(Image credit: Mel Rothenburger).

By Mel Rothenburger

ARMCHAIR MAYOR

ROTHENBURGER: Inexperienced cyclists are a hazard on city’s streets

Jul 27, 2022 | 4:42 AM

KAMLOOPS HAS HAD too many tragedies involving cyclists and vehicles, and calls for drivers to be more careful around bikes and riders are totally justified.

But too many cyclists are inexperienced and ignorant of the rules of the road, or don’t care.

I don’t mean the spandex speeders or the serious commuters. I’m talking about the Sunday riders — the cycling version of Sunday drivers — trying to participate in the new emphasis on active transportation.

I was driving on a major four-lane Kamloops connector (as it happens, it was a Sunday) when I chanced upon a cyclist, shirtless and without a helmet, dawdling along as if he had good sense.

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Fortunately, it wasn’t difficult to manoeuvre around him, but here’s the point: he wasn’t supposed to be there. Just a couple of feet away was a multi-use pathway — if he’d used that as he should, he would have been safe from any possible interaction with a vehicle, though a helmet would still be a good idea.

But the opposite situation is also a big problem. That’s where cyclists insist on using sidewalks that are meant only for people. Especially with the advent of e-bikes, cyclists can tear along at a pretty good clip, weaving around pedestrians and risking collisions that could cause serious injuries to both.

Riding on sidewalks when they should stick to the street, ignoring shared pathways, riding on country roads where there are no shoulders — all this behaviour puts them and others at grave risk.

The City is working to increase the number of bike lanes but there’s a long way to go. Maybe the answer is a training program for new cyclists — if not mandatory, at least voluntary. Why do we need to be trained and tested for other modes of transportation but not for cycling?

Maybe the recently formed Kamloops Cycling Coalition — which promotes safety for cyclists — could also take the lead in educating the newbies.

I’m Mel Rothenburger, the Armchair Mayor.

Mel Rothenburger is a former mayor of Kamloops and a retired newspaper editor. He is a regular contributor to CFJC, publishes the ArmchairMayor.ca opinion website, and is a director on the Thompson-Nicola Regional District board. He can be reached at mrothenburger@armchairmayor.ca.

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Editor’s Note: This opinion piece reflects the views of its author, and does not necessarily represent the views of CFJC Today or Pattison Media.