in violation of a traffic law in a manner that
41	41	contributed to the offense under this section.
42	42	SECTION 2. Section 545.055, Transportation Code, is amended
43	43	by amending Subsection (b) and adding Subsection (b-1) to read as
44	44	follows:
45	45	(b) Except as provided by Subsection (b-1), an [An] operator
46	46	may not drive on the left side of the roadway in a no-passing zone or
47	47	on the left side of any pavement striping designed to mark a
48	48	no-passing zone.
49	49	(b-1) Subsection (b) [This subsection] does not prohibit a
50	50	driver from:
51	51	(1) crossing pavement striping, or the center line in
52	52	a no-passing zone marked by signs only, to make a left turn into or
53	53	out of an alley or private road or driveway; or
54	54	(2) passing a pedestrian or a person operating a
55	55	bicycle in a no-passing zone if the operator of the motor vehicle
56	56	otherwise complies with the requirements of this chapter.
57	57	SECTION 3. The changes in law made by this Act apply only to
58	58	an offense committed on or after the effective date of this Act. An
59	59	offense committed before the effective date of this Act is governed
60	60	by the law in effect on the date the offense was committed, and the
61	61	former law is continued in effect for that purpose. For purposes of
62	62	this section, an offense was committed before the effective date of
63	63	this Act if any element of the offense occurred before that date.
64	64	SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2021.