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Advisory board member Jacob Claymire urges bike-safety outreach ahead of Wisconsin Bike Week
Summary
Jacob Claymire proposed public education on local sidewalk rules, e-bike classes and helmet visibility for Wisconsin Bike Week; the board discussed bike registration, community bike refurbishing programs, bike fix‑it stations and infrastructure examples such as a Jackson Street road diet.
Jacob Claymire, an advisory board member, told the Sustainability Advisory Board the group should prioritize public education and visibility for Wisconsin Bike Week and ongoing bike-safety outreach.
"When you're riding a bicycle, you have the right to [use] the road or on the sidewalk," Claymire said, and he recommended clarifying where sidewalk riding is allowed in Oshkosh and emphasizing that bicyclists must yield to pedestrians. He also reminded the board of Wisconsin's rule that drivers should give bicyclists three feet of space when passing.
Claymire proposed a visible helmet campaign and suggested the board consider wearing helmets and promoting safe cycling during the council's June events. Board members discussed helmet use, nighttime lighting requirements (front and rear illumination after dusk) and the local bicycle registration program (often referred to on the registration sticker as a 'bicycle license') as pragmatic measures to improve safety and help recover lost or stolen bikes.
He described community bike-refurbishing programs that refurbish donated and abandoned bicycles, redistribute them through partner nonprofits and reduce landfill waste. Claymire and other members also pointed to recent infrastructure changes — such as the Jackson Street 'road diet' — bus bike racks and safe‑routes‑to‑school programs as parts of an evolving, safer bicycle network.
Discussion touched on bike fix‑it stations: members asked who maintains existing stations, raised sponsorship as a maintenance option and suggested the sustainability plan could monitor future installations and upkeep.
