Plenty of Events Planned for May Bike Month

There are several ways cyclists can celebrate bike week and bike month in and around Somerville. 

• The first New England Bicycle Expo will take place May 7 and 8 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at The Center for Arts at the Armory. Local bike companies will display products, and bike organizations will educate attendees on bike safety, technology and advocacy. Cyclists can swap bikes, go on group rides and meet the cycling community, according to a press release. Advance tickets cost $6 on the website and are available at a discount at Paramount Bicycle, in Ball Square. Children under 10 enter for free.

• The city has organized group rides to City Hall from Teele, Davis and Union squares, Ten Hills and East Somerville May 16 to May 20 at 8 a.m.

• The bike committee will host a breakfast for bike commuters May 18 from 7:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. at the southwest corner of the Beacon Street Star Market parking lot. The grocery store has agreed to donate water and food, Petsi Pies will serve mini scones, and the committee plans to serve Dunkin Donuts coffee.
• Mayor Curtatone will lead a group ride around the city starting at City Hall at Friday, May 20 at 1 p.m. 

• BostonBikes has planned two group rides through Davis Square to Boston City Hall Plaza on May 20. Cyclists can join the first group at 7 a.m. when it passes through Davis Square, continuing through Harvard and Central squares before reaching the plaza. The second group will come through Davis Square at 7:40 a.m., carry on down Beacon and Hampshire streets and finally cross the Longfellow Bridge to get downtown.

• The Somerville Historic Bike Ride will leave from City Hall Sunday, May 22 at 1:30 p.m. The route and the theme are still up in the air, according to the Bike Committee. 

City intends to launch bike safety campaign by start of bike week

Residents will soon see signs displaying a new city initiative to get pedestrians, cyclists and motorists to share the streets safely.

After hearing complaints about cyclists riding on sidewalks in city squares, where it’s prohibited, the city created a broad bike safety campaign, said Alex Epstein, a member of the Bike Committee. The campaign includes messages such as "Ride four feet from car doors” and “Everyone give pedestrians a brake.”

Kathleen Ziegenfuss, the city's liason to the Bike Committee, said that the campaign could continue year after year so that residents become familiar with it.