
The original Idaho Stop law is a law that was passed which allowed cyclists to go through a red light if the light sensors did not pick up the weight of the bike (causing a ‘stale’ red light).

So, what is the Idaho Stop law and why do cyclists want it? However, there are a handful of states which observe what is called the Idaho Stop, and other states with cyclists lobbying to be allowed to do the same. If you’re a driver, you have to stop at a red light and wait for it to turn green and many drivers say that if bikes are considered vehicles, cyclists should follow the same rules.

So, even if it is legal to ride through a stale red light, roll through a stop sign, or ride swiftly through a yellow light, safety should still be the top priority and you should only do it if it is one hundred percent safe to do so. At the end of the day though, we firmly endorse riding safely and riding legally. We are going to do our best to break through some of the confusion. It is not helped by the fact that municipal, state, and federal law all have differing opinions on the whole thing and the law is upheld-or not-depending often on how the cops feel about doing it that day and how bad the infraction was!Īnd then, of course, there are the debates across the world about whether bikes should be allowed to go through red lights when it’s quiet, roll through stop signs, or whether they should obey all the same lights even if those lights go stale… It’s no wonder drivers and cyclists get frustrated with one another.

Drivers know that they have to go when it’s green, slow down or get ready to stop when it’s yellow and stop when it’s read however, cyclists occupy a much greyer zone, and this causes strife between cars and bikes.
