Cyclists are now banned from the Front at Sliema. Photo: Matthew Mirabelli

The cycling advocacy group is urging cyclists banned from the Sliema promenade to wear bright colours during the day and use lights at night, as it waits for the authorities to implement traffic calming measures along the Front.

Earlier this month signs were put up in Sliema banning cycling along the promenade in line with a 2012 legal notice.

This raised alarm bells with the Bicycle Advocacy Group which insisted that while faster and more experienced cyclists may be happier on the road, an off-road option was needed for others.

It suggested the use of sharrows, which are markings in the centre of a street indicating that cyclists can use the full lane, and cycling awareness signs to protect cyclists.

However, it has not yet heard from the police or Transport Malta, so it is advising cyclists to improve their visability by wearing bright and contrasting colours during the day and to use lights and high visibility reflectives (fluorescent bibs) at night.

All the reflectives, colours and lights will, however, not work unless they are placed where drivers can see them, so positioning is key, according to spokesman Jim Wightman.

“Place yourself in a position where you are most visible to other traffic. Riders should position themselves where it gives drivers a fighting chance of seeing them. Travelling in the gutter or to the extreme left is not always the best way to achieve this.”

To avoid car door accidents, cyclists should pass by parked cars with a door-width space to spare.

The group is also urging drivers to keep in mind that cyclists will be sharing the road with them.

The group believes that signs warning car drivers about cyclists should have been put up before the prohibition signage was erected.

Drivers and pedestrians are also being asked to be aware of “far more cyclists” on the road, particularly younger and slower ones, and they are being encouraged to be patient and drive with care.

In its safety appeal the group also called on the authorities to take action on motorists speeding on Tower Road and the Strand, as well as double parked vehicles.

Meanwhile, the local council has suggested the inclusion of sharrow markings on the road and restricting the legal notice to particular times or speeds.

A Transport Malta spokeswoman said the authority was waiting for information from the council to start assessing the possibility of introducing sharrows.

“If the concept of sharrows as a project is workable, we would then need to start working on the necessary amendment to the legislation to introduce sharrows in the Maltese law.”