On this bicycle safety page I have featured articles written by others. I saw no sense in trying to write an article when someone else has already done an excellent job.

There are many great tips in these articles and it would be beneficial to read through these and other articles for your own safety.

My thanks to Michael Bluejay and Lauren Cooper for these excellent articles.

-Mark

Introduction to Vehicular Cycling

Cooperative Cycling: An Introduction To Bicycling Safely With Traffic

Imagine if everyone drove around the roads at random, without stopping, yielding, keeping a straight line, checking behind, or obeying any traffic rules. The public roads would be total, utter chaos. Fortunately, we have carefully designed, commonly accepted rules of the road, which make driving on the roads a well-organized, cooperative, and relatively safe activity.

Sadly, most bicyclists in the USA don't use these rules. It's not really their fault; most have no in-depth cycling education. Many have been told to do things that are illegal and dangerous -- such as riding on sidewalks or on the wrong side of the road. We simply don't teach bicyclists how to be safe by using all the rules of the road to politely cooperate with other drivers -- not just signaling turns, but merging, changing lanes, yielding to others, using lights at night, and more.

Yet because bicycling is so forgiving, the number of persons who die while bicycling in the US is very small: fewer than 900 per year. That's compared to 5,000 pedestrians, almost 40,000 in cars, 60,000 from air pollution, and hundreds of thousands from lack of exercise. Overall, bicycling is safer than motorcycling, horse-riding, water-skiing, or swimming. Even the overall risk involved in a bicycle crash is much less than in a car crash. Cars on highways crash at high speeds, with tremendous damaging forces, and tangle with tractor-trailers 30-40 times larger (a much greater difference than between cars and bikes).

There’s more:

-- About 85% of all bicycle crashes requiring medical treatment didn't involve a moving car at all; the bicyclist simply slid, fell, or ran into something. That’s why helmets and gloves are important.

-- In the 15% that were car/bike crashes, over 9 out of 10 were avoidable; they happened with crossing and turning traffic at driveways, intersections, and in bikelanes.

-- Over 50% of adult cycling deaths were avoidable; they involved bicycling at night without lights.

So, improving bicycle safety in traffic is actually quite easy: most car/bike crashes happen with crossing and turning traffic at driveways, intersections, in bikelanes, and with unlit bicyclists at night. These are predictable crashes which can easily be avoided. The most experienced bicyclists have learned how to do so.

Cooperative Cyclists

That in-depth cycling education gives Cooperative Cyclists the freedom to travel on any road, day or night, with reasonable safety. Unlike bikelanes "cycling education is self-deployed wherever needed, increases in effectiveness with every use, at no additional cost, and provides complete coverage by being used at every time and location where its use is in any way advantageous." (John Forester). Bikelanes are a terrible substitute for an in-depth cycling education. A bikelane is not a protected space: crossing and turning traffic still has to be safely and cooperatively negotiated at all driveways, intersections, bus stops, and parking spaces.

"Cyclists Fare Best When They Act And Are Treated As Drivers Of Vehicles."

(John Forester)

Under the law, bicyclists are supposed to follow the rules for slow-moving vehicles, the same as farm vehicles, construction machines, antique cars and horse-buggies. Slow vehicles travel to the right IF there is safe space. Faster vehicles wait until they can pass safely. Other than that, everyone follows the same rules.

The ride-to-the-right rule for bicyclists is simply another version of this, but is so widely misunderstood that most people believe it says cyclists must always stay right. This isn’t so. While bicyclists share their lane if it’s completely safe to do so, traffic law never requires them to squeeze over to the right for passing cars. Doing so often causes cyclists to collide with parked car doors, slide on sand or debris, or get squeezed between hazards.

In most states, the ride-to-the-right rule for bicyclists actually says:

"ride to the right *EXCEPT* when passing, turning left, or to avoid objects, parked cars, moving vehicles, pedestrians, animals, surface or other hazards; or when in a vehicle lane too narrow for a bicycle and another vehicle to pass safely, side by side, within the lane."

Conditions like these are quite common when bicycling. Traffic law clearly says that to avoid them, don’t stay right. In these conditions the law specifically instructs bicyclists to be safe by behaving as other drivers do:

"Every person riding a bicycle shall have all of the rights and duties applicable to other drivers."

So to avoid hazardous conditions bicyclists should politely merge left, and ride nearer the center of a vehicle lane until the hazards are past -- just as any other driver would do. Some may think this unsafe for bicyclists, but this is normal practice for all slow drivers: drive to the right when it’s safe, but use a full lane when needed. The law is the same for bicyclists precisely because this is the best and safest way to operate a bicycle in traffic. As one police chief says, "It’s just common sense and standard traffic rules."

Politely taking enough space for your own safety is the heart and core of safely cycling in traffic. You can't be safe unless you're willing to take some space; even if you have to delay some cars. The most experienced bicyclists politely and legally use the full lane when it’s needed, and ride comfortably in a safe-space zone away from hazards. Doing so makes them safer by being more visible to other drivers at driveways and intersections, where most collisions occur. It prevents motorists from squeezing past in narrow lanes; they simply have to wait or go around. While a 20-30 second wait may be annoying, riding this way is the best way to ensure safety.

This is called Cooperative Cycling (also known as Vehicular Cycling and Bicycle Driving). It is the only national standard for safe bicycling that is based upon using all the standard traffic rules to politely cooperate with other drivers. There is extensive science to support it: the decades of overall traffic-safety studies, plus studies of common bicycle and car/bike crashes, and studies of how the most-experienced cyclists log thousands of miles this way in traffic, year after year, yet have 80% fewer accidents than untrained cyclists.

Of course, there is much more to it. Cooperative Cyclists ride in a straight line along with traffic, and move sideways by politely merging; exactly the same way other drivers change lanes. They create a safe-space zone around the bicycle by riding about 4 ft. away from parked cars, curbs, or hazards. They merge, yield, and change lanes just like other drivers. They always use lights at night. They avoid getting squeezed in narrow lanes or when hazards are ahead by politely merging left, and riding near the center of a vehicle lane until the hazard is past. For more, please study the Bicycle Drivers Manual at www.bicyclinglife.com .

Cyclist education is the key to cyclist safety. Everyone operates in traffic throughout their lives: children walk and ride on sidewalks (with cross traffic at driveways), cross the streets, and then bicycle on neighborhood roads. Later they bike in traffic, and then start driving. We should be teaching traffic education continuously through-out the grade school years, in a progression from pedestrian to cooperative cyclist to motor vehicle operator.

"Nobody ever died from not knowing how to play flag football. Yet we spend tax money teaching kids its nuances in gym classes, while bicycle safety is still foreign to most school curriculums." Don Cuerdon

Even a simple public awareness campaign can help. In Charlottesville Va., area police and media reminded motorists that bicyclists have equal rights to use a full lane when needed. Libraries distributed the Bicycle Driver’s Manual mentioned above. Many bicyclists reported slightly increased cycling, and better behavior from both motorists and cyclists.

That’s all it takes: educate cyclists, educate the public, and encourage fair and equal enforcement of existing traffic laws. Every person, without exception, has a fundamental civil right to use and be protected by the law on our public roads. Every road user, including bicyclists, should practice safety first. Traffic rules define the safest way known for sharing public roads: apply the same principles, the same rules, and the same rights to every individual: and hold each individual responsible for their behavior, and their behavior alone. We not only have to share our public roads -- we should be sharing the ideal of safety for everyone on the road.

Thank you for your time and consideration. And thank you for bicycling!

Comments? CycleMedia@hotmail.com

(c) 2002 Lauren Cooper Permission to copy with credit, and distribute for free, is granted.

How to Not Get Hit by Cars important lessons on Bicycle Safety by Michael Bluejay | Versions in: French - Spanish - Catalan - Hungarian  Versions for: Brits / Aussies

This page shows you real ways you can get hit and real ways to avoid them.

This is a far cry from normal bicycle safety guides, which usually tell you little more than to wear your helmet and to follow the law. But consider this for a moment: Wearing a helmet will do absolutely nothing to prevent you from getting hit by a car! Sure, helmets might help you if you get hit, and it's a good idea to wear one, but your #1 goal should be to avoid getting hit in the first place. Plenty of cyclists are killed by cars even though they were wearing helmets. Ironically, if they had ridden without helmets, yet followed the guidelines listed below, they might still be alive today. Don't confuse wearing a helmet with biking safely. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. It's better to not get hit. That's what real bicycle safety is about.

door right in front of you, you'll be less visible to motorists pulling out of driveways and parking lots, and motorists coming from behind may pass you way too closely in the same lane because you didn't make them change lanes. In each of these cases you could have been following the law, but could still have been hit.

Obviously, cruising through a stop sign when there's no cross traffic isn't necessarily dangerous, but we can't recommend that you do so, because it's against the law, not because it's unsafe. You should understand the difference. By all means follow the law, but understand why you're doing so. This page doesn't focus on the law, it focuses on how to not get hit by cars. Now let's see how to do so.

This is one of the most common ways to get hit (or almost get hit). A car is pulling out of a side street, parking lot, or driveway on the right.

How to avoid this collision:

1. Get a headlight.

If you're riding at night, you should absolutely use a front headlight. It's required by law, anyway. Even for daytime riding, a bright white light that has a flashing mode can make you more visible to motorists who might otherwise Right Cross you. Look for the new LED headlights which last ten times as long on a set of batteries as old-style lights. And helmet- or head-mounted lights are the best, because then you can look directly at the driver to make sure they see your light.  

2. Honk.

Get a loud horn and USE IT whenever you see a car approaching (or waiting) ahead of you and to the right. If you don't have a horn, then yell "Hey!" You may feel awkward honking or yelling, but it's better to be embarrassed than to get hit. Incidentally, the UK requires bells on bicycles.  

3. Slow down.

If you can't make eye contact with the driver (especially at night), slow down so much that you're able to completely stop if you have to. Sure, it's inconvenient, but it beats getting hit.

Doing this has saved my life on too many occasions to count.

4. Ride further left.

Notice the two blue lines "A" and "B" in the diagram. You're probably used to riding in "A", very close to the curb, because you're worried about being hit from behind. But take a look at the car. When that motorist is looking down the road for traffic, he's not looking in the bike lane or the area closest to the curb; he's looking in the MIDDLE of the lane, for other cars. The farther left you are (such as in "B"), the more likely the driver will see you. There's an added bonus here: if the motorist doesn't see you and starts pulling out, you may be able to go even FARTHER left, or may be able to speed up and get out of the way before impact, or roll onto their hood as they slam on their brakes. In short, it gives you some options. Because if you stay all the way to the right and they pull out, your only "option" may be to run right into the driver's side door.

Using this method has saved me on three occasions in which a motorist ran into me and I wasn't hurt, and in which I definitely would have slammed into the driver's side door had I not moved left.

Of course, there's a tradeoff. Riding to the far right makes you invisible to the motorists ahead of you at intersections, but riding to the left makes you more vulnerable to the cars behind you. Your actual lane position may vary depending on how wide the street is, how many cars there are, how fast and how close they pass you, and how far you are from the next intersection. On fast roadways with few cross streets, you'll ride farther to the right, and on slow roads with many cross streets, you'll ride farther left.

Collision Type #2:

The Door Prize

A driver opens his door right in front of you. You run right into it if you can't stop in time.

cyclists killed by running into open car doors

.

How to avoid this collision:

Ride to the left.

Ride far enough to the left that you won't run into any door that's opened unexpectedly. You may be wary about riding so far into the lane that cars can't pass you easily, but you're MUCH more likely to get doored by a parked car if you ride too close to it than you are to get hit from behind by a car which can clearly see you.  

Collision Type #3:

Red Light of Death

You stop to the right of a car that's already waiting at a red light or stop sign. They can't see you. When the light turns green, you move forward, and then they turn right, right into you.

How to avoid this collision:

Don't stop in the blind spot.

Simply stop BEHIND a car, instead of to the right of it, as per the diagram below. This makes you very visible to traffic on all sides. It's impossible for the car behind you to avoid seeing you when you're right in front of it.  

Another option is to stop at either point A in the diagram above (where the first driver can see you), or at point B, behind the first car so it can't turn into you, and far enough ahead of the second car so that the second driver can see you clearly. It does no good to avoid stopping to the right of the first car if you're going to make the mistake of stopping to the right of the second car. EITHER car can do you in.

If you chose spot A, then ride quickly to cross the street as soon as the light turns green. Don't look at the motorist to see if they want to go ahead and turn. If you're in spot A and they want to turn, then you're in their way. Why did you take spot A if you weren't eager to cross the street when you could? When the light turns green, just go, and go quickly. (But make sure cars aren't running the red light on the cross street, of course.)

If you chose spot B, then when the light turns green, DON'T pass the car in front of you -- stay behind it, because it might turn right at any second. If it doesn't make a right turn right away, it may turn right into a driveway or parking lot unexpectedly at any point. Don't count on drivers to signal! They don't. Assume that a car can turn right at any time. (NEVER pass a car on the right!) But try to stay ahead of the car behind you until you're through the intersection, because otherwise they might try to cut you off as they turn right.

While we're not advocating running red lights, notice it is in fact safer to run the red light if there's no cross traffic, than it is to wait legally at the red light directly to the right of a car, only to have it make a right turn right into you when the light turns green. The moral here is not that you should break the law, but that you can easily get hurt even if you follow the law.

By the way, be very careful when passing stopped cars on the right as you approach a red light. You run the risk of getting doored by a passenger exiting the car on the right side, or hit by a car that unexpectedly decides to pull into a parking space on the right side of the street.

Collision Type #4:

The Right Hook

A car passes you and then tries to make a right turn directly in front of you, or right into you.

How to avoid this collision:

1. Don't ride on the sidewalk.

When you come off the sidewalk to cross the street you're invisible to motorists. You're just begging to be hit if you do this. Keith Vick was killed this way in Austin, TX in Dec. 2002.  

2. Ride to the left.

Taking up the whole lane makes it harder for drivers to pass you to cut you off or turn into you. Don't feel bad about taking the lane: if motorists didn't threaten your life by turning in front of or into you or passing you too closely, then you wouldn't have to. If the lane you're in isn't wide enough for cars to pass you safely, then you should be taking the whole lane anyway. Lane position is discussed in more detail below.  

3. Glance in your mirror before approaching an intersection.

(If you don't have a handlebar or helmet mirror, get one now.) Be sure to look in your mirror well before you get to the intersection. When you're actually going through an intersection, you'll need to be paying very close attention to what's in front of you.  

Collision Type #5:

The Right Hook, Pt. 2

You're passing a slow-moving car (or even another bike) on the right, when it unexpectedly makes a right turn right into you, trying to get to a parking lot,driveway or side street.

How to avoid this collision:

1. Don't pass on the right.

This collision is very easy to avoid. Just don't pass any vehicle on the right. If a car ahead of you is going only 10 mph, then you slow down, too, behind it. It will eventually start moving faster. If it doesn't, pass on the left when it's safe to do so.  

When passing cyclists on the left, announce "on your left" before you start passing, so they don't suddenly move left into you. (Of course, they're much less likely to suddenly move left without looking, where they could be hit by traffic, then to suddenly move right, into a destination.) If they're riding too far to the left for you to pass safely on the left, then announce "on your right" before passing on the right.

If several cars are stopped at a light, then you can try passing on the right cautiously. Remember that someone can fling open the passenger door unexpectedly as they exit the car. Also remember that if you pass on the right and traffic starts moving again unexpectedly, you may suffer #3, the Red Light of Death.

Note that when you're tailing a slow-moving vehicle, ride behind it, not in its blind spot immediately to the right of it. Even if you're not passing a car on the right, you could still run into it if it turns right while you're right next to it. Give yourself enough room to brake if it turns.

2. Look behind you before turning right.

Here's your opportunity to avoid hitting cyclists who violate tip #1 above and try to pass you on the right. Look behind you before making a right-hand turn to make sure a bike isn't trying to pass you. (Also remember that they could be coming up from behind you on the sidewalk while you're on the street.) Even if it's the other cyclist's fault for trying to pass you on the right when you make a right turn and have them slam into you, it won't hurt any less when they hit you.  

Collision Type #6:

The Left Cross

A car coming towards you makes a left turn right in front of you, or right into you. This is similar to #1, above.

Dr. Lee Chilton, John Howell (former president of the Austin Cycling Association), and Janne Osborne

.

How to avoid this collision:

1. Don't ride on the sidewalk.

When you come off the sidewalk to cross the street, you're invisible to turning motorists.  

2. Get a headlight.

If you're riding at night, you should absolutely use a front headlight. It's required by law in most countries, anyway.  

3. Wear something bright, even during the day.

It may seem silly, but bikes are small and easy to see through even during the day. Yellow or orange reflective vests really make a big difference. Reflective leg bands are also easy and inexpensive.  

4. Don't pass on the right.

Don't overtake slow-moving vehicles on the right. Doing so makes you invisible to left-turning motorists at intersections. Passing on the right means that the vehicle you're passing could also make a right turn right into you, too.  

5. Slow down.

If you can't make eye contact with the driver (especially at night), slow down so much that you're able to completely stop if you have to. Sure, it's inconvenient, but it beats getting hit.
  

Collision Type #7:

The Rear End

You innocently move a little to the left to go around a parked car or some other obstruction in the road, and you get nailed by a car coming up from behind.

How to avoid this collision:

1. Never, ever move left without looking behind you first.

Some motorists like to pass cyclists within mere inches, so moving even a tiny bit to the left unexpectedly could put you in the path of a car. Practice holding a straight line while looking over your shoulder until you can do it perfectly. Most new cyclists tend to move left when they look behind them, which of course can be disastrous.  

2. Don't swerve in and out of the parking lane if it contains any parked cars.

You might be tempted to ride in the parking lane where there are no parked cars, dipping back into the traffic lane when you encounter a parked car. This puts you at risk for getting nailed from behind. Instead, ride a steady, straight line in the traffic lane.  

3. Use a mirror.

If you don't have one, go to a bike shop and get one now. There are models that fit on your handlebars, helmet, or glasses, as you prefer. You should always physically look back over your shoulder before moving left, but having a mirror still helps you monitor traffic without constantly having to look behind you.
  

Collision Type #8:

The Rear End, Pt. 2

A car runs into you from behind. This is what many cyclists fear the most, but it's not the most common kind of accident (except maybe at night, or on long-distance rides outside the city). However, it's one of the hardest collisions to avoid, since you're not usually looking behind you.

Tom Churchill and Andrew Turner,

and probably William Sigtryggsson died this way. All three of these incidents happened at night, and at least two of them didn't have lights. Getting rear-ended in the daylight is rare.

How to avoid this collision:

1. Get a rear light.

If you're riding at night, you absolutely should use a flashing red rear light. Bruce Mackey (formerly of Florida, now head of bike safety in Nevada) says that 60% of bike collisions in Florida are caused by cyclists riding at night without lights. In 1999, 39% of deaths on bicycles nationwide occurred between 6 p.m. and midnight.

[USA Today, 10-22-01, attributed to the Insurance Institute for highway safety]

Bike shops have red rear blinkies for $15 or less. These kind of lights typically take two AA batteries, which last for months (something like 200 hours). I can't stress this item enough: If you ride at night, get a rear light!

High quality reflective gear makes you a lot more visible even in the day time, not just at night. I had a friend ride away from me while wearing one during the day, and when she was about a quarter mile away, I couldn't see her or her bike at all, but the vest was clearly visible. At night the difference is even greater. Bike shops have vests and triangles for $10 to $15. Also, when you hear a motorist approaching, straightening up into a vertical position will make your reflective gear more noticeable.  

3. Choose wide streets.

Ride on streets whose outside lane is so wide that it can easily fit a car and a bike side by side. That way a car may zoom by you and avoid hitting you,

even if they didn't see you!

4. Choose slow streets.

The slower a car is going, the more time the driver has to see you. I navigate the city by going through neighborhoods. Learn how to do this.  

5. Use back streets on weekends.

The risk of riding on Friday or Saturday night is much greater than riding on other nights because all the drunks are out driving around. If you do ride on a weekend night, make sure to take neighborhood streets rather than arterials.  

6. Get a mirror

7. Don't hug the curb

Collision Type #9:

The Crosswalk Slam

You're riding on the sidewalk and cross the street at a crosswalk, and a car makes a right turn, right into you.

Devorah Feldman was hit in this type of collision, suffering permanent injuries. This collision is so common we've lost track of the number of people who've told us they were hit this way, such as Ray John Ray

.

How to avoid this collision:

1. Get a headlight.

If you're riding at night, you should absolutely use a front headlight. It's required by law, anyway.  

2. Slow down.

Slow down enough that you're able to completely stop if necessary.  

3. Don't ride on the sidewalk in the first place.

Crossing between sidewalks can be a fairly dangerous maneuver. If you do it on the left-hand side of the street, you risk getting slammed as per the diagram. If you do it on the right-hand side of the street, you risk getting slammed by a car behind you that's turning right. You also risk getting hit by cars pulling out of parking lots or driveways. These kinds of accidents are hard to avoid, which is a compelling reason to not ride on the sidewalk in the first place.  

And another reason not to ride on the sidewalk is that you're threatening to pedestrians. Your bike is as threatening to a pedestrian as a car is threatening to you. Finally, riding on the sidewalk is illegal in some places. (In Austin, those places are the Drag, and downtown on 6th St. and on Congress). If you do plan on riding on sidewalks, do it slowly and EXTRA carefully, ESPECIALLY when crossing the street between two sidewalks.

Collision Type #10:

The Wrong-Way Wallop

You're riding the wrong way (against traffic, on the left-hand side of the street). A car makes a right turn from a side street, driveway, or parking lot, right into you. They didn't see you because they were looking for traffic only on their left, not on their right. They had no reason to expect that someone would be coming at them from the wrong direction.

Even worse, you could be hit by a car on the same road coming at you from straight ahead of you. They had less time to see you and take evasive action because they're approaching you faster than normal (because you're going towards them rather than away from them). And if they hit you, it's going to be much more forceful impact, for the same reason. (Both your and their velocities are combined.)

How to avoid this collision:

Don't ride against traffic.

Ride with traffic, in the same direction.  

Riding against traffic may seem like a good idea because you can see the cars that are passing you, but it's not. Here's why:

1. Cars which pull out of driveways, parking lots, and cross streets (ahead of you and to the left), which are making a right onto your street, aren't expecting traffic to be coming at them from the wrong way. They won't see you, and they'll plow right into you.

2. How the heck are you going to make a right turn?

3. Cars will approach you at a much higher relative speed. If you're going 15mph, then a car passing you from behind doing 35 approaches you at a speed of only 20 (35-15). But if you're on the wrong side of the road, then the car approaches you at 50 (35+15), which is 250% faster! Since they're approaching you faster, both you and the driver have lots less time to react. And if a collision does occur, it's going to be ten times worse.

4. Riding the wrong way is illegal and you can get ticketed for it. Bruce Mackey says that 25% of cycling collisions are the result of the cyclist riding the wrong way.

There's one possible exception to riding the wrong way. When you're riding in the country on narrow, high-speed roads, it may be helpful to ride against traffic so you can see what you're up against. Compared to city traffic, country traffic is likely to have less roadspace for bikes and cars to share. That being the case, riding the wrong way allows you to bail into the shoulder if a car doesn't see you. You don't have problem #1 above because side traffic is rare, and #2 is avoided because you're riding primarily along one road and not turning right.

Country traffic is more likely to be sparse, which means that you may have the ability to switch to the "correct" side of the road when a car approaches you from ahead. I did a 100-mile ride with a friend once, continually switching from the left-hand side of the road to the right-hand side depending on whether traffic was approaching us from ahead or behind, since a vehicle passed us only once every several minutes -- but when it passed us, it was doing 70mph+, and we wanted to be as far away from it as we could. But remember that vehicles will still approach you faster when you ride the wrong way, and it's still illegal. It's your choice.