UPD evening detail will focus on bicycle lights

Cyclists riding after dark should light up.

The University of Florida Police Deparment's Community Services Division has planned a saturation detail for 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. Wednesday. The detail, focusing primarily on the east side of campus, is intended to educate bicyclists who do not have headlights or taillights on their bikes.

Florida law requires that all bicycles in use between sunset and sunrise be equipped with a white light on the front of the bike and a red light on the rear. Reflectors do not meet the legal requirements. With sunset coming earlier in the day because of the time change, UPD wants to remind students of the need for lights on their bicycles as they ride on campus.

UPD officers will also be distributing a red "flashing" light to assist with visibility at night to cyclists contacted during the detail. The department began details every two weeks last school year to help enforce specific safety laws and educate students about them.