On Sunday, Philadelphia hosted a massive bike ride to raise awareness of bike safety and honor cyclists who have been killed in car accidents. Over 100 cyclists participated in the event, including Sidney Ozer, whose 17-year-old son, Samuel, was struck and killed by a vehicle while riding his bike home from work on Father’s Day 2020.

The city of Philadelphia has seen an alarming increase in traffic fatalities this year, with over 110 deaths, including 10 cyclists. Laura Fredricks, co-founder of Families for Safe Streets of Greater Philadelphia, highlighted this issue during the event. She emphasized that Philadelphia is a Vision Zero city and called upon government representatives in Harrisburg to take action on safe street legislation.

Advocates at the event are pushing for more bike lanes with parked cars to protect cyclists from traffic and want to extend the Speed Camera Pilot Program. Ozer believes that if these safety measures had been in place when his son was riding his bike home from work, he may still be alive today.

As Thanksgiving approaches this year, Ozer is committed to honoring his son’s memory by campaigning for safer streets in his name. The bike ride on Sunday was a powerful reminder that we must prioritize road safety for everyone on our streets.