SGI Promotes Safety FTLComm - Tisdale August 13, 1999 SGI and Tisdale Agencies are combining forces to promote safety at the mall carnival today and yesterday. Bicycle inspections, helmet safety and child car seats are all high on the agenda of this promotion. Drop by the site on the Tisdale Mall parking lot and load up on a host of pamphlets on various topics,

and have a look at the examples of safe child in car restraints that really could make a huge difference for parents with small children. Many concerns we all have about safety in our cars, our air bags and how all of these systems work together are addressed in some of the excellent material available at this display.

Several of the great handouts at the display are to promote bicycle safety and the proper selection and wearing of bicycle helmets. The caption for the cartoon which is in a colouring book (on the left) reads Biking cab fun and safe! • Protect your noggin - wear a helmet. • Don't be a road hog - ride single-file on the right-hand side of the road. This message will be news to most Tisdale bicycle riders both children and adults alike who all are determined to pretend to be living in London England. The persistence of this practice suggests that it is a local tradition because you will see children and adults deliberately heading over to the wrong side of the road to ride. Somehow the message and practice has become established in this community that riding on the wrong side of the road is the right thing to do. It is far to widespread to be an accident or just careless bike riding. Pedestrians walk facing the traffic so they can step out of the way but a cyclist does not have that option so riding on the wrong side of the road is not only dangerous but verges on being a bit suicidal.

As I was on my way home from visiting the SGI display I encountered this scene. I pulled over to the side of the road to snap these pictures because it was really dangerous as cars coming around the corner were meeting three cyclist heading right at them in their lane. Cars were swerving to avoid one another and the cyclists and as you can see these kids think this is the right thing to be doing. If you are driving around Tisdale be aware that you could at any moment encounter such a situation.

When the traffic cleared and the situation was safe the three riders had come to a full stop as swerving cars had been a little shocking to them. I asked them "Do you think you should be riding on the left hand side of the road." They shrugged. I think that honestly they do believe they are doing what is right. Tisdale has great kids who do as they are told most of the time, someone has been giving them bad advice and showing them bad examples. Give the kids of Tisdale a hand show them the right side of the street and encourage their use of it.