Fellow Citizens of Carbondale,
Bicycling season has begun. For those of you who know me, you may find me out there peddling alongside of you as I love to ride too! With that being said, I have some concerns regarding the following things:
Cyclists failing to obey traffic control devices.
Cyclists going the wrong way down the street.
Cyclists riding careless without due safety.
Adult cyclists riding unsafely with their children following their example.
For the children, there is no better way to teach them about safe driving than by teaching them to obey
traffic laws. The kids will follow our example! If we all want a Safe Bicycling Community, we must
demonstrate this by our own actions! The Board ofTrustees has directed our department to take a
harder line with cyclists violating traffic laws.
Colorado State Law has made a few changes for cycling law. One of the changes permits cyclists to ride
in the crosswalks. It is always safer to walk your bike in a crosswalk than to ride it across. I want to
encourage all cyclists to obey the traffic control devices (bicycles are considered vehicles by Colorado
State Law). Be visible, be predictable and above all, be SAFE!
As far as Carbondale streets are concerned, the only sidewalks that bicyclists, skate boards and scooters are NOT permitted on are the Main Street sidewalks between 2nd Street and i h Street. Folks who violate those posted signs may get a municipal citation for violating this ordinance! Thank you for your time and your safe cycling example!
Sincerely,
Gene Schilling Chief Carbondale Police
