The City of Ottawa is hosting a free, in-person event to equip cyclists, pedestrians and drivers with tips about visibility in low light conditions and blind spots around large vehicles.
There will be a large City vehicle parked on Marion Dewar Plaza with bicycles and life-sized pedestrian cut-outs situated around it. Some are in the safe areas visible to the driver through the windshield or rearview mirror. The rest are in dangerous blind spots.
Visitors are invited to climb into the driver’s seat or position themselves outside to understand why it’s important to stay out in front or well behind large vehicles.
A bike mechanic will also be on hand for free basic bike tune-ups.
- Date: Wednesday, October 2
- Time: 4:30 pm to 6:30 pm*
- Location: Marion Dewar Plaza, City Hall, 110 Laurier Avenue West
*The bike mechanic will be available 4:30 pm to 5:30 pm only
Starting at 5:30 pm, Ottawa Fire Services will be onsite with one of their trucks. This is part of their annual, month-long Be safe, be seen education campaign. The goal is to raise awareness about the importance of motorists watching out for other road users and of cyclists and pedestrians staying visible.
City staff will be there to answer questions and hand out free safety gear, such as reflective bands and lights.
Other pickup locations
Throughout October, Ottawa Fire Services will be distributing free reflective bands and lights at select fire stations. Dates, times and locations of the stations are available on our website. Note that if all station staff are responding to an emergency, the items will not be available so please return at another posted time.
This event is part of the City of Ottawa's 2020-2024 Road Safety Action Plan which delivers education, enforcement and engineering efforts where they can have the greatest effect on reducing collisions that result in major injury or death.
For more information on City programs and services, visit ottawa.ca, call 3-1-1 (TTY: 613-580-2401) or 613-580-2400 to contact the City using Canada Video Relay Service. You can also connect with us through Facebook, X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram.