When did it become a right for cyclists to break the law? This year, the Irresponsible cyclists seemed to have outnumbered the cyclists who follow the rules of the road.
Editor:
When did it become a right for cyclists to break the law? This year, the irresponsible cyclists seemed to have outnumbered the cyclists who follow the rules of the road.
It only takes a few minutes to read our town’s cycling bylaws. Children in this town are watching everyone who rides a bike, especially their parents. It is the responsibility of all cyclists to be role models to keep children safe.
Roads are not the cyclist’s freeway, so when they speed along streets, don’t stop at controlled intersections (such as red lights, stop signs, etc.) or signal correctly, they are teaching children who are watching them how to get themselves killed. Think about it.
Every time a teenager or adult in this town carelessly and irresponsibly rides their bike and breaks the law, they are teaching a child to ride a bike just like them.
So, if you are the cyclist who is riding through red lights, weaving through pedestrians, cutting people off, riding with no hands, riding looking at your phone, speeding along roads and pathways, standing on a bike, riding double, seated on handlebars, riding on sidewalks, not ringing bells or telling people that they are being passed, a child is watching you.
In Calgary, a woman was hit and killed by a child who was riding a bike. Recently, here in Banff, a child of about 10 who couldn’t control his bike hit a senior from behind and knocked her to the ground. As a result of her injuries, she is now walking with a cane.
Is it going to take someone getting killed in this town before irresponsible cyclists start to follow the rules of the road? Bylaws governing cycling should be enforced.
Sharon Clinton,
Banff