Dear editor,
Kudos on the spread (May 26) highlighting Bike to work week. Where distance is reasonable, and health allows, people should bike to work every weekday. For fun the rest of the time.
They don’t, and can scarcely be blamed. Coming originally from a country where bike-riding is a way of life, safety of cyclists there is an over-riding concern. And cyclists do in fact feel safe. Their place in the traffic laws is secure, motorists avoid driving too close too fast. Almost everywhere, special lanes - well marked - are set aside for cyclists.
And here? Every day I see motorists unconcernedly cross white lines demarcating bicycle lanes. The wide bend by the old Farqueson’s Farm appears particularly tempting for motorists driving towards Superstore. The white line separating shoulder/bicycle/pedestrian lane from the roadway surely must be crossed hundreds of times daily. I hardly ever drive that way without seeing two or three cars entering the lane - sometimes fully, not just by a tire width.
Not once have I observed a car being pulled over by police.
A no-brainer: Accidents most often happen because rules, however sensible, go disrespected.
Finn Schultz-Lorentzen
Courtenay