Tips for drivers during bike season

Summer is upon us. Kids and adults alike are hauling out their two-wheeled humanpowered steeds and hitting the roads and trails.

For bikers, road riding is great fun and even better exercise. But it can also be scary because other than a helmet, there is little or no protective gear. Given several recent vehicle-bicycle collisions and near-misses, it seemed an appropriate time to write a few tips for motorists. Of course, cyclists should also take care for their safety and I hope to write some tips for them soon.

1. Get on your bike and ride! — Not only is bicycling great exercise, it also helps you to better understand and predict cyclists’ behaviour. You’ll notice how free you feel with the wind on your skin and how vulnerable you are without a big steel frame around you.

2. Give us space — Only pass when you can keep a safe distance, at least one metre, between you and the bike. After passing, maintain a straight line to avoid cutting off the cyclist’s line of sight or kicking up dirt and rocks. If you’re driving a big truck or going faster than 50 kilometres an hour, leave more space (the gust from a truck zipping by can throw us off balance). Note: you may have to slow down or wait for a break in oncoming traffic in order to pass. Please be patient.

3. Look ahead for hazards — Especially when planning to pass a cyclist, look ahead for roadside hazards in the bike’s path. Potholes, cracks, manhole covers or debris, may force a cyclist to deak into your path to avoid them.

4. Bike Speeds Vary — A lot. People bike for a myriad of reasons, such as recreation, transportation, fitness and fun. Some are slow; some are fast. Children tend to go slowly, but may be faster than you’d expect going down a hill (especially if they haven’t quite figured out their brakes yet). Some cyclists ride at speeds of 50 km/h on flat roads and upwards of 70 km/h going downhill. Please exercise extreme caution when turning or crossing in front of a cyclist. Sudden braking at that speed can cause a loss of balance and may result in serious injury, even if you don’t collide. A collision could result in death.

5. Please don’t honk — While you may want to honk or shout your support, for a biker it can actually feel quite intimidating.

6. Give ’em a break — We all want to get where we’re going a bit faster. And it can be frustrating to drivers when cyclists don’t follow the rules of the road. But bear in mind that these rules were designed for cars and often don’t make sense when applied to bicycles (similarly, the same can be said for why so many pedestrians jaywalk). Often bikers are just tired and trying to catch a break. So even when a cyclist fails to stop at a stop sign — I think we can all agree — the penalty for disobeying the rules of the road should not be injury or death.

7. Vote on Sept. 26 — I remember the freedom that came with my bicycle as a child; riding to a friend’s house or a park to play. In St. John’s, parents are afraid to let their kids bike around town. Having bike safety built into our city with well-marked, maintained and connected bike lanes encourages healthy active transport and keeps our kids safe. Some candidates, like Maggie Burton and Ian Froude, have indicated their support for this much needed infrastructure. Be sure to find out where city council candidates stand before you go to the polls on Sept. 26, 2017.

Caitlin Urquhart St. John’s