CELEBRATE NATIONAL BIKE MONTH

National Bicycle Safety Month is celebrated every year in May. During National Bicycle Safety Month, the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (N.H.T.S.A.) urges bicyclists and motorists to share the roadways by obeying the traffic laws and respecting each other’s rights. National Bicycle Safety Month was created to remind the public to put “safety first.” Whether you are a beginner, a regular biker, a day-tripper, or an athlete, cycling is good for you. It is a healthy, low-impact exercise that people of all ages can enjoy. It is also fun, cheap, and good for the environment.

National Bicycle Awareness Month was first celebrated in 1956. The League of American Bicyclists proposed encouraging healthy exercise by riding bikes. The first bicycle was built in 1839 by a Scottish blacksmith, Kirkpatrick Macmillan. After his invention, various European inventors added elements familiar to today’s bike, such as the rear-wheel-drive and hand-operated brakes. This invention helped to ease transportation then and is still doing so now. It is the most efficient human-powered means of transportation regarding the energy a person must expend to travel a given distance.

There are so many ways to celebrate Bike Month and to #BikeThere: during Bike to Work Week (May 15-21, 2023); Bike to Work Day (May 19, 2023); National Ride A Bike Day (May 7, 2023) #BikeDay; or just biking to coffee or around the block.   

BIKE SAFETY

Bicycling is one of the best ways to get exercise, see the sights and reduce your carbon footprint. However, bicyclists face a host of hazards. They often must share the road with vehicles, and injuries can happen even on a designated path. The number of deaths from bicycle incidents increased 6% in 2019 and 37% in the last 10 years, from 793 in 2010 to 1,089 in 2019, according to Injury Facts®. Of the 1,089 bicyclist deaths in 2019, 712 involved motor vehicles. See: nsc.org. 

In 2019, there were 236 pedestrians and 21 bicyclists fatally injured in motor vehicle traffic crashes in the state of Georgia. Georgia is a modified comparative fault state, meaning a bicyclist must be less than 50% at fault for their accident in order to recover damages. So just because a bicycle rider is negligent and that negligence contributes to an accident does not mean that the rider cannot recover for injuries and damages. For example, riding too fast in the rain could put a rider’s fault level at 30%. As long as the rider is less than 50% at fault, the rider will still be eligible to recover damages.

SAFETY TIPS

There are many safety precautions that bicyclists can take in order to stay safe on the road. Here are a few tips:

• Avoid biking at night without a light or reflective gear
• Follow all traffic rules
• Ride in the bike lane if available
• Do not bike while under the influence
• Avoid biking while distracted, including being on the phone or listening to music

EVENTS IN ATLANTA

Atlanta Cycling Festival 2023 will take place May 13-20th: https://www.atlantacyclingfestival.com  

Pedal the Parks Brookhaven May 7, 2023: https://georgiabikes.org/event/pedal-the-parks-brookhaven/ 

CONTACT YOUR ATTORNEY

If you have been involved in a bicycle accident, either as a bike rider or driver of a motor vehicle, contact the experienced personal injury attorney Dave Thomas at The Thomas Law Firm for a free evaluation of your legal rights.