Livermore Bike & Pedestrian Safety Crackdown Set This Weekend

LIVERMORE, CA — The Livermore Police Department is planning a "Bike & Pedestrian Safety Enforcement" Saturday, Sept. 10 from 5 a.m. to 8 p.m.. The focus will be on drivers' dangerous behaviors that risk safety of bikers and walkers — along with highlighting safe practices for cyclists and pedestrians.

Such violations for motorists include speeding, making illegal turns, failing to yield or providing the right of way to bicyclists or pedestrians and failing to stop at signs and signals, the department said.

Specific city locations targeted in the enforcement effort were not released by police.

Officers remind drivers to obey the following:

• Follow speed limits, slow down at intersections and be prepared to stop for pedestrians at marked and unmarked crosswalks.
• Avoid blocking crosswalks while waiting to make right-hand turns.
• And also: Never drive impaired.

The department also offered the following tips for cyclists and pedestrians to reduce risks of injuries and crashes:

For pedestrians:

• Be "predictable," and use crosswalks when available.
• Watch for approaching vehicles.
• Do not walk or run into a vehicle's path, as a driver going 30 MPH needs at least 90 feet to stop.
• Be visible to drivers by wearing light colors, reflective material and carrying flashlights, particularly at dawn, dusk or at night.
• Be "extra careful" crossing streets or entering crosswalks at night, when it is harder to see, or at busy streets with more lanes and higher speed limits.

For bicyclists:

• Obey traffic laws, use hand signals, use lights at night (front, white lights and rear, red reflectors) and wear helmets.
• Travel in the same direction of traffic.
• Avoid the "door zone": Do not ride too closely to parked cars.
• If there’s a bike lane, use it, unless making a left turn, passing or approaching a place where a right turn is allowed.
• Yield the right-of-way to pedestrians within marked crosswalks or within unmarked crosswalks at intersections.

Funding for Livermore's enforcement program was provided by a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety, through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, officials said.

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