The following reports are from workshops (in March of 1991), sponsored by the Toronto City Cycling Committee on ways to improve cycling behavior and enforcement (for all cyclists). No couriers were involved but all the experts on couriers seem to agree that couriers need to be licensed because "a licensing program will be justified if it improves the public perception toward cyclists."

The Lawful and the Awful

Bicycle Safety Enforcement Workshop Summaries

Thursday, March 7, 1991

Facilitators:

Michael Sherman, Metro Police Daniel Egan, Bicycle Planner

Participants

Chris Aquanno, Metro Police, Heather Clarke, Ministry of Transportation, Bill Coffman, Canadian Standards Association, Peter Litherland, Metro Police, Robert Murray, Metro Police Hugh Smith, Metro Police, John Phillips, City of Toronto Legal Department, Stuart Spanglett, Ontario Cycling Association

Defining the Problem

There was a consensus among the group that there was a significant problem with cyclist. non- compliance with traffic laws. The group identified the following factors as contributing to the problem.

Not Enough Enforcement

Cyclists are far less likely to be stopped for an infraction than are motorists, hence compliance with traffic rules is perceived to be less important for cyclists. It should be noted that most adult cyclists are also motorists and their behaviour on a bike may be quite different than in a car. It was suggested that we should attempt to measure the effect of increased enforcement on cyclists perceptions and knowledge of traffic laws.

Lack of Awareness of Laws for Cyclists

Although there was a consensus that most adults were aware that traffic rules applied to cyclists in general, there still exists considerable confusion over what laws specifically affected cyclists. This uncertainty on the specifics of the law stems from lack of education and, in some instances, unclear wording of traffic laws. It was noted that even police officers are not sure of the traffic requirements for cyclists. For example, many officers advise cyclists that points will be applied to their driver's licenses for infractions committed on bicycles, although the HTA does not permit this. Cyclists have also complained of being ticketed for making left turns from the centre of the road. Although the HTA clearly allows this, municipal by-laws are less clear.

Economics

As in the taxi and motor-vehicle courier industry, bike couriers are paid per delivery, hence there is a very strong incentive to disregard the law to make faster time.

Survival - the Roads Aren't Safe

There is a perception among many that it may be safer in some cases to disobey the law. For example, riding on the sidewalk on a busy arterial may feel much safer, and in fact may be safer than riding on the street. When forced to choose between putting themselves at risk or disobeying the law many cyclists will put their safety first and disobey the lam. There was a consensus among the group that the City must. increase the safety of streets for cyclists if cyclists are expected to consistently obey the law. It was noted that European experience suggests that cyclists compliance with the law is highest where cycling facilities have been provided.

Information Not Available

Cyclists who are interested in finding out what the laws are complain that it is difficult to get the information. The Ministry of Transportation makes their cycling booklet available through their vehicle licensing offices, the Cycling Committee disseminates information through specialty bike retailers and the Police present material in elementary schools. However, this appears to be reaching only a fraction of the people who need it.

Parents Don't and Can't Teach Bike Safety

Most children don't receive adequate instruction on cycling. One reason for this is that parents don't know what to teach their kids. In cultures where cycling has a long tradition, skills and knowledge are passed down from parents to their children.

Some Traffic Regulations Are Not Reasonable for Cyclists

Many traffic regulations were established specifically for motor vehicles, but also apply to bicycles, simply because bicycles are considered vehicles. An example of this is the proliferation of entry, right-turn, and left-turn prohibitions intended to keep automobiles from cutting through residential neighbourhoods. Including cyclists in these regulations, when bicycles are clearly not part of the problem, breeds disrespect for the law by cyclists because the laws seem unfair. In the instances described above it may be safer to break the law to ride on the residential streets rather than stay on arterial,

Risk Taking Behaviour

There will always be a percentage of the population, albeit a small one, that will consciously accept a higher level of risk in their actions, licensing or education is not likely to affect these individuals.

Types of Legislative Change

The group discussed the potential for licensing cyclists and bike couriers and registering bicycles to increase compliance with the law. Discussion focused on to what extent these three approaches would effectively deal with the factors (out--lined above) which influence non-compliance. Although amendments to traffic regulations for cyclists, HTA and municipal by-laws, was considered outside of the scope of the discussion they clearly arose as an issue. There was a consensus that the existing traffic regulations must be reviewed and amended where appropriate to ensure that they are realistic and fair for cyclists.

Registering Bicycles

Registering bicycles provides no advantage in enforcing the law because cyclists are now required to identify themselves when stopped by the police. Even in hit-and-run cases a license on the bike may not provide much benefit because it only identifies the vehicle not the operator. Tickets are issued to the operator not the vehicle.

Bicycle registration programs are generally implemented to assist in recovering stolen bicycles not to assist enforcement.

To be successful, a bicycle registration program would have to be implemented at least province- wide and strictly enforced. The costs of implementing such a pro-gram far outweigh the minimal support they may offer in enforcing the law. Directing police resources at enforcing mandatory bicycle registration would detract from police resources needed to enforce the existing traffic regulations.

Licensing Cyclists

The following three reasons for licensing cyclists were evaluated:

To assure a minimum level of competence

This could be done through testing (written and/or practical) comparable co that administered for drivers licenses, However, unlike drivers, cyclists include both children and adults. It would be very difficult to have a test appropriate for all age groups. The cost of administering such a program would be very high. To be effective it would have to be implemented province-wide. It would be far more cost-effective to direct resources toward education and enforcement to ensure higher skill levels and greater awareness of traffic rules.

To assist identification

Police officers are satisfied that the HTA requirement. for cyclists to identify them-selves is sufficient for enforcement purposes. Most cyclists identify themselves to police officers. There is little advantage in implementing a costly licensing pro-gram to assist in identifying the very small percentage of cyclists who improperly identify themselves.

Punitive

The ability to withdraw a cyclists' license may increase the incentive to comply with the law. However, given that cyclists non-compliance is a relatively minor problem relative to other police enforcement issues, a costly licensing program for cyclists cannot be justified on this grounds. The existing fines for cyclists are the same as those for motorists.

In summary, licensing is not considered a cost-effective means for increasing cyclists compliance with the law. Rather than creating new regulations for cyclists, attention should be focused on enforcing the existing laws. With the recent changes to the HTA requiring cyclists to identify themselves police now have the tools to effectively enforce the law.

Licensing Bicycle Couriers

The same three reasons for licensing cyclists were evaluated for licensing bicycle couriers; to assure a minimum level of competence, to assist in identification, and to enable punitive action.

There was general consensus within the group that some form of business license should be required for bicycle couriers because they are professional cyclists and should be regulated similar to other professional drivers.

Because they are small in number relative to the general cycling population, the administrative cost of licensing bike couriers should not be great. However, despite their small numbers, courier behaviour has a tremendous influence on the public perception of all cyclists. Therefore the costs of administering a licensing program will be justified if it improves the public perception toward cyclists.

It is generally agreed that there are two distinct groups within the bike courier population - the experienced veterans and the inexperienced riders. The inexperienced riders generally don't last long and create proportionality more conflicts with pedestrians and motorists. A licensing program that could ensure a minimum level of competence for couriers entering the industry would reduce accidents and conflicts.

Although courier licensing is considered a positive step there is considerable uncertainty about how such a program would work or how effective it could be. The courier industry should be involved in determining how to implement such a program, There was even a suggestion that it would be desirable for bicycle couriers to regulate themselves.

As a final caution, there was general agreement that bike couriers are good for the City from an environmental point of view. Deliveries by bike courier should be encouraged, but in a more responsible and safe manner.

Recommendations

1. Licensing cyclists and registering bicycles are not cost-effective means for increasing cyclists compliance with the law.

2. Some type of business license for bicycle couriers should be pursued, probably through the Metro Licensing Commission.

3. Education and enforcement programs for cyclists should be enhanced because these are the most effective means for increasing cyclist compliance with the law. These programs should reinforce that bicycles are vehicles and focus on cyclists rights and duties under the HTA.

4. Existing municipal by-laws and Highway Traffic Act regulations must be re-viewed and amended where appropriate to ensure that they are realistic and fair for cyclists.

Workshop summary prepared by Daniel Egan

Facilitators:

Susan McCoy, Metro Police, Barb Wentworth, Bicycle Coordinator

Participants:

Norman Vanderburgh, Metro Police, John Andrews, Metro Police, Reg Eldridge, Metro Police Phil Harris, Metro Police, Jerry Lazare, Jarvis C.I., Marsha Michael, Toronto City Cycling Committee, Paul Rappell, Metro Separate School Board, Ken Croxford, North York Board of Education

General Comments

Participants supported the importance of education and public awareness in increasing compliance with the law. Effective programs would address confusion over how laws apply to bicycles and influence behaviour of cyclists who disregard the law. The workshop discussed the problems in implementing successful cycling education programs and made both short-term and long-term recommendations for program delivery.

The following barriers to successful education programs were identified:

- Public perception of bicycle as a toy, not a vehicle

- Cyclists' attitude that cycling education is not needed

- Ignorance of the existence of cycling programs

- Lack of variety of courses from which to choose

- Lack of funds for programs

- Lack of instructors to teach courses

- Lack of training facilities

- Short season for on-bike education

- Lack of competent, well-educated cycling role models

Overcoming these barriers will acquire different strategies for different groups in the community. Participants grouped these strategies in three broad areas,

The logical place to start is with people who must take cycling courses as a requirement or pre- requisite for their job or schooling. These could include couriers, police bike patrol officers, teachers providing on-bike education and students needing bike education prior to driver training. Traffic law offenders on bikes also could be required to take cycling education.

The second group of people to reach out to are those who can be influenced by some type of incentive. For example, employers could be encouraged to schedule commuter cycling courses during working hours as part of workplace training programs.

Finally, participants concluded that a public awareness campaign would be necessary for people who have no desire to take cycling courses and for the non cycling public.

The workshop made recommendations under four categories. Three deal with cycling education - for adults, for children and teens, and within the police force. The fourth category is public awareness campaigns for the general public.

Recommendations

Cycling education for adults

1. That the Toronto City Cycling Committee work with employers to provide commuter cycling education programs in Toronto workplaces.

2. That the Toronto City Cycling Committee work with interested community groups to develop a pool of instructors to teach the CanBike program.

3. That the Toronto City Cycling Committee work with the Metro Police Force work to develop an in-house pool of police instructors so that CanBike courses can be available to any Metro Police Force employee.

4. That the Toronto City Cycling Committee and the Metro Police Force petition the Ministry of Transportation for more bicycle education content in driver training and testing.

5. That the Metro Police Force and The Toronto City Cycling Committee investigate some form of bicycle education for traffic law offenders on bikes. This would require the assistance of the courts.

6. That the education of couriers be pursued through licensing of couriers.

Cycling education for children and teens

7. That school boards be encouraged to identify volunteers to assist community program officers in meeting the increasing demand for police bicycle radios and classroom presentations.

8. That school boards be encouraged to develop bicycle education facilities for children.

9. That school boards be encouraged to provide helmet loan pools for bike rodeos.

10. That school boards be encouraged to provide bicycle education courses as a pre-requisite to driver education at the high school level.

11. That cycling clubs in schools or connected with bike shops be encouraged to provide bicycle education.

12. That school boards be encouraged to establish teen tutor programs in which older students become role models for younger children.

Cycling education within the police force

13. That the Toronto City Cycling Committee provide CanBike II courses for police officers on bikes.

14. That the Metro Police Force in conjunction with the Toronto City Cycling Committee set up in-house training programs for all officers within the force on cycling issues.

15. That training sergeants at the police college receive instruction in bicycle issues.

16. That C.O. Bick offer bicycle education as part of police constable training.

Public awareness campaigns for the general public

17. That the Metro Police Force and the Toronto City Cycling Committee work to enhance the perception of the bicycle as a legitimate vehicle through PSAs, press releases and press conferences.

18. That the Metro Police Force publicize its own cycling education program for police on bikes.

19. That the Metro Police Force set up formal bike patrols and increase the number of officers using bicycles.

20. That the Toronto City Cycling Committee and the Metro Police Force investigate funding for a transit shelter poster for July and August in order to publicize police bike patrols and promote the message that the bicycle is a vehicle.

21. That the Metro Police Force and the Toronto City Cycling Committee pursue the use of statistics (accident and injury) in promoting public awareness of the necessity for educational programs.

22. That the Toronto City Cycling Committee establish an inventory of cycling resources that can be distributed within the Metro Police Force.

Workshop summary prepared by Barb Wentworth

Facilitators:

Brian O'Connor, Metro Police, Sarah Hood, Vice Chair Toronto City Cycling Committee

Participants:

Roy Canning, Metro Police, Michael Lindale, Metro Police Ed Edey, Metro Police, Susan Quaiattini, Metro Police David Hunt, Ministry of Transportation, Deborah Wilkins, Cycle Watch Steve Lawrence, Toronto City Cycling Committee, Jasper Vrakking, McBrides Cycle

Morning Session: Barriers

The first part of the workshop was spent answering the first question; specifically, what are the barriers to enforcing bicycle infractions? These were seen to be:

Competing demands for resources Shortage of personnel Shortage of money Other priorities The volume of infractions

Physical barriers

- Most police are in motor vehicles and just can't "catch" bikes.

Psychological barriers

- The police attitude: It's not "macho" to arrest cyclists." The citizens’ attitude: Don't you cops have something better to do?"

Attitudinal barriers

- The public perception that a campaign is unfair or unwarranted.

- The perception that the bicycle is a "toy", not a vehicle".

Special barriers for kids under 12

- The police can't really do anything; under 16 kids can't be brought to court.

Administrative/paperwork

Afternoon Session: Solutions

In general the findings of the afternoon dovetailed well with the findings of the other workshops. Generally speaking, they fall into two ideas: that education is crucial, and that focusing on particular issues like night lights will be more successful than a scattergun approach.

Education is crucial

- It can be funded or organized from outside the police force.

- We should stretch existing resources (e.g. by using bicycle officers at bike rodeos).

- The cycling community and auxiliary police could help design and carry out projects like roadside education booths, safety checks and park programs geared at both adults and children.

- There should be a police-assisted safety component of the Bike to Work Week pancake breakfast. Bike Safety courses should be encouraged instead of fines for apprehended violators.

The bike patrol should be increased

- At $1,600 per bike officer, perhaps the bike community could raise money to outfit more bike officers.

- The radio band used by bike officers will soon be freed up, making them more efficient.

Overall enforcement needs improvement

- The Bay Street Clearway needs better signs.

- 60 feet at each major intersection should be designated "no standing" instead of just "no parking".

Civilian bike monitors are probably not a good solution for Toronto; Inspector Dan Hutt is involved in a study that could examine the question further.

Some points about money

- Fines from infractions cannot be channelled into bike enforcement.

- The Ministry of Transportation could approach the Chief Justice about scaled-down fines for the under-15-year-olds.

Some ways to improve perception of enforcement

- The Toronto City Cycling Committee should help to pre-publicize crack-downs.

- Cyclists endorse a 48-hour report back to the police with the missing light/ reflector/etc. instead of a fine wherever appropriate.

Generally speaking, I believe that both police and cyclists were pleasantly surprised by the degree to which we all seem to want to achieve the same ends in our various ways.

Special Note about Bike Lights

It seems especially clear that a multi-stage campaign to increase the use of lights after dark, ending up with an enforcement blitz, would be a good idea. There are two good reasons to "focus" on lights:

- lack of lights at night seems to be a major, changeable cause of injuries and deaths.

- Unlike other infractions, lightlessness continues probably for long periods of time; three blocks after you spot them the lightless cyclist is still lightless .

The pre-enforcement stage of such a campaign would include:

- Getting standards for lights

- Letting bike stores know they could be considered liable if someone who has bought a bike without a light is injured.

- Publicizing the fact that lights are mandatory (imagine a fanciful lighted bike" after-dark parade!!!)

- Running a "cheap light" campaign subsidized by a light manufacturer or other public-spirited company.

- Publicizing a specific light-crackdown.

Workshop summary prepared by Sarah Hood

Facilitators:

Ed Lamch, Metro Police, Will Wallace, Vice Chair, Toronto City Cycling Committee

Participants:

Brian Shaw, Metro Police, Robert Filbry, Metro Police ,Douglas Surphlis, Metro Police, Michael Mersereau, Metro Police, Phil Piltch, Toronto Bicycling Network Garry Wice, Toronto City Cycling Committee , Jeff Rabinovitch, Cycle Watch, Dennis Taves, Human Powered Vehicle Association, Margaret Iutzi, Ontario Cycling Association, Al Armstrong, Metro Police

General Comments

The people in this workshop came from a wide variety of backgrounds and so approached cycling and its enforcement from various directions. Extreme points of view were briefly expressed: from a community cyclist, that police enforcement of cycling was a form of harassment that missed the point that motorists are the cause of most traffic related injury and death; and that enforcement ought to be used to help control and reduce the excessive use of automobiles in this city. Resources used for the enforcement of cyclists should be directed at education. From a police officer involved in traffic, that the fact, that cyclists do not pay direct road taxes should have no effect on policy concerning the priorities for road users.

Generally, though, the group agreed that cyclists had the right to ride on the road and should be able to do so safely. The group also agreed that cyclists are riding vehicles and should follow the rules of the road. Bikes and cars are compatible.

Many comments echoed those of keynote speaker, Charles Dunn. The key to sharing the roads is establishing a positive and cooperative attitude among road users. In Metro Toronto, at present, the attitude is often aggressive, selfish and harried. Many cyclists contribute to the negative atmosphere by disregarding the rules of the road; they are also made vulnerable by this atmosphere. There was consensus that education was key to getting compliance to the law. Enforcement is the last resort, but critical. The goal is behaviour modification; and the preferred approach is positive reinforcement of good behaviour. Cyclists must be shown that bad cycling behaviour does not get one further ahead.

Concern was expressed that if cycling behaviour is not addressed now, the increase in the cycling population will result in a huge, unwieldy problem in the future. The time to develop and implement compliance strategies is now.

A number of topics were touched on during the workshop. Often consensus was not reached, but a sense of what comprised the problems was established. Participants were glad for the opportunity to open lines of communication.

Summary of Discussion

Identification Police officers were satisfied with the verbal identification now required by the HTA of cyclists who are stopped for traffic infractions. The problem of identifying cyclists, who had not been stopped by an officer, but had committed an infraction, remains.

Constable Surphlis identified bicycle couriers as the main cause for concern in this area. Because couriers are so high profile, their cycling behaviour has a huge impact relative to their numbers. They frighten pedestrians downtown, threaten injury to themselves and others, raise the stress level of all road users, harm the perception of the public to cyclists, and present a generally poor example of riding style and behaviour to other cyclists, particularly children. Therefore, of all cyclists, the issue of identification for couriers was seen by the group as a priority.

Licensing of other cyclists, unless done on a province-wide way, would be impractical. How would enforcement be carried out on cyclists who rode into Metro from another city or region? Licensing of all cyclists would be costly and cumbersome, and the consensus was that any resources of this magnitude would better be used for education. The group agreed that the new identification requirement in the HTA needs more publicity.

Licensing of Couriers

Community cyclists and police officers agreed that the effects of courier behaviour warrants licensing. The reason for licensing couriers was to assist in identification of couriers breaking the rules of the road. The most popular idea was to require couriers to wear something with a number and the company name on it. The group recommended that a committee be established to investigate how to proceed, and that Shannon Reiner from the Association of Professional Urban Cyclists be contacted. Constables Surphlis and Lamch and Will Wallace expressed interest in working on this more.

Major Infractions

The group discussed the major cycling infraction, approached to enforcing them and the reasons they happen.

Douglas Surphlis reported that his method of enforcement is discretionary. He will take into account traffic conditions (for example, a cyclist may ride on the sidewalk because the roadway may be unsafe), the manner (for example, courteous or reckless) the cyclist is riding, and whether the cyclist is a repeat offender. Warnings, education or citations will be given accordingly.

Sidewalks are an area of considerable conflict between cyclists and pedestrians. There are many reasons why cyclists ride on the sidewalk: they think that it is where they should be, expediency, fear of cycling in traffic, poor or dangerous road conditions (dark tunnels, pot holes, for example). Nevertheless, the result is often intimidation, particularly of senior citizens. The solution to the first three reasons is education, of the last two, engineering. Enforcement may be necessary in cases of recklessness, but it is not the best solution: enforcement alone will not increase compliance.

Wrong-way riding (riding against traffic) or riding wrong way on a one-way street are dangerous to cyclists themselves. They are riding where they are "not expected to be. Reasons for riding this way are lack of knowledge, wrong education or expediency. Again, proper education is essential, enforcement cannot work alone.

There was strong agreement that riding at night without lighting was extremely . serious. Enforcement of lighting laws was strongly endorsed. However, concern was expressed about the lack of standards for bicycle lights, the low fine relative to other offenses, and the need to promote lights when the bicycle is bought, perhaps even requiring all bikes to be equipped with lights when purchased.

Intersections are the most common scene of accidents. There is a high level of knowledge about expected behaviour at intersections, whether signed or signalled hut they are also where road users' behaviour has declined most. Enforcement seemed appropriate on this issue. There was some discussion about the need for cyclists to stop at stop signs, especially on quiet residential streets. People generally agreed that stop signs need to be respected to ensure predictability of behaviour at a site of much potential conflict. Engineering alternatives to the stop sign as a means of traffic control might better meet the needs of cyclists, who prefer to maintain forward motion.

Pedestrian/cyclist conflict, particularly at crosswalks and streetcar stops, is a concern. Cyclists are required to stop at both crosswalks and street car stops for pedestrians; often they do not. Some education seemed appropriate here, particularly regarding behaviour with street cars. Cyclists from the suburbs or elsewhere may not be familiar with street cars.

One recommendation to deal with these infractions and other cycle-related concerns was to increase the number of questions on cycling in the automobile license drivers' test.

Statistics

The group talked briefly about statistics collection. One recommendation was that cyclists and pedestrians should be required to file an occurrence report in the event of an accident.

Courts

The group discussed how the court system could better handle cycling related infractions. One proposal was that cyclists who plead guilty could have a reduction in fine if they agreed to watch a safe cycling film, or take a safe cycling course.

Charles Dunn's framework for organizing a juvenile court provoked wide response: criticism and praise. The system would have a lower schedule of fines, which, if not paid at the time of the offense, would need to be paid before the juvenile could get a motor vehicle license. Dennis Taves strongly objected to the bicycle, an environmentally sustainable mode of transportation, being looked with the automobile in this way. Others saw the program as an efficient way of collecting fines, which when made public would have an effect on the riding behaviour of young cyclists.

STEP (Selective Traffic Enforcement Program)

The group agreed that a STEP program works best when the targeted behaviour is clearly defined. A STEP program, such as RIDE, is not an enforcement program. ln large measure, it is a program of education. It will be successful only if it has community backing, that way a police officer can feel good about charging citizens who are generally law-abiding.

The reality is that a STEP program needs a major labour commitment that the police cannot afford. For a STEP program to be implemented the police would require a lot of help from the cycling community. Of all issues facing cycling, lighting seemed a good candidate for a STEP program, Funding through the Attorney-General's office was suggested.

Recommendations

1. Police Bike patrols need expanding.

2. Comprehensive program regarding lighting compliance.

3. Couriers needs licensing; licensing of all cyclists is too unwieldy.

4.Courts should become more sensitive to cycling,

5. The new identification requirement in the HTA needs publicizing.

6. More questions related to cycling should be included on the motor vehicle drivers' test.

7. Cyclists and pedestrians should be required to give an accident occurrence report to aid statistics collection

Workshop summary prepared by Will Wallace

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