AN ACT CONCERNING THE PENALTY FOR CAUSING HARM TO A VULNERABLE USER OF A PUBLIC WAY.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Assembly convened:

Section 1. (NEW) (Effective October 1, 2013) (a) As used in subsection (b) of this section, (1) "vulnerable user" means: (A) A pedestrian; (B) a highway worker; (C) a person riding or driving an animal; (D) a person riding a bicycle; (E) a person using a skateboard, roller skates or inline skates; (F) a person operating or riding on an agricultural tractor; (G) a person using a wheelchair or motorized chair; and (H) a blind person and such person's service animal, and (2) "public way" includes any state or other public highway, road, street, avenue, alley, driveway, parkway or place, under the control of the state or any political subdivision of the state, dedicated, appropriated or opened to public travel or other use.

(b) Any person operating a motor vehicle on a public way who fails to exercise reasonable care and causes the serious physical injury or death of a vulnerable user of a public way, provided such vulnerable user has shown reasonable care in such user's use of the public way, shall be fined not more than one thousand dollars.