Education is key to safer bicycling

As bicycling becomes more popular and e-bikes make the practice more accessible, bicycling skillfully has become more critical than ever. 

I’ve been riding a bicycle to get around Waltham since I moved here in 1986. I also take my bicycle on longer recreational rides. In all that time, over many tens of thousands of miles, I have taken a few falls, but have never had a collision with a motor vehicle. 

It isn’t about luck. Luck doesn’t hold out that long. 

Fundamentally, biking safely and confidently is about skill, situational awareness and an accurate understanding of risks.

Let’s talk first about situational awareness. Bicyclists are commonly seen as crash-prone and vulnerable, but bicyclists have some important advantages over motorists. We have unobstructed sight and hearing as well as lower speed, which allows more time to react. It is important to make use of these advantages, to be alert and to know what to look out for, such as surface hazards, potential movements of other road users and hazards you can’t see because they are hidden behind a corner or a vehicle.  

Rear-end collisions are rare except with bicyclists who ride at night without lights. Over-concern for rear-enders leads bicyclists to ride in the “door zone” of parked cars and to pass on the right, putting them in danger if a motorist were to turn right. 

Almost all urban and suburban car–bike crashes occur when the car or bicycle is crossing a road or turning. Bicyclists can easily anticipate and prevent such collisions.

Falls and other non-motor-vehicle crashes account for three-quarters of serious bicycle crashes but usually don’t get reported to police or make the news.

Riding with safety, confidence, efficiency and comfort requires unlearning risky childhood habits and learning skills such as how to stop and restart efficiently and communicate using hand signals and roadway position. Following the traffic law places the bicyclist where other road users expect to look. 

Defensive driving — anticipating and avoiding common mistakes by other road users — is key. 

Crash avoidance skills include anticipating and avoiding potholes, and being ready to make quick stops and turns when a hazard materializes unexpectedly.

Waltham offers a variety of route choices, with the Charles River Greenway, Rail Trail, small streets paralleling the larger ones and cut-throughs that cars can’t use. A bicyclist with the necessary skill set who makes use of Google Maps can usually find a workable route.  

There are, to be sure, certain choke points and challenging stretches where bicycle driver training comes in especially useful. 

If you are interested in learning more about bicycling safely, I am teaching the CyclingSavvy course June 20 and 21 for adults and teens (accompanied by a parent). Legal e-bikes are welcome. This can be your key to safe and enjoyable cycling on Waltham’s streets and paths.

Waltham resident John S. Allen uses his bicycle (as well as a car and the T) for daily transportation. He is a certified CyclingSavvy instructor, writes for several bicycling websites and is author of Bicycling Street Smarts, available in print and as an e-book, soon also in Spanish. He serves on the National Committee for Uniform Traffic Control Devices, and is program committee chair of the American Bicycling Education Association.