Two seemingly unrelated items.
First, a cyclist was killed by a hit-and-run driver in Echo Park early Sunday morning. As of the time I’m writing this, no real information has been released.
All we know is that he was a 44 year old man, riding south on Glendale Blvd around 1:45 am, when he was struck by a driver and pinned against a car.
He could have been anyone; commuting after a late shift in a bar or restaurant, or riding home after a night out. He could have been making his way home after Saturday’s C.R.A.N.K. Mob, or just out for a late night ride.
In other words, it could have been any one of us.
Like the recent incident in Orange County, the driver appears to have been intoxicated. And like the driver in that incident, a suspect has been arrested, based on an eye witness who wrote down the license number.
Just another needless death, and another chapter in Southern California’s recent rash of high-profile hit-and-runs. Except this time, it wasn’t a famous athlete, or a beautiful young college student.
Just another dead cyclist, which means we’ll probably never hear another word about it.
With that in mind, I’m going to attend a debate between the candidates for Los Angeles 5th Council District tonight.
We know where David Vahedi stands on the subject of bicycling. Paul Koretz is, so far, has been another matter.
If I learn anything worth repeating, I’ll let you know. And if I get a chance to talk to Koretz or his campaign manager, I’ll invite him once again to contribute his comments about cycling and transportation issues.
Because we’re finally starting to make some progress here in L.A. And this election will go a long way in determining whether that progress continues.
Or whether more cyclists will have to die before we do something about it.
City Attorney candidate Jack Weiss — the council person Vahedi and Koretz are competing to replace — completes Streetsblog’s candidate survey. Green LA Girl comments on bicycling and mean bus drivers. A New York writer complains about the return of the bicycle menace. Ireland announces a new national Policy Framework to encourage cycling. An officer of the LACBC says both cyclists and motorists must obey the law, while a RAGBRAI rider says bicycle courtesy goes both ways. Evidently, baseball season brings out an extreme form of harassing cyclists. And finally, hit-and-runs against cyclists clearly aren’t just a SoCal problem these days.
