Tips To Be Safe While Riding A Bicycle

You can get your muscles moving in an environment-friendly manner by riding a bicycle. Paying attention to safety becomes extremely important while riding a bicycle. Roadside mishaps due to speeding, not complying with traffic laws, distraction, etc can lead to grievous consequences for the bicyclists. Keeping such things in mind, we have assembled a list of safety tips you should follow while riding a bicycle:

•   Whether you are using the highway or roads, bicyclists have the same rights as motorists. However, they should also comply with traffic laws like traveling in the same direction as traffic and riding as much to the right as possible.
•   Given the smaller size of bicycles, it often becomes difficult for motorists to spot them. You can increase your visibility by wearing a brightly-colored helmet and clothing during daylight hours. Similarly, you can switch to reflective clothing at night.
•   Distracted riding is one of the biggest causes of bicycle accidents. The risk of mishaps increases drastically if you are glancing down at your phone while riding your bicycle. It is also advisable to avoid wearing headphones while riding your bicycle as it will impair your ability to hear the approaching traffic. If you need to answer an urgent call, pull over to a safe place and come to a halt before you start speaking.
•   Riding the bicycle under the influence of drugs or alcohol is strictly prohibited. Alcohol can meddle with your ability to operate the bicycle safely by slowing reaction times and causing balance problems. Often legally prescribed medications can induce similar effects. You should make it a point to read the warning labels before consuming these medicines and riding a bicycle.
•   It is essential to keep your bicycle in top working condition to keep the risk of accidents low. You should conduct a thorough check-up of the bicycle’s brakes, chain, lights, reflectors, bell, and handle. The treads of your tire should not be worn and they should have enough air.
•   Riding the bicycle on the sidewalks might seem like a safer choice than sharing the road with larger vehicles, sidewalks can be equally dangerous as they are specially meant for being used by pedestrians. You can lose control while trying to avoid someone or you might collide with a pedestrian. Sidewalks are usually uneven, thus increasing your chances of crashing on hitting a bump.
•   Various cities are working on creating proper bicycle infrastructure in the form of dedicated bicycle lanes. You should always make it a point to ride in a protected bicycle lane. Doing this can improve your safety and that of others.
•   Other than signaling, you should make it a point to keep both your hands on the bicycle’s handle. Doing this helps in improving your control and balance while riding. Not keeping your hands on the handle will slow your reaction time and might cause an accident if you can’t react timely.

Conclusion

Following these above-mentioned tips can increase your safety to a great extent while riding a bicycle. However, if you face any adversities on the road due to the faults of others, then you can consult Ladah Law Firm who will help you get your rightful claim.