Keokuk, IA – A growing number of counties want the Iowa Legislature to exempt them from lawsuits involving bicyclists riding on county roads.
Lee County Board of Supervisors Chairman Larry Kruse says the lobbying effort stems from a lawsuit in Crawford County.
Crawford County recently reached a six-figure settlement with the family of a man who died after being thrown from his bicycle, when he hit a crack in a county road, during the 2004 edition of RAGBRAI.
Kruse says county roads are designed and maintained for motor vehicles, not bicycles.
Kruse says the Iowa State Association of Counties is urging every county to adopt a resolution calling on the legislature to enact the bicycle liability exemption.
Lee County did so this week.
Additional Information
* Thousands of bicycle riders take part in RAGBRAI each year.
* The 2008 session of the Iowa General Assembly gets underway January 14th.