Your Stories: Drivers vs. Bikers in Montgomery County

CABIN JOHN, Md. (WUSA) - "I was inching myself up and I got to about right here and a bicyclist hit me coming this way," said 18-year-old Andrew Ortiz as he describes his collision with a cyclist last year.

The cyclist was okay, but Ortiz was taken to court. He was found not guilty, but his Grandmother has grown increasingly concerned about the heavy bike traffic along MacArthur Boulevard.

"I'm worried I'm going to hit one," said Karen Mason, Ortiz's Grandmother and a Cabin John resident who lives just one block away from MacArthur Boulevard. "Especially coming up this street or any small street in Cabin John because they don't pause. They come from nowhere. I just want to know what the laws are because if it's okay what they're doing then I'll just have to get used to it."

If you want to know what the bike laws are in Cabin John, there's only one place to go - the Montgomery County Police Department.

According to a spokeswoman for Montgomery County Police, "All bicyclists have to ride with the flow of traffic and obey all traffic laws, stop signs, stop lights, just as drivers of vehicles."

So I stopped a cyclist on MacArthur Boulevard and asked him if he always followed the bike laws.

"I try," said Brian Gross.

Seconds later we saw another cyclist biking down the street.

"Now lets see if he stops," said Gross. "Nope, he didn't stop."

Not only is not stopping at a stop sign illegal, but if caught it comes with a fine.

"Most of the fines are in the $40 to $50 range," said Montgomery County Police. "There are some around $80 and the most severe go up to over $200."

Police say people like Karen and Andrew can contact their local district police station to get an assessment of the roads in their area. However, if a Montgomery County resident wants any real change, that would have to come from county government.