As OakBook reported a few weeks ago, the rate of collisions involving bicycles in Oakland has kept pace with the rise in bicycle commuting. Just as the percentage of people commuting by bike in Oakland doubled between 2000 and 2008, the number of reported bike accidents rose from 120 to 160. What’s not keeping up with the increased interest in bicycle commuting is bike safety.

After all, one doesn’t need a license to ride a bike. But, as bicycle safety advocates like to say, you drive a bike, you don’t ride it. And driving a bike safely in a busy city requires a little education.

Dave Campbell, program director for the East Bay Bicycle Coalition, is at the forefront of bike safety in Oakland. The EBBC runs bike safety classes, and is in the middle of a two-year grant aimed at helping law enforcement in the East Bay direct bicyclists to safety classes.

For example, if a police officer in Fremont sees a bicyclist doing something dangerous, the officer can hand out information about the EBBC’s bike safety courses along with the citation. Campbell says that what’s most effective in getting bicyclists to classes is allowing police departments and courts to dismiss tickets, if offenders can show proof of having completed a bike safety class.

Those programs are not the norm, however, says Campbell. The Oakland Police Department is still deciding whether it wants its officers directing unsafe bicyclists to EBBC classes. While OPD runs occasional stings targeting bicyclists who ride on sidewalks, enforcing lawful bike riding is not a high priority.

But why wait until you get a citation, or worse, have an accident to sign up for a bike safety class? Enroll now.