Virginia's 'Bike Friendliness' Up a Notch, According to National Advocacy Group

(Editor's Note: The map above was created by the League of American Cyclists.)

Virginia is ranked No. 1 in the South and No. 16 in the country in terms of "bicycle friendliness," according to the League of American Cyclists. That's up one spot from Virginia's No. 17 ranking in 2012. 

The commonwealth received a rating of four (on a one-to-five scale) for policies and programs and received accolades for having an active "share the road" campaign and an active statewide advocacy group (Virginia Bicycle Federation and BikeWalk Virginia). 

Included in feedback from the League of American Cyclists: 

• Adopt a safe passing law with a minimum distance of 3 feet to address bicyclist safety.
• Adopt a vulnerable road user law that increases penalties for a motorist that injures or kills a bicyclist or pedestrian.
• Adopt a law prohibiting a motorist from opening an automobile’s door unless the motorist is able to do so safely.

See the PDF in the media box at right for more details on Virginia's ranking.

In January, a number of bicyclists joined with Virginia state senators to push for more laws related to sharing the road safely. 

A number of legislators in Virginia in the 2013 session proposed legislation addressing those three "feedback" points from the League of American Cyclists. 

Senate Bill 1060, which would have made it illegal for a driver to follow too closely to a cyclist and increased the passing distance to 3 feet from 2 feet. It was defeated in the House of Delegates.

Senate Bill 736, which would have required car drivers and passengers to wait to open their doors until a cyclist or other car has passed, was defeated in the Transportation Committee. 

House Bill 1950 would have prohibited the driver of a motor vehicle from following mopeds, bikes and other non-motorized vehicles too closely, but that bill appears to have never made it to a final vote.

The District of Columbia was not included in the League of American Cyclists rankings. Maryland ranked 11 nationwide.