Enid News and Eagle
— Spring is just around the corner and so are bicycles. As motorists and bicyclists, we share the road, as well as the responsibility of safety. Oklahoma laws and city ordinances have been written to aid bicyclists and motorists in that endeavor.
Bicyclists are to ride as close as is safe to the right-hand curb, obey the same traffic laws as a motor vehicle, stay off sidewalks, may not pass other vehicles between lanes of traffic traveling in the same direction, ride single-file, keep at least one hand on the handlebars, use front and back lights from one-half hour after sunset and one-half hour before sunrise, equipped with a red reflector, brakes and prohibited from having or using a siren.
Motorists are required to leave a distance of no less than three feet when passing a bicycle.
A distance of three feet is a lot to a bicyclist when compared to 12 inches, which is where a bicyclist finds themselves many times when being passed by a car. Add a car horn to a close pass and it’s pretty scary and unnerving to say the least.
Motorists, pass a bicyclist like you would another motorist; when it is safe and without honking your horn. To the majority of motorists who do that, I would like to say thank you.
Unfortunately, when bicyclists and motorists alike fail to share the road safely, accidents happen. People are injured, sometimes killed and it is usually the bicyclist. A bicyclist will always come up short against tons of moving steel.
As long as motorists and bicyclists travel the same roads, let’s all “share the road” by looking out for the safety of one another.
Debbie Currier
Enid
