Back in May, I wrote a blog posting entitled Reconsidering My Path. It was about the tension between personal safety and breaking the law. I had only considered the issue from one viewpoint.
First, an amusing story. Seven or eight years ago, I was riding my bicycle up Poplar Plains coming back from the downtown area. Those people who ride in Toronto know this street. It is a difficult uphill. About halfway up the hill, huffing and puffing in the June heat, I was considering dismounting and walking it the rest of the way up. At that moment, a woman blew past me. Now many women are in better shape than I am. In and of itself, this did not bother me. She had a baby on the back of the bicycle. That adds extra weight and drag. I did not get off the bicycle. I made it up that hill.
It occurred to me a few weeks ago that some people on a bicycle are just people on a bicycle. Others have a passenger. Such little passengers affect balance and speed. An unsafe street is not right for them.
The questions of road safety go well beyond lone riders getting to work. Extra seats and even carts must also be part of the discussion. The infrastructure must change to allow for this.
Have a good evening.
R/SCG
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