By Katie McCoy

Due to lack of bikers’ regard for others on campus, the safety of myself and other students has become a major concern. Every day, I witness at least one bike dart out in front of a car, just expecting the driver to react quickly enough to stop. More often than that, I see pedestrians run off of the sidewalks by bicyclists.

Bicyclists on campus need to show regard for others when riding to and from class. Also, if the riders were familiar with biking safety rules, they would know that riding on a sidewalk occupied by pedestrians is considered to be extremely dangerous and in many places illegal.

If these bicyclists continue riding with no regard for others, they may either cause a collision with a moving vehicle or collide with a student and seriously injure them. In either event, someone will get hurt.

In an ideal situation, before a student rides their bike around campus, he or she would look into the laws and rules, such as the MARC Bicycle and Pedestrian Programs webpage.

On another note related to bicycle safety, most students do not wear helmets when riding around campus on their bikes.

The awareness of bicycle safety regulations needs to be brought to the student body’s attention. If the reckless bicyclists were aware of the possible fines and dangers of the ways they are riding, then maybe the administration would not have to take action. In the event that this problem persists, I would urge the administration to make bicycle safety courses mandatory for all students registering bicycles on campus.

Providing a bike safety course to students when registering online could make them more aware of general rules such as these.

I believe that if we, as students, express a need for these courses, we can improve the safety of the whole campus. Who wants to run the risk of getting injured the day before the big game or the speech that he or she has been preparing for weeks in advance? Not me! There is no one more appropriate to look out for our own personal safety than ourselves.

Katie McCoy is a freshman majoring in civil engineering