January 18, 2021 /
bikinginla / Comments Off on Man riding bicycle killed in double Menifee crash, as 2nd driver leaves scene; 3rd fatal Riverside County bike crash this year
For the third time in just three days, a bike rider was killed in Southern California.
And for the third time, a driver left the scene — although police were quick to excuse it.
According to the Press-Enterprise, 43-year old Lake Elsinore resident Alex Herrera was crossing Highway 74 just west of Briggs Road in Menifee around 10:45 Saturday night, when he was struck by a westbound driver, flung onto the other side of the roadway, and run over by another driver headed east.
Herrera died at the scene before police could arrive.
The second driver kept going without stopping, but lost his license plate in the crash. Police were able to track him down and were quick to absolve him of responsibility, suggesting he may not have known he hit anyone.
Because evidently, it’s perfectly normal to keep driving after feeling a large, unexpected bump without stopping to see what the hell it was.
Like maybe another person, for instance.
Police said there was no sign drug or alcohol intoxication played a role in the crash, and neither driver was ticketed or arrested at the scene.
There’s no word on why Herrera was crossing the highway west of the intersection with Briggs, with no street lights or businesses to light the roadway.
There’s also no indication if he had lights on his bike that would have made him visible in the darkness.
This is at least the sixth bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the third that I’m aware of in Riverside County.
Drivers have left the scene in all but two of those deaths, including all three in Riverside County.
My deepest sympathy and prayers for Alex Herrera and his loved ones.
A 46-year old bike rider is dead, the innocent victim of a speeding carjacker trying to make his escape through Downtown Los Angeles Saturday morning.
Now police are looking for the car thief and killer, who simply walked away after a second crash.
According to KABC-7, the series of events started when a passing pedestrian asked a newspaper delivery driver for a ride on the 900 block of Wilshire Blvd. When the driver refused, the man jumped into the running pickup while the man was stocking a newsstand.
Unable to get back into the truck, the delivery driver jumped into the back as the man sped off towards DTLA, then wisely jumped out a few blocks later, tumbling to the ground.
Witnesses saw the carjacker careening through the streets, weaving from side to side at a high rate of speed while driving on the wrong side of the roadway.
After turning onto eastbound 7th Street, he slammed into a man who was riding east just before 7th and Olive Street.
However, according to the police flier, the victim riding against traffic in the westbound bike lane — which means the driver rear-ended him while all the way on wrong side of the street.
The victim landed on the hood of the truck, and was carried nearly 100 feet before being thrown off, then tumbled another 150 feet before coming to a rest at Hill Street, a full block from where he was hit.
Paramedics attempted without luck to revive him, before declaring Finley dead at the scene.
Meanwhile, the driver continued east on 7th until he crashed into a pair of vehicles and took off on foot, melting away on the Downtown streets.
Bizarrely, he was walking barefoot and carrying a steering wheel, presumably from the truck he stole.
He was described as a Black man around 5 foot 6 inches tall and 150 to 160 pounds, and may have suffered a head injury from hitting his head on the windshield.
The suspect was last seen wearing a white hoodie and black pants, after removing the blue hoodie he was originally wearing.
As always, there is a standing $50,000 reward for any fatal hit-and-run in the City of Los Angeles.
Anyone with information is urged to contact LAPD Detective Juan Campos at 213/833-3713, or e-mail hm at 31480@lapd.online. During weekends and off-hours, call 1-877/527-3247.
This is at least the fifth bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the first that I’m aware of in Los Angeles County and the City of LA.
Three of those deaths have been the result of hit-and-runs.
“I still don’t even think it’s real. I feel like it’s a dream. Right now, it’s a nightmare, and I feel tomorrow I’m going to wake up and this day will never exist,” his daughter, Koi Finley, told ABC7.
My deepest sympathy and prayers for Branden Finley and his loved ones.
Just over two weeks into the new year, a second bike rider has been killed in Riverside County, both the victims of hit-and-run drivers.
But at least this time, the killer was caught a few hours later.
According to My News LA, the victim was riding through the intersection of Goetz Road and Mapes Road in Perris around 8:30 pm Thursday when he was struck by a car driven by 28-year old Perris resident Nathan Craig Rogers.
The victim, who hasn’t been publicly identified, died at the scene.
At last report, he was being held on $75,000 bond on suspicion of felony fatal hit-and-run and misdemeanor vehicular manslaughter without gross negligence.
It’s unknown if drugs or alcohol played a role in the collision.
Sadly, California’s lenient hit-and-run laws mean Rogers is looking at just four years behind bars, with another year in county jail for the misdemeanor manslaughter charge.
And that’s only if the judge rules the sentences should run consecutively, rather than concurrently.
Anyone with information is urged to call Riverside County Sheriff’s Deputy Kiebach at 951/776-1099, or the Perris Station at 951-210-1000.
This is at least the 4th bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the 2nd that I’m aware of in Riverside County.
Half of those SoCal bicycling deaths have ben the result of hit-and-run drivers, both in Riverside County.
My deepest sympathy and prayers for the victim and his loved ones.
January 15, 2021 /
bikinginla / Comments Off on County releases draft LA River master plan, making bike theft a tad too easy, and gravel biking to the Hollywood Sign
Thank you all for the kind words yesterday.
I’m still riding that diabetic rollercoaster, for no apparent reason other than my body wants to do to me what rioters did to the Capital last week.
But if you’re reading this, it means I managed to power through this time.
The county river plan is trying to strike difficult delicate balance on many issues. At this morning’s press event Supervisor Sheila Kuehl mentioned the balance between an overall “coherent holistic” vision and a “great deal of local community control.” Solis touched on the need for river revitalization to serve park-poor low-income communities of color, while addressing issues of gentrification and homelessness. Historically plans for the river have struggled to find the space to address a broad range of needs in communities it flows through; these needs include parks – with both active and passive recreation – housing, schools, and much more.
The plan ends up trying to address all of these issues within a fairly limited jurisdictional corridor. The river system is a tangled jurisdictional mess. County Public Works (acting as the County Flood Control District) controls the river channel structures, but the adjacent, and in cases underlying, land is the jurisdiction of various cities. The county’s jurisdiction is constrained by the federal U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which mandates flood damage minimization standards. The county has little control over the numerous freeways and several rail lines constrain the river. Many of the complex issues that impact the river – from watershed rainwater runoff to homelessness to gentrification – are largely situated outside the waterway corridor itself.
You can watch the presentation, recorded on Zoom like everything else these day. Just ignore the first minute where everyone sits around trying to not look awkward before it gets going.
Of course, what matters to a lot of us is the ongoing plan to complete the gaps in the bike path, particularly through Downtown Los Angeles and the meat packing district to the south, to create a continuous bikeway along the full 51-mile length of the river.
But speaking strictly for myself, I’d much rather ride along a park-filled natural riverbank than on a concrete river underneath a lush park.
Thanks to Fatema Baldiwala for the heads-up.
………
Seriously. At least make it hard for them.
Bike thefts, neighbors complaining biggly this the 2nd bike he's had stolen. Gosh he sure makes it easy to steal. https://t.co/NFn9DhblB6
Someone appears to be targeting the owner of a Poway bike shop, after burglars broke in and vandalized the shop while stealing several high-end mountain bikes worth up to $9,000; another of his shops suffered a second high-end break-in, while a third was vandalized with swastikas and racist graffiti, causing $20,000 damage to a new shop truck.
Police in Austin, Texas have a new bicycle supplier, after Lance’s Mellow Johnny’s bike shop refused to sell to them any more in the wake of the George Floyd protests and the weaponization of police bikes by the cops.
A New Orleans woman awaiting trial for the hit-and-run death of a bike rider last January is back in jail for choking her drunk fiancé to death; she has a history of domestic violence arrests, despite blaming her late boyfriend for attacking her. On the other hand, she apparently only kills in January, so we should all be safe the other eleven months.
A 36-year old Japanese company specializing in unique panda, dinosaur, cucumber and eggplant shaped bicycles is struggling to survive the Covid-19 pandemic. Sort of like everyone else these days.
Women’s cycling great Anna van der Breggen will don double rainbow jerseys reflecting world titles in last year’s road cycling and time trial championships as she enters her final year in the pro peloton.
While environmental and advocacy groups have been working for years to restore the river to a more natural state, Gehry, who was invited to reimagine the river by LA Mayor Eric Garcetti, wants to cover it up instead.
Gehry proposes addressing decades of social injustice by leaving the concrete river channel alone, while building a continuous park on platforms stretching above the river.
What that would mean for long-time plans to finally complete the LA River bike path along the full 51-mile length of the river isn’t clear.
There’s no word on whether it would be left where it is along the banks of the river, moved onto the new platforms, or buried beneath them.
Or just forgotten entirely as yet another inconvenience in the path of progress.
But the simple fact is, Los Angeles has turned its back on the river at its heart for far too long.
And burying it, when we have a chance to finally revive it, isn’t any better.
Thanks to Fatema Baldiwala for the heads-up.
Photo shows the 4th Street Bridge over the Los Angeles River during CicLAvia.
That compares to Los Angeles County, with over four times the population, where bicycling deaths inexplicably dropped from 34 in 2019 to just 16 last year.
Thanks to Phillip Young for the link.
………
The war on cars may be a myth, but the war on bikes keeps going on.
This is the cost of traffic violence. A Long Beach mother and military vet was killed by a hit-and-run driver as she slept on a sidewalk; Stephanie Jackson became homeless after watching her fiancé die of liver cancer, but wouldn’t admit it even to her daughter.
The crash happened on Monday, January 4th, at the intersection of Adams Boulevard and Nevin Avenue in the Central-Alameda neighborhood.
The driver had just turned the corner when he struck the man as he knelt near the curb. He briefly stopped, then continued on without getting out of his truck.
The crash was caught on a security cam across the street.
But be warned before you click on it, because it clearly shows the innocent victim getting hit by the driver’s truck. And there’s no way to unsee it once you do.
The biggest and most important thing an ally can do is shut up, listen, and amplify the voices of Black and brown folks, who are often silenced.
That’s an important message.
Because too often I’ve heard well-meaning white people explain to people of color what they need, instead of asking them first.
And sometimes, I’ve been one of them.
We’ve come a long way from the days when a friend told me you’d never see him or any other Black person on a bicycle, because everyone would just assume they couldn’t afford a car.
The war on cars may be a myth, but the war on bikes keeps going on.
No bias here. A Singapore news site somehow concludes a bike rider was in the wrong for getting right hooked after stopping a few feet beyond the stop line, as if the truck driver that nearly hit him had no obligation to see or go around him. I would have flipped him off, too, under the same circumstances.
But sometimes, it’s the people on two wheels behaving badly.
A bike-riding Chicago-area man was busted for allegedly committing 15 car burglaries while wearing ten different shirts and five pairs of pants; whenever he was caught on security cam he’d take off a layer to make himself less recognizable. Didn’t work, though.
January 11, 2021 /
bikinginla / Comments Off on The cost of traffic violence, vehicular cyclists versus protected bike lanes, and why people keep dying on the streets
I heard a loud bang. A heavy thud. A violent bump. It was me. It was the noise of my body slamming against the lorry. And then falling to the ground.
I couldn’t work out what was happening. My heart was in my throat. I was staring up at the beautiful, bright blue sky, but at the same time sinking into darkness.
I was in excruciating pain as the heavy truck’s wheels – of which there were 12 in total – ran over my leg.
It’s a powerful story.
Especially this part.
I was desperate to see my kids, but I didn’t want to scare them. After two days, I put on my bravest face and held them when they visited me.
My son said, “Mummy, you’re not ready to die. We haven’t finished our story yet.”
Fortunately, she made it. And kept her leg, thanks to five separate surgeries, including one 12 hour marathon.
But something else to consider.
While she doesn’t mention it in her story, one vital aspect in getting back on her feet was the UK’s National Health Service, which meant she didn’t leave the hospital with a massive bill like she would have in the US.
In fact, chances are, she paid little or nothing, despite her month-long hospital stay.
So she was able to go home to her family and resume her life, even writing a book about her experiences.
Instead of being forced into bankruptcy like so many Americans after a similar experience.
“This is to attract the all-ages and abilities groups that are just trying to go places within their communities, but if you need to go fast, the (car) lane is always open,” said Everett Hauser, a traffic engineer focusing on bicycle infrastructure for the city of San Diego.
Many new projects around the region also include bicycle-specific traffic lights at busy intersections and reconfiguring streets to encourage slower driving especially at tight turns.
Still, not everyone’s convinced.
“These protected bike lanes that have appeared in the last few years are the most dangerous thing that’s ever happened to bicycling in San Diego,” said Ralph Elliott, 70, historian of the San Diego Bicycle Club and a member for more than 50 years. “They’re unsafe. If there’s a car door in your face, somebody’s walking in the protected bike lane, skateboarding in the lane, dog in the lane all that’s dangerous because you can’t get out.”
But as the story points out, protected bike lanes are designed for casual bike riders who might not feel safe mixing with motorists.
Club riders and other experienced bicyclists who don’t want to slow down should be free to continue riding in the regular traffic lanes, where their speed won’t pose a danger to themselves or others.
………
Sadly, two SoCal bicycle riders lost their lives over the weekend.
Two more tragic reminders that our streets aren’t safe enough for people on bicycles. And our safety is still in the hands of those we share the road with.
………
This is why people continue to die on our streets.
An Iowa man who deliberately drove his car through a group of racial justice protestors because he thought they needed “an attitude adjustment” walked without a single day behind bars, despite leaving several injured people in his wake. To make matters worse, his conviction will be expunged if he stays out of trouble for three short years.
Former Los Angeles City Councilmember Tom LaBonge died unexpectedly last week at 67; he was known for his frequent recreational rides through his district, though he also blocked a number of bike projects, including the long-planned 4th Street Bike Boulevard.
No bias here. A Singapore paper asks if bicyclists and drivers can ever get along — but only includes rules for the people on two wheels, with barely a word on how motorists can drive safely around people on bikes.
The motorcyclist was riding east with three other motorcycle riders when he somehow slammed into the other man on the narrow two-lane road around 9:30 am today.
There’s no word on what may have caused the crash.
This is at least the 3rd bicycling fatality in Southern California already this year, and the first that I’m aware of in San Diego County.
Update: The victim has been identified as 40-year old Chula Vista resident Julius Cunanan; he leaves behind his wife and two young sons, one just a month old.
The video, which is disturbing to watch, shows a mangled mountain bike under the truck, along with the victim’s body covered in a shroud. So be warned before you click the link, because you may not want to see it.
This is at least the 2nd bicycling fatality in Southern California already this year, and the first that I’m aware of in Ventura County.
