You asked if neighboring states place information about sharing the road with bicycles in their driving manuals.

The driving manuals of the other New England states, New Jersey, and New York all warn drivers to use caution around bicyclists.

Each of the manuals highlights that bicycles:

1. have as much legal right to the road as cars and trucks;

2. are expected to obey all traffic laws and signals;

3. are harder to see than other vehicles, especially at night;

4. could make quick maneuvers to avoid road hazards; and

5. need to be passed slowly.

Some states go into more detail than others. Maine’s driving manual, for example, specifies what hand signals bicyclists use for turning and stopping, and contains a detailed section about being safe while riding a bicycle. Vermont includes four common errors that cause drivers to collide with bicyclists: (1) turning left without noticing/signaling to an oncoming bicyclist, (2) turning right at an intersection or driveway without checking for a bicyclist on the right who is continuing straight ahead, (3) entering or crossing a street without checking for a bicyclist in the street or on the sidewalk, and (4) opening a vehicle’s door into the path of a cyclist.

Table 1 lists the Web sites for the driving manuals of the other New England states, New Jersey, and New York.

Table 1: Driving Manual Web sites

We have attached the relevant portions of the driving manuals.