New safety posters from VBF

Virginia Bicycling Federation recently created two new safety posters that can be downloaded and printed. "Light up the night-Be Safe Be Seen" encourages cyclists to use front and rear lights and to wear visible clothing. Virginia law requires that bicyclists use front and rear lights at night on roads with a speed limit of 35 mph or greater. On roads with lower speed limits a front light and rear reflector are required but it's recommended that you use both front and rear lights.

The second poster has a more subtle message, "Don't be color blind-Same Rights, Same Responsibilities." It took a minute to figure out that "color blind" was referring to the red light signal in the image. Having the word "blind" highlighted in red was a clue.

Kudos to VBF for creating these posters and making them available to the public.

FABB will be holding bike safety events this winter. We just heard that our grant application for purchasing lights and reflective gear was approved so we'll be stocking up on lights and reflective pants straps; stay tuned for more info about those events.

Vienna meeting on W&OD Trail safety on Tuesday

The Vienna Transportation Safety Commission will hold a public hearing on W&OD Trail safety. According to signs like the one on the right that are posted along the trail in the Vienna area, the meeting will start at 8pm, Tuesday the 27th at the Vienna Town Hall, 127 Center St. The text on the signs reads: "W&OD bike trail safety solution - cyclist pedestrians: All interested individuals are invited to attend."

See our notes about an earlier W&OD Trail safety meeting held in Vienna. Many ideas have been proposed, many of which are not enforceable. Probably the best idea is for everyone to be courteous and respectful. If you have constructive ideas about W&OD Trail safety, consider attending the meeting.

Update: The agenda for the TSC meeting has been posted on the Town website.

Pedestrian death spike in DC - Post blames pedestrians

Today's Post editorial entitled Death by distraction discusses the rise in pedestrian deaths in DC, which account for 54.2% of all traffic-related deaths. The Post's solution is to advocate for laws against distracted walking despite the dramatic increase in motorists who blatantly run red lights and who often refuse to yield to pedestrians.

Why not enforce the laws we have? Motorist actions such as aggressive driving, turning right on red without stopping, running red lights and stop signs, and speeding rarely result in citations. In countries where there has been a significant reduction in pedestrian and bicycle deaths, traffic enforcement is much more strict than in the U.S. There are also many other measures that can be taken to make our streets more safe. From Transportation Alternatives, a New York based alternative transportation group:

In the last few decades, Germany and Holland have made extraordinary progress to improve the safety of people walking and bicycling. From 1975 to 2001, cycling trips in Germany doubled, but bicycling deaths declined by 64% and pedestrian fatalities by 82%. In Holland, pedestrian fatalities declined by 73% and cycling fatalities by 57%.

Germany and Holland have improved conditions for bicyclists and pedestrians by employing concerted, long-term public policies to reengineer streets, change urban design, strengthen traffic enforcement and traffic laws and institute more vigorous driver education. Almost all of what these countries have done could be replicated in some form in New York City, and would help to reduce significantly the number of New Yorkers struck, injured and killed by drivers.

Fairfax Police bike safety video

The latest bike safety video from Fairfax County police is entitled Bike Safety Equipment and Traffic Rules. The 2 1/2 minute video covers basic equipment used for safe bicycling. Helmet fit is stressed, taking up over a minute of the video. The helmet worn by the officer seems a bit loose to me.

Rather than spend so much time on helmets and helmet fit I would prefer they stressed the importance of proper bike handling skills to avoid crashes in the first place. Under the 5 layers of bicycle safety, use of a helmet is listed last (Passive safety): "This is actually the least effective layer. Helmets and gloves protect your most vulnerable body parts as a last resort in case of the very rare failure of Layers 1 through 4, but they do nothing to help you avoid crashes."

The basics of the ABC Quick Check are briefly discussed. Following the rules of the road is the last segment. According to the officer, "If you're on a bicycle on the street you're a motor vehicle" which is incorrect. The definition of a bicycle in Virginia code states that "a bicycle shall be a vehicle while operated on the highway" not a motor vehicle. I know, picky, picky.