“Slowing down isn’t a universal answer. Define slow.”
If you don’t have an innate sense of what’s a slow enough or safe enough speed around pedestrians, especially 3-year old toddlers occupying the same pathway as your bicycle...I can’t help you.
How do they know there’s a 3 year old until the kid sits in the trail? This is the point you keep fleeing from. Bike riders might not see your kid until it’s too late. That’s why the parent needs to be aware and not the kid turn into a road hazard.
Like I already said. Assume you and your kid are invisible. Assume a rider will not stop. Assume a rider will not swerve. If you make those 3 assumptions and you realize that means the kid would not be safe MOVE the damn kid to where they’re safe.
Because it’s not just bikes out. There’s also walkers doing just as crappy a job controlling their dog as you are your kid. Maybe horse riders that suck too. Not mention wild animals that could pose a direct threat or be distracting any and all of the above.
It’s not a walk in the mall. It’s a multi-use trail out in the wild. Don’t act like it’s a walk in mall. And don’t let your kid be a road hazard. Cause a 3 year old will lose that fight with literally everything out there. And then you’re watching your kid die. And sure whoever hit was probably legally in the wrong. Kid’s still dead.
Which is why you control your kid.