Walk Bike Burbank, a local chapter of the Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition, handed out free bike lights recently to people who were riding without them on the Chandler Bike Path in Burbank.
Operation Firefly — now in its third year and run by the Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition during winter months when cyclists more often travel in darkness — educates riders about state law and safety, which requires them to use a white front light and reflectors if biking at night.
“As bicyclists, we know that riding at night without lights is really dangerous, and we see a lot of people doing it,” said Adeel Mansoor, Burbank Team Firefly leader. “Our objective is to provide lights to people that don’t have them so they can be safe, yet also provide education and information for rules of nighttime riding as well as safety tips.”
The Chandler Bike Path is considered a “high-volume” site for cyclists. Mansoor noted that Team Firefly distributed nearly 100 lights to riders there in two hours.
Tuesday’s free bike lights were donated entirely by Pure Fix Cycles of Burbank, who also supplied volunteers to install lights and educate riders. “We are happy to support this great event. It helps make bicycling in Burbank safer for everyone,” said Michael Fishman, co-founder of Pure Fix Cycles.
The Bicycle Coalition hopes to reach up to 2,000 people this season in the Los Angeles area with the support of the Laemmle Charitable Foundation.
Sixty-nine percent of bicycle fatalities nationwide in 2012 were in urban areas, and nearly half occurred between 4 p.m. and midnight, according to The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
For more information about Operation Firefly, go to http://www.la-bike.org/ OperationFirefly.
