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DOT to show safety video as N.C. 107 bicycle lanes near completion
By Lynn Hotaling
With the new bicycle lanes along N.C. 107 scheduled to be completed next month, local highway officials will show a safety video next week.
Highway Division 14 is sponsoring free Tuesday, Oct. 12, showings of Trucks and Bicycles Sharing the Road, a 20-minute program that demonstrates safe driving practices for both bicyclists and motorists. Showings will begin at 4 p.m. and will be repeated every 30 minutes with the last showing at 6:30 p.m. Viewing will be in the downstairs conference room in the Division office at 253 Webster Road (N.C. 116).
Hosted by Mike Seacrest, winner of the Race Across America and a truck driver who has driven more than a half-million accident-free miles, the video will introduce local drivers and bicycle riders to proven safety techniques, said Reuben Moore, Division 14 operations engineer.
"I've watched it," Moore said. "It's an excellent video that examines safety issues from both a bicycle rider's and motorist's point of view. We have a world record bicycle rider who drives trucks for a living discussing how motorized vehicles and bikes can share the road."
Jackson County's new bicycle lanes stretch from Fairview Road to the N.C. 107/Cullowhee Mountain Road (S.R. 1157) intersection near Cullowhee Valley School, Moore said. The decision to add the lanes was made when local highway officials learned DOT's Division of Bicycle and Pedestrian Transportation was looking for "a good project in the region," Moore said.
"We needed to resurface 107 anyway, and that stretch was a good fit for bike lanes because it was near a college campus," Moore said. "We try to anticipate where bicycle traffic might be."
With regard to college campuses, where bicycle lanes are available, they are generally used, he said.
The DBPT contributed some $675,000 to include the bicycle lanes in the $4-5 million 107 resurfacing project, Moore said. The same office helped fund the widening of Little Savannah Road in Cullowhee from its intersection with 107 about a half-mile toward the Jackson County Airport.
"It doesn't have bike lanes, but the idea is that bikes and cars can share the road so bike riders can access the lanes on 107," Moore said.
In terms of safety, Moore stressed that bicycle riders must ride on the right side of the road, travel in the same direction as motorized traffic, and stop at stop signs and red lights. They must yield to "cross traffic," which includes pedestrians.
"There's a lot of confusion about this, and some people think the law is the opposite and stipulates that bike riders should ride on the left, facing traffic," Moore said. "But pedestrians are the only ones who should travel against traffic."
Cyclists are required to signal turns with their left arms – arm straight to indicate a left turn and bent at the elbow with hand pointing up to indicate a right turn, Moore said.
When bicycles and cars are involved in accidents, one of five common mistakes is usually involved, Moore said.
– Cyclists fail to stop for red lights or stop signs.
– Bicycles are not equipped with headlight and rear reflectors when riding in darkness. Nationally, almost 45 percent of bike fatalities occur after dark.
– A car pulls out in front of bike. Car drivers often underestimate how fast a bicycle is traveling, and many drivers don't see bikes because they aren't used to looking for them. Bikers need to scan ahead, watching driveways and side roads for entering traffic that doesn't see them.
– A cyclist rides in the wrong direction, against the flow of traffic rather than with it. This causes 25 percent of bike-car crashes.
– A car turns in front of bike. Sometimes the car is coming at the bike, traveling in the opposite direction, and turns left in front of the bike without yielding. Other times, a car traveling in the same direction as the bike will pass the bike, then slow down to turn right, cutting the biker off. Often a bike travels faster than the speed at which a car can turn right, so when the driver of a car wants to turn right and is near the place to turn right, it's better to let the bike stay in front, and then make the right turn after the bike has traveled ahead. Twenty percent of bike-car crashes are caused by a car turning in front of a bicycle.
Those planning to attend any of the six Oct. 12 bicycle safety video showings are requested (not required) to RSVP to Moore at 586-2141.
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