Cyclists urge for ‘deterrent penalties’ amid accidents

ISTANBUL

The Turkish Cycling Federation has stressed the need of deterrent penalties following the tragic deaths of three cyclists in crashes over the course of the last two weeks, which raised attention to the necessity for safer cycling practices.

Gazi Bilir, Istanbul Representative of the Turkish Cycling Federation, stated that to prevent any more accidents from happening, strict changes in the law and in the education system are a must.

Emphasizing that even though cyclists are most active on roads especially during traffic-free hours in the morning, Bilir said that there are still many accidents and loss of life, urging the relevant authorities to make sure that penalties are more of a deterrent.

“In order to prevent accidents, first we need to make changes in education and then in the law. We need to put up more signboards on the roads near bicycle lanes. Bike lanes should not be preoccupied by pedestrians, benches or parked vehicles. In Istanbul, 70 percent of bicycle lanes are far below standard. For cyclists to ride comfortably in traffic, this issue should be discussed in parliament and a 'workshop' should be organized,” Bilir said.

The cyclist community were shaken by the news of one accident after another in the past two weeks. While the driver who hit and killed professional cyclist Doğanay Güzelgün in Istanbul last week has still not been caught, in the southeastern province of Diyarbakır, the driver who hit and killed professional basketball player Mihrace Yasemin Buğdaycı the previous day was released on judicial control.

The driver identified as Mahsun K. said in his initial statement that Buğdaycı “suddenly appeared out of nowhere while [he] was on the road.”