Janette Sadik-Kahn reminded the crowd at last night's Bicycle Diaries book launch panel discussion...
"failure to yield is the number one cause of accidents" in NYC
The NYCDOT 2006 report shows that “nearly all fatal crashes were the result of poor driving OR bicycle riding behavior, particularly driver inattention and disregarding traffic signals and signs.” With the growth of NYC bike culture and knowing the conditions we ride in - it feels to me that awareness about road safety is more important then ever.
Somehow, I only recently learned about the organized ride Critical Manners which grew as a response to Critical Mass. Critical Manners was founded in 2007 in San Francisco (and has taken place in Seattle and recently in Vancouver) as a ride during which everyone participating obeys traffic laws -- stopping at red lights and signaling. Umm, just like biking in Copenhagen.
Meanwhile, in New York, it is lovely to see Transportation Alternatives' Biking Rules emerge & the NYC's LOOK Campaign (launched in 2007) encouraging everyone to share the road and prevent the aggressive attitudes on the road - be it a pedestrian, automobile, or cyclists. Change is (still) in the air.
Top photo via Commute By Bike by Publicis, an advertising agency in Seattle, created the LOOK pro-bono campaign.
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