Bike safety, do you know it?
Cyclists fare best when treated as drivers of vehicles, according to the League of American Bicyclists, and Aggie Blue Bikes is doing their part to ensure that everyone knows that.
Aggie Blue Bikes is doing more than renting bikes and teaching bike maintenance, they are on a campus-wide mission to ensure all students know and understand Utah bicycle laws and the campus walkway policies.
More than 900 bicyclists are killed in the United States every year, according to the Logan City Police Deptartment Web site. Breaking down that figure, the League of American Bicyclists said one-fourth of accidents involving a motorist and cyclist are caused because cyclists are riding the wrong way in traffic. Eleven percent of accidents are from a cyclist turning left from the right side of the road and 8 percent are because a cyclist did not stop at a stop sign or signal.
The evidence of cycling accidents is a concern to Adam Christensen, director of Aggie Blue Bikes, who said he is trying to ensure everyone who comes to Aggie Blue Bikes becomes educated on Utah bicycle laws. He said he is starting with his employees by requiring them to take the Road 1 course which educates on proper bike safety, etiquette and law, as offered by the League of American Bicyclists.
“Most people think that because they can balance and pedal on a bike they know how to drive a bike,” he said. “People should understand there is a right way to cycle.”
The right way to cycle is what Christensen said he is trying to get across with the Aggie Blue Bikes Spoken Word Campaign. The campaign uses a bike, stripped of its components, with a poster of bike laws attached to the frame. He said it will then be chained to bike parking stalls around campus.
Along with the Spoken Word, Christensen said Aggie Blue Bikes hands out educational information on cycling laws in Utah and USU campus walkway policies.
“Basically, if a cyclist wants to be safe the best thing for them to do is think of themselves as a legal vehicle on the road, which they are,” he said.
Christensen said there are basic rules cyclists need to follow on campus. He said to remember to wear a helmet, which can greatly diminish a cyclists chance of dying if they are in a crash.
Second, comply with all USU campus walkway policies which include yielding the right-of-way to any pedestrians – when riding within 20 feet of a pedestrian one should travel at a speed no greater than twice that of surrounding pedestrians – and not riding on roadside sidewalks which is Utah law.
Christensen said being familiar and following Utah cycling laws can help make the roads and sidewalks safer for pedestrians, motorists and cyclists.
–ch.jensen@aggiemail.com