The bicyclist and the car driver must share the road, and starting Tuesday a new Ohio law aims to make that sometimes tenuous relationship safer. Now drivers will need to give bicyclists three feet of space when passing.

Since 2009, The Ohio Bicycle Federation has called for a three-foot passing clearance bill. Although some Ohio cities already have similar laws in place, the whole state was not affected. Now, with the passing of the law, which goes into effect March 21, Ohio joins 27 others states who already have this rule on the books.

The law states that:
“The operator of a vehicle overtaking another vehicle shall pass to the left at a safe distance and shall not again drive to the right until safely clear of the overtaken vehicle. When a motor vehicle overtakes and passes a bicycle, three feet or greater is considered a safe passing distance.”

Take note and be safe, Cleveland.

This article appears in Mar 15-21, 2017.