Bert GROENENBERG
Special to Tribune
This column is written as a conversation between Byron the Bicyclist and Maddie the Motorist.
Dear Byron.
While driving home one evening last week, a cyclist was turning left from Oliver Street to the Chevron station. He had no lights, reflector or even bright clothing so he wasn’t easy to see.
What are the rules about that?
Signed; Maddie the Motorist.
Dear Maddie.
Different places have different rules about that. As a kid in Ontario, the end of the back fender had to be white and have a reflector. Although not required for night riding, I also had pedal reflectors, a little red light and headlight powered from a generator.
Here is what the BC Motor Vehicle Act has to say about bicycle visibility:
A cycle operated on a highway between a half hour after sunset and a half hour before sunrise must have the following equipment:
(a) a lighted lamp mounted on the front and under normal atmospheric conditions capable of displaying a white light visible at least 150 m in the direction the cycle is pointed;
(b) a red reflector;
(c) a lighted lamp, mounted and visible to the rear, displaying a red light.
It adds:
Despite any other provision of this Act or the regulations, a cycle may be equipped with a flashing red light.
So that is a suggestion, not a requirement.
I see no rules about visible clothing.
Many of today’s bicycles don’t have rear fenders. But lights can be attached to the seat post or the arm to the rear hub.
More detailed information is available from The BC Cycling Coalition’s website under “Bicycles and How They Work.”
So, Maddie, that cyclist wasn’t taking the required precautions. Nonetheless, drivers still need to watch out for anyone not following the rules, regardless of how they travel.
Signed; Byron the Bicyclist.
Bert Groenenberg has been walking, bicycling and driving in Williams Lake for more than 30 years.