Texas 2025 - 89th Regular

Texas House Bill HB535 Compare Versions

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

Old	New	Differences
1	1	89R1816 SRA-D
2	2	By: Lopez of Bexar H.B. No. 535
3	3
4	4
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 passing a pedestrian or
10	10	a person operating a bicycle in certain municipalities; creating a
11	11	criminal offense.
12	12	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
13	13	SECTION 1. Subchapter B, Chapter 545, Transportation Code,
14	14	is amended by adding Section 545.0571 to read as follows:
15	15	Sec. 545.0571. MOTOR VEHICLE PASSING PEDESTRIAN OR BICYCLE
16	16	OPERATOR. (a) This section applies only to a person operating a
17	17	motor vehicle within the boundaries of a municipality with a
18	18	population of 100,000 or more.
19	19	(b) An operator of a motor vehicle shall exercise due care
20	20	to avoid colliding with a pedestrian or a person operating a bicycle
21	21	on a highway or street.
22	22	(c) For the purposes of Section 545.053(a), safe distance
23	23	from a pedestrian or any part of a bicycle is:
24	24	(1) at least three feet if the operator's vehicle is a
25	25	passenger car or a light truck; or
26	26	(2) at least six feet if the operator's vehicle is a
27	27	commercial motor vehicle as defined by Section 522.003 or a truck
28	28	other than a light truck.
29	29	(d) For the purposes of Section 545.057(a), conditions
30	30	permit safely passing a pedestrian or a bicycle to the right only if
31	31	the motor vehicle passes:
32	32	(1) at least three feet from the pedestrian or any part
33	33	of the bicycle if the operator's vehicle is a passenger car or a
34	34	light truck; or
35	35	(2) at least six feet from the pedestrian or any part
36	36	of the bicycle if the operator's vehicle is a commercial motor
37	37	vehicle as defined by Section 522.003 or a truck other than a light
38	38	truck.
39	39	(e) An operator of a motor vehicle passing a pedestrian or a
40	40	person operating a bicycle on a highway or street that has two or
41	41	more marked lanes running in the same direction shall move the motor
42	42	vehicle to a lane other than the lane used by the pedestrian or
43	43	bicycle operator while passing the pedestrian or bicycle operator.
44	44	(f) It is an affirmative defense to prosecution under this
45	45	section that at the time of the offense the pedestrian or bicycle
46	46	operator was acting in violation of a traffic law in a manner that
47	47	contributed to the offense under this section.
48	48	SECTION 2. Section 545.055, Transportation Code, is amended
49	49	by amending Subsection (b) and adding Subsection (b-1) to read as
50	50	follows:
51	51	(b) Except as provided by Subsection (b-1), an [An] operator
52	52	may not drive on the left side of the roadway in a no-passing zone or
53	53	on the left side of any pavement striping designed to mark a
54	54	no-passing zone.
55	55	(b-1) Subsection (b) [This subsection] does not prohibit a
56	56	driver from:
57	57	(1) crossing pavement striping, or the center line in
58	58	a no-passing zone marked by signs only, to make a left turn into or
59	59	out of an alley or private road or driveway; or
60	60	(2) passing a pedestrian or a person operating a
61	61	bicycle in a no-passing zone if the operator of the motor vehicle
62	62	otherwise complies with the requirements of this chapter.
63	63	SECTION 3. The changes in law made by this Act apply only to
64	64	an offense committed on or after the effective date of this Act. An
65	65	offense committed before the effective date of this Act is governed
66	66	by the law in effect on the date the offense was committed, and the
67	67	former law is continued in effect for that purpose. For purposes of
68	68	this section, an offense was committed before the effective date of
69	69	this Act if any element of the offense occurred before that date.
70	70	SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.