Sunday, November 19th is World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims, an annual international event where people across the world gather together to reflect upon those injured or killed in traffic crashes. During the event, we commit ourselves to working together to improve our roads to prevent further tragedies on our public ways.

In 2023, six bicyclists have died on our roadways in Massachusetts. We remember Jorge Meeswee Calderon (22) killed in Holyoke, Tobey Alford (14) killed in Wareham, Alex Bohm (57) killed in Newton, Li Dai Wu (86) killed in Quincy, Guang Hui Gao (63) killed in Quincy, and Yeuyi Lin (61) killed in Hingham. These deaths were preventable and we mourn the loss of each of these individuals. MassBike continues to work to eliminate all traffic fatalities by advocating for safe streets policies and dedicated infrastructure for vulnerable road users.

This week, MassBike joined the Vision Zero Coalition at the Massachusetts State House for a literature drop to inform our local legislators about World Day of Remembrance and encourage them to take part.

Emma, our Administrative Coordinator, dropped off information for her local Representative David Rogers, who has been a long-time supporter of safer streets.

On Saturday, Galen, MassBike's Executive Director, will join Quincycles for a ghost bike installation in honor of Li Dian Wu in Quincy.

On Sunday, Alex, our Worcester E-Bike Program Manager, will take part in Worcester's World Day of Remembrance event in partnership with WalkBike Worcester and Worcester City Councilor Etel Haxhiaj. The event will begin at 3:00 pm at the First Unitarian Church, 90 Main St, Worcester. 

We encourage you to take a moment to pause and reflect this Sunday. Below are some suggestions on how you can recognize World Day of Remembrance.

Recognize World Day of Remembrance

Individual actions

• Light a candle at home and have a moment of silence
• Connect with friends or family who have been impacted by traffic violence
• Share your story on social media and tag #WDoR2023 
• Send a letter to legislators pushing them to prioritize traffic safety in your community. This could look like asking for lower speed limits on dangerous roads, changing road design, or education campaigns.

In-person and group actions

Lay a flower on the steps of your Town or City Hall, at the site of a crash, or at a meaningful location to you in honor of someone you know who has been killed or injured in a traffic crash, and invite others to do the same

Attend a local event

Find a list of World Day of Remembrance events at www.visionzerocoalition.org/wdr

Support Safer Roadways

This year, An Act to Reduce Traffic Fatalities was signed into law, which included a mandatory 4-foot passing requirement for motorists passing vulnerable road users and 4-foot passing signs are now being installed across the Commonwealth. These signs are crucial to help spread the word about this new law to both local drivers and the many out-of-state drivers traveling through our state who may not be familiar with Massachusetts laws.

This is just one step towards safer roadways, MassBike continues to advocate for protected infrastructure and policies aimed at protecting vulnerable road users.

Our work depends on support from advocates like you, please donate today to support our life-saving work.