Links

Safety & Education

• (Motor Vehicle) Crash Prevention (991)
  More than 11 million crashes take place on U.S. roads every year, resulting in more than 2.6 million police-reported injuries and 40,000 deaths. Unfortunately, most serious crashes are not accidents. They are the direct result of dangerous driving.
  
  The Partnership for Safe Driving is a non-profit organization dedicated to eliminating all forms of dangerous driving. Founded in February 1997 and headquartered in Washington, DC, we are working to change the driving culture in America through education, research, and grassroots activism.
  
• Baltimore Bicycle and Dooring Laws (683)
  Knowing your rights is an important part of being a cyclist. Thought drivers may think they have done nothing wrong after striking a cyclist, they are often wrong. Become familiar with your rights as a cyclist, and what to do if you are hit or doored by a driver.
• Bicycle Fact Sheets: (1,054)
  "Bicycling in Wisconsin" Fact Sheet
  "Bicycling and the Environment" Fact Sheet
  "Bicycling and Health" Fact Sheet
  Bicyclist Injuries: Learning from the Statistics
• Bicycle Safety: It's a two way street (829)
  Advice to motorists and bicyclists from State Highway Administration.
• Bicycling Street Smarts (975)
  John Allen's classic 46-page booklet, a guide to safe, legal bicycling techniques on public roads and streets, is available here in a free online version (there's also a link to buy the booklet if you prefer).
  
• Bike Commute Guide (1,972)
  Very in-depth article on safe bicycling behavior, highly recommended.
  
• BIKE COMMUTING: A BETTER WAY TO TRAVEL (1,254)
  Paul Dorn has a great site based on his years of riding experience, it is very well organized and helpful.
• Bike to Work (891)
  A great primer on commuting by bicycle, including tips on choosing a bike, equipment, and riding.
  
• Excellent cycling instruction videos (1,186)
  These videos made by a pair of a cyclists often feature front and rear view so you can get a better feel of what safe cycling is all about.
• How Not to Get Hit By Cars (6,326)
  This page shows you real ways you can get hit and real ways to avoid them. This is a far cry from normal bike 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 not to get hit.
  
  As for following the law, most people are already aware that it's stupid to race through a red light when there's cross traffic, so the "follow the law" advice isn't that helpful because it's too obvious. What you'll find here are several scenarios that maybe AREN'T that obvious.
  
  The other problem with the "follow the law" message is that people may think that's all they need to do. But following the law is not enough to keep you safe, not by a long shot. Here's an example: Your typical safety guide will tell you to always signal your turns. While this is a good idea, what they DON'T tell you is that if you're in a position where a car has to know that you're about to turn in order to avoid hitting you, then you're a prime candidate for getting hit. Even if you signal.
  

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