To the editor:

On Oct. 6, the Journal-World ran a story on the front page of the Pulse section, titled “Shedding light on bicycle safety.” It was a good start on an important subject, but it didn’t tell the whole story. The article stated that a biker “can go with one or more of three general light options.”

However, the fact is that bikers do not have “options.” Rather, they must meet certain requirements. These requirements are specified in Kansas Statute 8-1592, which requires that bikers have a lamp on the front of a bike, a lamp or reflector on the back of a bike, and reflectors on the pedals of a bike. The specifics about these light sources and reflectors can be found in this statute, and the statute can be readily accessed at many places including at the library, via the Internet, at the Motor Vehicle Bureau or at the police department.

I have twice had the frightening experience of nearly running down a biker at night who had no lights on his bike. Believe me, I don’t want to cause any biker’s death or injury, and I’m sure bikers want to avoid getting a traffic ticket, not to mention that they want to stay alive and healthy.

Jane Frydman,
Lawrence