Helmets and lights
More than 100 bicyclists on Route 1 were stopped Thursday, June 29, and given free helmets, lights and a mild lecture about how to ride safely on the highway.
Through a partnership between Ocean Atlantic Agency, Delaware Department of Transportation and Sussex Cyclists, bicycling safety checkpoints will be set up three times a week throughout July.
The goal is to save the lives of foreign students and others who ride Route 1 to and from work.
When cyclists stopped, they seemed a little bewildered at all the stuff they received. The volunteers worked quickly as soon as a cyclist paused. As one person explained the rules of the road, someone else put a helmet on the rider’s head and adjusted the straps, and a third person attached lights to the front and back of the bike. Another person affixed reflective strips on the cyclist’s backpack.
“This is like Christmas,” said Maros Balun of Slovakia, now wearing a shiny, blue bicycle helmet. “This is nice of them.”
Vakil Askerov of Ukraine was not used to this type of largesse. “In our country, people don’t do this just to keep us more safe. This is very good.”
In May 2005, Polish student Katarzyna Reteruk died when her bicycle was struck from behind by a car. Reteruk was not wearing a helmet and died of head injuries.
Volunteers like Mike Tyler are working to reduce the odds that another foreign student will die on Route 1.
“I am telling the students about Katarzyna,” Tyler said. “We want to bring awareness to the students about the dangers of riding their bikes on Route 1. Every blue helmet we see on the road is a step in the right direction.”
Besides giving out helmets and lights, Tyler and other volunteers are educating the cyclists, explaining they need to ride with traffic and as far to the right as possible.
Tony Pezone, president of Sussex Cyclists, said, “By the end of our shift, we start to see kids on Route 1 riding with blue helmets. Hopefully, if enough people wear helmets, there will not be stigma attached.”
Helmets and lights are available throughout the summer by visiting Ocean Atlantic Agency on Rehoboth Avenue.
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