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Proposed bill would restrict bicycle bans in Colorado cities [via Biking Bis]

The fight to reopen the streets of Black Hawk, Colorado, to bicycles is going to make it to the State House this year.
A state legislator told the Bicycle Colorado advocacy group that he will introduce a bill entitled the "Open Roads Act" when the General Assembly opens for business next week.
The bill would allow local authorities to prohibit bicycling on some streets only in limited cases and only if a nearby alternative route is designated.
The author of the bill, State Representative Andy Kerr, told Bicycle Colorado:
"Banning bicycle travel on every street in a community penalizes people that choose healthy, affordable, pollution-free transportation."
Black Hawk's ban
The firestorm about bicycle bans was sparked over the summer when police in the town of Black Hawk started issuing tickets to people on bicycles.
The City Council for the casino-rich town in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains enacted a law in 2009 making it illegal to ride a bicycle on nearly every street. "No bicycling" signs went up in 2010. Police began issuing tickets over the summer.
City officials asserted the ban was needed because bicycling was dangerous. They raised concerns about the possibility of accidents between bicyclists and the  many gambling tour buses that prowl downtown, although there are no such collisions on record.

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