May is National Bicycle Safety Month and the Ventura Police Department encourages community members to get active and safely take bike rides.
“Bicycling is a great means of transportation and recreation, and everyone deserves to ride to their destination safely,” said Sergeant Mark Knackstedt. “Let’s look out for one another, share the road, share the responsibility.”
To help keep people biking or walking safe, the Ventura Police Department will conduct traffic safety operations throughout the month, focusing on driver behaviors that put bicyclists and
pedestrians at risk, such as speeding, making illegal turns, failure to yield right of way, and
stop sign/red light running.
The Ventura Police Department urges bicyclists and drivers to review the following safety tips:
Drivers
- Slow down and follow the speed limit. Be careful traveling through intersections.
- Look carefully for bicyclists and pedestrians before making a turn or opening a car door near streets.
- Be patient when traveling behind a bicyclist and give them space when passing. California law requires drivers to change a lane, when possible, to pass bicyclists.
- Never drive distracted or impaired.
Bike Riders
- Use lights at night.
- Always wear a properly secured helmet. Helmets significantly reduce the chance of a head injury in the event of a crash.
- Travel in the same direction of traffic; cyclists have the same requirements as any slow-moving vehicle.
- Yield to pedestrians, just as a driver would. Pedestrians have the right-of-way within marked or unmarked crosswalks at intersections.
Funding for this program is provided by a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety, through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.