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Since You Asked: ‘Idaho stop’ legal for cyclists since 2019 Oct 09, 2022 12:00 AM A A Could you please clarify the Oregon law regarding whether cyclists need to stop for stops signs and/or traffic lights? — Robin D., via email Thanks are in order to Phoenix Police Chief Derek Bowker, who helped with this week’s Since You Asked. While cyclists used to be required to stop at stop signs, the Oregon Legislature in August 2019 approved Senate Bill 998, updating language pertaining to cyclists found in Oregon Revised Statutes 811.260 and 811.265. What the bill did, Bowker explained, was make what was commonly known as the “Idaho stop” legal in Oregon. First adopted by the state of Idaho in 1982, the maneuver allows bicyclists to slow and yield, rather than come to a complete stop at intersections controlled by a stop sign or flashing red light. Bicyclists are required to slow to a reasonable speed, yield to anyone already in the intersection and not approach others in the intersection so closely that it would create a hazard. Cyclists must also still come to a complete stop at a solid red traffic signal, must stop for pedestrians in crosswalks and make every effort to avoid an accident and follow the directions of a police officer or highway flagger. A study at University of California, Berkeley found that allowing “Idaho stops” for bicyclists reduced bike crashes by 14%. The change for Oregon cyclists went into effect Jan. 1, 2020. Send questions to “Since You Asked,” Mail Tribune Newsroom, P.O. Box 1108, Medford, OR 97501; or by email to [email protected].