BILL 48

An Act Respecting “Ellen’s Law”

Her Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick, enacts as follows:

1 Section 147 of the Motor Vehicle Act, chapter M-17 of the Revised Statutes, 1973, is amended

(a)  in paragraph (1)(a) by adding “or a bicycle” after “another vehicle”;

(b)  in subsection (2) by striking out “except when overtaking and passing another vehicle” and substituting “except when overtaking and passing another vehicle or a bicycle”.

2 Section 149 of the Act is amended by adding after subsection (2) the following:

149( 3) Except as provided in section 150, the driver of a vehicle overtaking and passing a bicycle proceeding in the same direction

(a)  when reasonably necessary to ensure safe operation, shall sound an audible signal,

(b)  shall not pass the bicycle without first signalling the intention to do so by giving a signal for a left turn in the manner prescribed by section 163 or 164,

(c)  shall pass to the left at a distance of at least one metre from the bicycle,

(d)  shall not return to the right side of the roadway until safely clear of the bicycle, and

(e)  shall not pass to the left of the bicycle when the bicycle is making a left turn or the person riding the bicycle has signalled the intention to make a left turn.

149( 4) On hearing the audible signal, the rider of a bicycle that is being overtaken and passed by a vehicle shall give way to the right in favour of the vehicle.

3 Section 150 of the Act is amended

(a)  by repealing subsection (1) and substituting the following:

150( 1) The driver of a vehicle shall not overtake and pass on the right of another vehicle or a bicycle except

(a)  when the vehicle or bicycle overtaken is making a left turn or its driver or rider, as the case may be, has signalled the intention to make a left turn,

(b)  when on a laned highway there are one or more unobstructed lanes available to traffic moving in the direction of travel of the vehicle, or

(c)  on a one-way roadway when the roadway is of sufficient width for two or more lines of moving vehicles and is free from obstruction.

(b)  in subsection (2) in the portion preceding paragraph (a) by striking out “another vehicle” and substituting “another vehicle or a bicycle”.

4 Subsection 152(3) of the Act is amended by striking out “another vehicle” and substituting “another vehicle or a bicycle”.

5 Schedule A of the Act is amended by adding after

149(2)( b) ...............

C

the following:

	149(3)(a)...............			C
	149(3)(b)...............			C
	149(3)(c)...............			C
	149(3)(d)...............			C
	149(3)(e)...............			C
	149(4)...............			C

6 This Act or any provision of it comes into force on a day or days to be fixed by proclamation.