It feels as though cycling-season has reached its peak, however, with students back at school and a new cohort of returning workers opting to cycle, there may be an even greater volume on our urban roads & bikeways this autumn. With more & more riders zygging and zagging throughout Toronto and Vancouver, it is important to review some basic cycling etiquette, especially if using your bike or ebike for delivery work or commuting. Just because there may be time and money on the line, it does not mean all rules fly off the handlebars. Rushing and cutting corners is never the way to go. We cannot stress this enough:
Please be patient and courteous to your fellow car, bus, taxi & truck drivers, pedestrians and cyclists, alike. Share the road and the bikeway.
Do not ride on the sidewalk nor the wrong way down a one-way street: drivers, other cyclists and pedestrians are not expecting you!
And, since e-bikes may be able to travel more quickly, make sure if you are passing another cyclist to ring your bell in advance, pass on the left only and do it safely. A friendly call out, “I’m on your left,” is a welcome gesture.
The City Of Toronto updates their Cycling and The Law links, regularly, with details about bike lane etiquette, passing, lights on bikes, signaling and more.
Cycle Toronto has published a Toronto Cycling Handbook, complete with rules of the road, safe cycling tips, cycling etiquette and other resources. There is also a Toronto Cycling Family Edition. You can pick up a copy at your nearest public library, neighbourhood civic centre, or Toronto City Hall. You may even pick one up at The Cycle Toronto offices at 401 Richmond St East, Suite 215.
You may also download a pdf version online, for free, which is available in 14 languages.
Vancouver’s HUB Cycling publishes a similar Handbook for Safe Cycling in Metro Vancouver. It is available to download in 5 languages!
HUB also has created a handy Top Ten Cycling Safety Tips.
One last thing: let’s revisit the Cycling Etiquette Tips Zygg Subscription Ebikes posted for you early in 2021. #BikeSafe #BikeTogether #ShareThe Road #BikeTO #Bikeyvr