LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — Nearly a dozen cyclists were killed on Southern Nevada roadways in 2024, and we've already seen several fatal bike crashes around the valley to start the year.
It's an alarming trend concerning locals, so we spoke to local bike safety advocates to show you what is being done across the state in the fight for change — making our roads safer for not just cyclists, but drivers and pedestrians too.
For Angela Ahmet, a local cyclist with the Southern Nevada Bicycle Coalition, bike safety is personal.
"Anything we can do to make roads safer for cyclists is a positive in my book," Ahmet said. "Unfortunately, my husband was killed cycling — every time there's a fatality it brings me back to that sadness. We need to do better."
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Ask any avid Southern Nevada cyclist and they'll probably say the same thing: our roads are dangerous for people riding bikes for fun or for their commute.
"My head is on a swivel," said Tony Green with Green Valley Cyclists. "I'm always looking for cars approaching from behind, on either side or even from the opposite lane."
In 2024, 15 bicyclists lost their lives across Nevada — 11 of those were in Clark County.
Plus, the Nevada Department of Transportation reports a 55% increase in bike fatalities between 2019 and 2023 statewide.
According to bike safety advocates, a new bill introduced in the state legislature — Assembly Bill 168— could significantly decrease the number of cyclists injured or killed on our roadways.
"By introducing the 'stop as yield' approach," said bill sponsor Rep. Heather Goulding in a presentation to the State Assembly Committee on Growth and Infrastructure.
What does that mean? Basically, the bill would let cyclists — on traditional bikes only, not on "e-bikes" or scooters–treat stop signs or red lights as yield signs.
"This would allow us to pause, make sure the intersection is safe and proceed through," Ahmet said.
Southern Nevada Bicycle Coalition President Jennifer Grube says, despite it feeling kind of counterintuitive, it would make a big difference.
"Being at an intersection with big, large vehicles around, it's very intimidating," Grube said. "If cyclists can have the opportunity to slow down, make sure they're looking at their surroundings and move through when it's safe, it gets them through the intersection quicker and out of harm's way."
The concept was first introduced in Idaho in 1982, and eight other states have since followed suit.
Advocates of the bill, like the Nevada Bicycle Coalition, say studies show a 14% decrease in cyclist injuries in Idaho, and a 23% decrease in Delaware in the first year after their "stop as yield" laws took effect.
"If we could get 23% less fatalities on our roads, we'd be less than last year's fatalities, and that would be great," Ahmet said. "Sadly we're not at that position right now."
Assembly Bill 168 is still in committee, but in the meantime you can always step up your bike safety skills.
In fact, the Southern Nevada Bicycle Coalition is holding a "smart cycling class" on March 29, at Las Vegas Cyclery.
To get more information and register for the class, visit the League of American Bicyclists website by clicking here.
