PARK SLOPE — Neighborhood restaurant owners and delivery cyclists are getting a crash course in bike safety this week.
The city's Department of Transportation is hosting a public forum Wednesday on the city-mandated safety rules for delivery cyclists.
Restaurants are now required to provide helmets, lights and bells to their delivery cyclists, and riders must complete a DOT-run commercial cyclist safety course. Restaurants that don't follow the rules can face fines.
The DOT will present the rules at Wednesday's forum in English, Spanish and Mandarin, and cyclists who attend the meeting will get a free high-visibility vest, lights and bell.
The meeting is one of two that will be held in the area, both of which were sponsored by City Councilman Brad Lander.
"It's a concern we've heard from a lot of constituents, about safety on the streets and ensuring that delivery cyclists understand the laws, and wanting the delivery cyclists to be safe as well," a spokesman for Lander said.
The forum comes at a time when street safety is a growing concern in Park Slope.
The death of 12-year-old Sammy Cohen Eckstein, who was hit by a car on Prospect Park West in October, spurred residents to form a street safety group that's been advocating for "Vision Zero," an initiative that seeks to eliminate pedestrian deaths.
Advocates saw a small victory recently when the DOT lowered the speed limit on Prospect Park West from 30 mph to 25 mph.
The DOT's delivery cyclist safety forum will be held Wednesday Jan. 29 at 3 p.m. at Grand Central Oyster Bar, 256 Fifth Ave. near Carroll Street.
