Safer Cycling for a Cooler, Cleaner World

Riding a bike to work is a great deal: you save money on gas, start your day with a workout, and help the planet by curbing emissions. So why don’t more of us partake?  It might have something to do with the 44,000 injuries bicyclists incurred in traffic accidents in 2007. Or perhaps it’s the fear inspired by the horn-honking hostility some drivers have toward cyclists. Either way, in any metal-bending battle amidst a bike and car, the car will always win. 

Which is why David Zabriskie created an organization to help keep cyclists safe on the road. The record-holder for the fastest instance trial at the Tour de France, Zabriskie has been hit three times by cars while riding his bike.  The worst collision left him in

a wheelchair. While he was able to recover and is participating in that year’s Tour de France, he realizes that not all cyclists are as lucky. So he started Yield to Life.

Yield to Life promotes positive attitudes toward cyclists, works to incorporate more bicycle road rules into driver-education programs, and runs Zabriskie-led presentations about bike safety at student assemblies.

Not all the responsibility for keeping cyclists safe is on motorists. Safety rules for cyclists can plus help reduce the number of unfair match-ups within bikes and cars. But drivers, even whether they can’t part in a cleaner commute, can at least help inspire others to by following simple safety tips to invent the road a less intimidating place.

–Sarah F. Kessler

[Source] Green Life

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