E-BIKE ROAD SAFETY

E-Bike Road Safety

E-Bikes and E-Scooters are power-assisted bicycles, and riders must follow the rules of the road outlined for cyclists as per the MTO.
Ontario’s Guide to Safe Cycling can be viewed here: http://www.mto.gov.on.ca/english/safety/pdfs/cycling-skills.pdf

- NEVER RIDE ON SIDEWALKS, PEDESTRIAN PATHS, OR THROUGH CROSSWALKS! If you feel uncomfortable riding on a particular road, choose an alternate route. If you feel you must use the sidewalk, pedestrian paths, or crosswalk, dismount and push your E-Bike.
 
- ALWAYS obey all traffic signs and lights!
 
- Keep to the right when riding in traffic. Remember that slower traffic must give way to faster traffic when safe and practical to do so.
 
- Keep one meter of space between you and the curb to avoid curbside hazards.
 
- Always maintain a safe following distance between yourself and other motorists. A good rule of thumb is one meter.
 
- Do not weave in and out of parked cars, ride in a straight line and leave one meter of space between you and the parked cars.
E-Bike Road Safety
- When changing lanes, remember that the vehicles in the other lane have the right of way. You must wait until there is a space to move into that lane. ALWAYS shoulder check and signal your intention to change lanes. Remember that when the sun is shinning on your E-Bike’s signal lights, they may be less visible to other motorists; it is a good idea to also use hand signals.
 
- When making a right hand turn, always turn from the right hand curbside to the right hand curbside. Remember that pedestrians have the right of way, and you must yield to them.
 
- When making a left hand turn, always complete the turn into the equivalent of the lane you turned from. Then lane change until you are once again riding on the right. If a dedicated turning lane exists, change lanes until you are in the turning lane at the extreme left. Take the center of the lane and turn when traffic conditions indicate it is safe to do so. Once you’ve completed the turn, change lanes until you are once again riding on the right.
 
- If you are uncomfortable using the above methods for completing turns on your E-Bike, you may DISMOUNT and WALK your bike across a pedestrian crosswalk.
 
- Scan the road ahead to ensure that you are able to avoid any hazards that you may be coming up to. You should be scanning the road several meters ahead, not just directly in front of your wheel.
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