FYI London- Bike Festival/ Vehicular cycling and Jay's Trike

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(see URL for photo and caption) Motorists, cyclists urged to respect one another

If there's one thing Jay Dixon wants people to remember about cycling, it's this: Bicycles must be
treated just like motor vehicles on the road.

They both have rights as well as responsibilities and must treat each other as equals.

"They are just like cars on the road," says Dixon, a spokesperson for this year's London Bicycle
Festival, which runs from May 31 to June 8.

Dixon knows what she's talking about.

A self-described "year-round transportational cyclist," she can be seen summer and winter riding her
recumbent tadpole tricycle around the city, eschewing motor vehicles in favour of the three-wheeler.

"I use it to go to yard sales, to go buy groceries. I meet dozens of people every day that way. Most
of them wave at me and smile," she said.

That may be unlike the silent tension often present in the automobile-bicycle relationship on city
roads, where frustration with one another can lead to close calls.

Dixon and others hosting the bicycle festival, under the auspices of the Thames Region Ecological
Association, plan to address safety issues in a series of safety, touring and other events geared
toward bicycle "enthusiasts."

"Most of them are very grassroots people. They're just people who throw their bike into the back of
their car and cycle for a couple of hours on a Sunday afternoon," Dixon said.

"We are focusing on the average person with a busy life just wondering how they can fit cycling into
their lives."

As such, most events will be friendly and non-competitive.

A complete listing of the festival's events can be found at Web site www.trea.ca, linked below.

2003-05-28

by Dave Miller London This Week

Jay Dixon navigates her recumbent tadpole tricycle around London just about everywhere she goes. ‹
LONDON THIS WEEK/Dave Miller

  WEB: Thames Region Ecological Assoc.