You don't know what you don't know!
It's impossible to know everything about everything and impossible to know how much you don't know. Ignorance - a lack of knowledge - can be corrected with education, but first you must accept that you don't know it all.
Did you know...?
Did you know that all children under the age of 18 must wear a properly fitting bicycle helmet at all times when on their own bike, including glide bike or tricycle, when riding in a bike seat attached to an adult's bike, in/on a bike designed to carry passengers or in a bike trailer?
Did you know that it is illegal for anyone age 14 or older to ride their bike on the sidewalk in Calgary? Adults accompanying children are not exempt.
Did you know that a bicycle is a vehicle by law and the operator of a bike has all the same responsibilities when on the road as the operator of an automobile? This includes stopping at red lights and stop signs, obeying right of way rules and yielding to pedestrians at crosswalks.
Did you know that ebikes require a brake light in Alberta? Power bicycles are also subject to additional equipment and operator rules.
Did you know that Safer Cycling Calgary is the only organization in Calgary offering cycling education courses for all levels of cyclists? There are courses to learn how to ride a bike, how to ride on the pathways, how to ride on residential roads and how to ride on busy roads, like downtown.
Provincial laws
The actual laws can be difficult to understand and interpret, but we will teach you how to stay on the right side of the law.
(all links will open in a new window)
The Alberta Traffic Safety Act
The Alberta Traffic Safety Act: Use of the Highway and Rules of the Road
The Alberta Traffic Safety Act: Vehicle Equipment Regulation
Alberta Driver's Guide to Operation, Safety and Licensing (cars and light trucks) aka automobile driver's manual.
E-bike regulations
While not applicable to regular bicycles, propelled only by muscular power, there are some rules in regards to bikes which have motors to assist the operator: an ebike or power assist bicycle. Some of these regulations are provincial, including helmet laws, and there are additional federal rules. Do you know them all?
Canada Motor Vehicle Safety Regulations (will open in a new window)
Municipal bylaws
In addition to federal and provincial laws, there are also municipal bylaws which must be followed. In Calgary, the big one that few know (or care to obey) is the sidewalk riding bylaw. Did you know Calgary has a safe passing bylaw?
Download PDFs:
City of Calgary Traffic Bylaw
City of Calgary Parks and Pathways Bylaw
(Last updated Jan 18, 2024: please advise of dead links!)