The “Jeff Roth
and Brian Brown Bicycle Protection Act of 2007” was signed
into law on May 3, 2007, by Tennessee Governor Phil Bredesen.
Tennessee joins a handful of states that have moved forward to
further protect cyclists on our roadways.
Passed without
opposition in both the House and Senate, this act provides that
“the operator of a motor vehicle when overtaking and passing
a bicycle proceeding in the same direction on the roadway, shall
leave a safe distance between the motor vehicle and the bicycle of
not less than three feet (3’) and shall maintain such
clearance until safely past the overtaken
bicycle.”
A violation of this
section is a Class C misdemeanor.
