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On the street, most motorists follow traffic rules. Traffic flows smoothly because all the drivers can predict what each other will do. A collision usually happens only when someone does something abnormal.
When you ride in traffic, you can maneuver better than the cars around you. You might be tempted to ignore traffic rules—but don’t! This is how most bicyclists get into crashes. When you break traffic laws you put yourself in danger: Motorists and other cyclists won’t know what you’ll do next, making it harder to avoid you and prevent a crash. But if you act like a vehicle—signaling turns, turning from the correct lanes, and stopping at red lights—drivers can predict what you’ll do.
Being
predictable is the key to safe bicycling in traffic. And if you follow traffic
rules, motorists will come to respect bicyclists as drivers of vehicles—which
is how Illinois law say bicyclists should act.
Here are the basic rules for riding predictably:
Get Smart
Know the traffic rules you should follow and when others should yield to you. See “Traffic Rules for Cyclists.”
Be Confident
Learn riding skills so you don’t hesitate in traffic, and always be courteous. See “How to Learn Traffic Skills.”
Communicate
Make eye contact, signal your moves, and wave when someone yields. See “Communicating.”