Supports "Share the Road" Focus on Safety, Education
Calls for New "Same Roads, Same Rights, Same Rules" Ethic
BALTIMORE, MD (May 14, 1997) -- The League of American Bicyclists (L.A.B.) today congratulated the Environmental Working Group for its research into bicycling safety, and for the focus of its new "Share the Road" report on the need for greater focus on bicycling safety and education.
"We don't expect our drivers to hit the road without some training," said L.A.B. executive director Cosette R. Simon, "and we shouldn't expect our children to begin bicycling without some guidance, either. The fun, fitness, and freedom that bicycling offers us all can be the foundation for helping every child learn the proper rules of the road before they get their driver's licence -- but that means from the White House to each State House to every City Hall, we need a commitment to roads designed and maintained for motorists and bicyclists to safely share, and to bicycling safety to back that up."
The League's Effective Cycling program is the only national bicycling skills and safety education program ("Effective Cycling") with certified instructors and diverse curricula aimed at children, adults, commuters, off-road riders, and more.
L.A.B.'s Simon points to the League's motto, "Same Roads, Same Rights, Same Rules," for guidance on what the reauthorization of ISTEA must guarantee to bicyclists throughout the United States:
Same Roads means every road must be designed, built, improved, and maintained to safely accommodate both motorists and bicyclists, with wide outside lanes, adequate shoulders, and full access.
Same Rights means that from engineering to education, bicyclists must be part of the full transportation system in this country, from early planning to building, maintenance, and adding parking facilities.
Same Rules means that bicyclists have to live up to their end of the bargain, from following the rules of the road to accepting full law enforcement, and being visible and predictable while cycling.