I’ve thought a lot about safety, as a cyclist. In fact, one of the first things I did when I started this blog was to build up some basic safety information pages so that even if I wasn’t posting frequently, or if the information I posted was just for fun, at least the site could always have something of a resource on the issue of safety. Of course, I mostly wrote those pages from the perspective of a cyclist trying to abide by the rules of the road that are set out in statutes. My thought has always been along the lines of “if you stay within the law, you will likely be safe–and if something does happen, at least you won’t be at fault.”

The logic of my theory is sound, in a system where the only way to handle a car-on-bike accident is in civil court. But what happens if a driver doesn’t obey the law? Sure, they’re at fault, so you can probably sue them in a civil court. Great, you might get some money to take care of your medical bills, maybe also to cover some pain and suffering. The driver might have a received a ticket for a couple hundred dollars. But you also may have permanent brain damage. Or several broken bones. Or stitches. Or all those things put together. Your life may be totally altered, or it might be ended entirely. And though the driver is out some cash, he or she will be able to get back in that huge hunk of fast-moving steel and hit the roads again the very next day.

Drivers are scary. Not all of them–there are certainly some very careful and aware drivers on the roads. But, as Ben over at GJEL shares in a quote from Oregon lawyer Ray Thomas, “the time has come to recognize that driving is a dangerous privilege and serious consequences should follow anytime a needless death occurs because a driver failed to drive carefully.” I couldn’t agree more.

But I wondered what could be done? If it was an “accident,” we surely couldn’t press criminal charges, could we? We let the civil court system take care of negligence issues, right? Well, I didn’t know, until I read it in Ben’s post, but it used to be that a driver could be hit with criminal charges in a car-on-bike accident. And even today, in many car-on-car accidents, criminal charges are brought. So what happened?

Apparently, the car-on-bike accidents “clogged the courts” so in the name of judicial economy, we gave up on prosecuting drivers who injured cyclists–unless it was a case like the one in LA, where the driver intentionally hit two cyclists. Now, I was always for a good policy argument in law school, and I generally support the idea of judicial economy–let’s make the court system run smoothly and efficiently, and get rid of cases that are frivolous or meritless. But this is not a case for that. I think the policy argument here is that we need more people to ride bikes. We need to conserve fossil fuels and limit carbon emissions. We need to fight the obesity epidemic. These things can be done by getting people to commute by bike. But they won’t do it if they’re scared. And they’ll be scared, as long as drivers continue to drive recklessly, knowing that there are few serious consequences to their behavior.

I encourage California to bring back the practice of prosecuting reckless drivers who injure cyclists. At least make it an option. Police and prosecutors will always use their discretion and can certainly choose not to press charges if the situation doesn’t call for them. But drivers should be aware of the potential for serious consequences, and it should at least be an available option for police and prosecutors.

This issue is somewhat contentious…I’d love to hear arguments either way from people–drivers and cyclists alike.

image courtesy of Roadsidepictures

But if all that wasn’t enough for you, then you might want to consider what would happen to you if you were riding on a sidewalk or in a crosswalk and you were hit by a car. A recent case in Canada suggests that while the accident may be the driver’s fault, the fact that the victim was a cyclist who was illegally in the crosswalk means that the cyclist shares some of the fault. In fact, an appeals court split the fault right down the middle–50% driver, 50% cyclist.

The trial court, when it first heard the case, had placed the fault 100% with the driver of the automobile. The rationale was that if the cyclist had been a pedestrian in the crosswalk, the driver would have been 100% at fault. But on appeal, it was determined that because the bicyclist was in the crosswalk, where he didn’t belong, he was partially at fault.

All I’m saying is be careful. Follow the rules of the road, for your own sake!

The story is from the LA Times. The cyclists did everything right. They were riding two abreast, when the driver behind them honked his horn. Assuming he wanted to pass them, the cyclists moved to the right in a single-file formation. The car passed them, then pulled over to the right in front of them. Then he suddenly applied his brakes. The cyclists hit the car. One went over the top of the car onto the pavement in front of the vehicle. The other went through the rear window of the car.

I was shocked. I was slightly nauseated. I was scared for everyone I know who is a cyclist. These two cyclists did everything just the way I would. It’s legally fine for a cyclist (or two) to take the whole lane. They’re legally vehicles. It is a courtesy for cyclists to move over for drivers, and they don’t have to do it. In fact, if there’s a drop off on the side of the road, and/or no shoulder (as on some of the curvy roads in the hills around the Bay Area), I recommend not moving over for cars until it is really safe to do so.

The driver even admitted to police that he pulled in front of the cyclists and put on his brakes to “teach them a lesson.”

I’m appalled.

Please share the story with any cyclists you know–help them to be aware that drivers are sometimes going to take their road rage out on cyclists, and that they should always wear helmets and be extremely careful in traffic.

Please also share the story with drivers you know–especially those prone to road rage, and those who aren’t cyclists and might not understand what it’s like to be on a bike in traffic. Let them know that a simple action performed in anger, such as hitting the brakes, can have disastrous consequences for cyclists. Remind them that those cyclists are people too. People with families and friends. It’s never ok to act on road rage, be it rage against cyclists, pedestrians, or other drivers.

My thoughts are with the two cyclists, one of whom suffered a separated shoulder and underwent surgery, both of whom were battered and bruised. I hope they both overcome their injuries, and don’t let this deter them from getting back on their bikes.

But what makes the story even more tragic is that the boy wasn’t wearing a helmet.

Please, always wear a helmet.

The extent of the boy’s injuries are still unknown, but he was taken to Oakland Children’s Hospital. I’m hoping he has a full and speedy recovery. And I’m hoping everyone who hears his story will remember to wear a helmet for every ride.

I’ve often seen too much of cyclist road rage–and it scares me nearly to death because the Trusty Boyfriend has a bad case of it. It seems to me that it tends to happen in cities where there is a large community of cyclists. Because there are so many, they develop some sense of entitlement beyond the basics. Of course cyclists have legal protection in some ways–they have bike lanes in some places, and they are allowed to ride in a traffic lane whether there are bike lanes or not. But that doesn’t mean they should be disrespectful or dangerous.

I’m thinking of a typical altercation. I saw it a lot when I lived in Madison, WI–and I see it in Berkeley and Oakland too.  It happens when there’s something in the bike lane or parking lane–usually a car pulled over, or maybe a bus. So a cyclist has to go around that parked object. This forces the cyclist into the normal traffic lane, and usually one of two things happens. Either the car in that lane honks and yells because the cyclist swerved without signalling, or the cyclist feels as though the car got too close, and the cyclist pounds on the car with his or her fist. I’ve seen it happen, and I’ve seen angry drivers follow cyclists while yelling at them. I’ve seen those drivers spit, honk, and throw things. I’ve seen the cyclists pound on cars, yell, spit, and even kick at cars. What I haven’t seen (yet), is an accident resulting from these behaviors. But I imagine the accidents all the time. It makes my heart rate quicken, and nearly causes a full on panic attack when it’s the Trusty Boyfriend engaging in these behaviors.

And now, there’s been a serious road rage caused accident in Canada. Really serious. The cyclist died.

You can read the full story, but the gist is that the driver (who happens to be a former Attorney General from Ontario) and the cyclist seem to have been involved in a minor collision that damaged the cycilst’s bike. The cyclist got angry, and somehow managed to hold onto the car as it drove away. It’s unclear whether he grabbed the driver, the steering wheel, or just some other part of the car. The cyclist suffered severe injuries when he continued to hold onto the car as it ran him into a mailbox and a tree. He died later that night in the hospital.

Thankfully, the Trusty Boyfriend isn’t quite this intense about his road rage. But some cyclists are. And I think it’s scary.

So what can we do?
I know I get angry when I signal a lane change, and cars continue to whizz past me at 50 miles per hour. It’s hard to be a cyclist when you can’t make a lane change to turn left. Or when cars drive too close, and you’re nearly forced into the line of parked cars on your right. Or when they honk because you’re not going as fast as they are. And once, while I was riding south on San Pablo Avenue in Oakland, some kid in a parked car reached out the window with a stick and tried to hit me. I’m not kidding. I had to swerve.

But despite these hardships, I try to remember my manners:
Manners are nice simply for the sake of being polite–but these things can help keep you safe, too.

–I look for breaks in traffic when I can (if I need to turn, make a lane change, etc.)
–I always signal.
–I try to remember to have front and rear lights if I’ll be riding after dark.
–I make eye contact with drivers, and wave at them if they let me go first.
–I ride far to the right, but leave enough room between myself and parked cars–and I hold this line so my movement is predictable for drivers around me. (Except when being threatened by a stick from a parked car. But in fairness, I did turn to look for cars behind me while swerving, and would have signalled, had there been any cars)

What about car road rage?
It seems to me that road rage is something that can’t totally be avoided. We all want to go first, and frustrated drivers tend to get angry. But maybe they don’t have to be angry because of cyclists. If we could all remember our manners, and all be a little more respectful, maybe drivers would be more willing to share the road. I don’t know if it will work for everyone, everywhere. But I’m going to try. Let’s give peace a chance?