Residents of Argyle Avenue are taking a stand against law-breaking cyclists by reminding riders to walk, not ride, their bikes on the sidewalk.
They’ve posted signs along the road, which is a good start to tackling the problem. However, the solution to the tension with cyclists – cycling being a perennial issue in Ottawa – is really quite simple: obey the law.
Cyclists are considered vehicle operators and must ride on the street and follow the rules of the road. Additionally, the Highway Traffic Act requires that all bicycles be outfitted with bells, reflectors and lights during times of poor visibility.
Given these conditions, it makes little sense why this has become an issue in the first place. Since it’s against the law to ride a bike on the sidewalk, riders must head for the streets.
Riding on the sidewalks endangers pedestrians, particularly the elderly or children that might be caught unawares in front of a cyclist barrelling around.
Presumably, cyclists have migrated to the sidewalks because they are afraid of reckless driving, which is an entirely justifiable fear given the rash of injuries and deaths each year from collisions between bikes and cars.
However, blame cuts in both directions.
Just as it’s clear that there are renegade motorists in this city, it is also clear that many cyclists consistently flout the rules of the road.
A long-term resolution to the tension between drivers, cyclists and pedestrians requires that all stakeholders approach a solution from a starting point where we all agree, in principle, to make things safer for each other.
Cyclists must consider how they can increase their safety, while still operating their vehicle legally.
This means that they must obey traffic lights and signs, not sidle up between cars to get to the front of traffic, properly signal when negotiating between lanes or making turns and not blithely go down the wrong way on a one-way street. These simple steps will make a world of difference in cyclist safety in Ottawa.
Motorists, too, should make an extra effort to shoulder check while driving and keep an extra eye out for cyclists. There is little doubt that drivers are at fault for many of the problems between bikes and cars.
Time and time again, Ottawa drivers recklessly navigate intersections, disregard the speed limit and fail to recognize the importance of looking out for people in the shoulder or on crosswalks.
It is this epidemic, lackadaisical disregard for not only the law, but also the safety of other citizens, that must change.
As fall is the perfect season to get out for a ride, all users of the road need to be extra conscious of one another.
Only then can we put the issue of bicycles on the sidewalk to rest, and instead concentrate on increasing safety, as the law would have it. It’s a simple solution for a complex problem, but if we approach it co-operatively, and empathetically, it raises the likelihood that conditions for all commuters will improve.