Montana Code 61-8-608. Bicycles or mopeds on sidewalks and bike lanes
61-8-608. Bicycles or mopeds on sidewalks and bike lanes. (1) Subject to the provisions of subsection (3)(b), a person operating a bicycle or moped on and along a sidewalk or across a roadway on and along a crosswalk shall yield the right-of-way to any pedestrian and shall give an audible signal before overtaking and passing any pedestrian.
Terms Used In Montana Code 61-8-608
- Bicycle: means a vehicle propelled solely by human power on which any person may ride, irrespective of the number of wheels, except scooters, wheelchairs, and similar devices. See Montana Code 61-8-102
- Crosswalk: means :
(i)that part of a roadway at an intersection included within the connections of the lateral lines of the sidewalks on opposite sides of the highway measured from the curbs or, in the absence of curbs, from the edges of the traversable roadway; or
(ii)any portion of a roadway at an intersection or elsewhere distinctly indicated for pedestrians crossing by lines or other markings on the surface. See Montana Code 61-8-102
- Highway: has the meaning provided in 61-1-101, but includes ways that have been or are later dedicated to public use. See Montana Code 61-8-102
- Moped: means a vehicle equipped with two or three wheels, foot pedals to permit muscular propulsion, and an independent power source providing a maximum of 2 brake horsepower. See Montana Code 61-8-102
- Pedestrian: means any person on foot or any person in a manually or mechanically propelled wheelchair or other low-powered, mechanically propelled vehicle designed specifically for use by a physically disabled person. See Montana Code 61-8-102
- person: means an individual, corporation, partnership, limited partnership, limited liability company, association, joint venture, state agency, local government unit, another state government, the United States, a political subdivision of this or another state, or any other legal or commercial entity. See Montana Code 61-1-101
- Right-of-way: means the privilege of the immediate use of the roadway. See Montana Code 61-8-102
- Roadway: means the portion of a highway that is improved, designed, or ordinarily used for vehicular travel, including the paved shoulder. See Montana Code 61-8-102
- Sidewalk: means the portion of a street that is between the curb lines or the lateral lines of a roadway and the adjacent property lines and that is intended for use by pedestrians. See Montana Code 61-8-102
- Traffic: means pedestrians, ridden or herded animals, vehicles, streetcars, and other conveyances either singly or together while using any highways for purposes of travel. See Montana Code 61-1-101
- Vehicle: means a device in, on, or by which any person or property may be transported or drawn on a public highway, except devices moved by animal power or used exclusively on stationary rails or tracks. See Montana Code 61-1-101
(2)A person may not ride a bicycle or moped on and along a sidewalk or across a roadway on and along a crosswalk where the use of a bicycle or moped is prohibited by official traffic control devices.
(3)(a) Except as provided in subsections (1) and (2), a person operating a vehicle by human power on and along a sidewalk or across a roadway on and along a crosswalk has all the rights and duties applicable to a pedestrian under the same circumstances.
(b)A moped may be operated on and along a sidewalk or a bicycle path only under human propulsion and may not be operated on or along a sidewalk or bicycle path if the moped is under power from an independent power source.
(c)A moped may be operated under human propulsion or an independent power source on a highway, in a designated bicycle lane on a highway, or on the shoulder of a highway.