HANSCOM AIR FORCE BASE, Mass. – As warmer weather arrives and the community heads outside, base officials are reminding people to adhere to all bicycle safety guidelines while riding on and off the installation.
The reminder comes after two incidents where bike riders collided with stationary and slow moving vehicles occurred near the Hanscom Middle School. No major injuries were reported in either instance.
“The safety of our students is our top priority,” said Laurel Wironen, school liaison officer here. “We’ve seen a huge increase in the number of students walking and riding bikes to school in the nice weather, and with summer vacation around the corner, we want to ensure we all know the rules of the road.”
According to the 66th Security Forces Squadron, all bicyclists and their passengers must comply with the same rules as motor vehicles and operators, including stopping at stop signs and utilizing proper hand signals.
On roadways, bicyclists will ride on the far right side of the roadway and exercise due care when passing any vehicle.
Bicyclists must wear a properly fitted helmet with a securely fastened chinstrap, as well as a highly visible outer garment during the day and outer garment containing retro-reflective material at night.
“It’s a community effort to keep everyone safe,” said Tech. Sgt. Kyle Majorana, 66 SFS noncommissioned officer in charge of physical security here. “We all need to practice situational awareness and be sure we’re adhering to posted speed limits and road signs.”
For additional information, contact the Hanscom Safety Office at 781-225-7233, or visit https://usaf.dps.mil/teams/12410/default.aspx.