Reports indicated he was headed south on the narrow street with a group of other riders when he was hit head-on by the driver of a dark colored Toyota sedan, who continued without stopping.
The victim, identified only as a 36-year old Vista resident, died at the scene before rescuers could arrive.
After hitting him, the 20-something driver continued on to smash into a parked car.
The victim, described only as a 60-year old man, died at the scene. Police note that he was not homeless, despite the early morning hour.
They also say the area is well-lighted and not considered dangerous for people on bicycles, and that the victim had lights on his bike; video from the scene clearly shows front and rear blinking lights.
Which means there was no excuse for taking the life of an innocent human being.
As if there ever is.
This is at least the 67th bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the 30th that I’m aware of in Los Angeles County; half of those deaths have occurred in the City of Los Angeles.
My deepest sympathy and prayers for the victim and his loved ones.
November 22, 2019 /
bikinginla / Comments Off on Morning Links: A conservative laughs at traffic violence, upcoming bike rides, and AI won’t replace bike writers yet
Evidently, conservatives are expected to be totally cool with people needlessly dying on our streets.
He — and of course it’s a he — takes issue with Elizabeth Warren’s tweet decrying traffic violence on last Sunday’s World Day of Remembrance for Traffic Crash Victims.
“Traffic violence” is quite a phrase. In the end, it may be all that anyone remembers of Warren’s decreasingly persuasive but increasingly eccentric campaign. In this bold new framing, cars are not the principal way Americans get around, with fatalities being an unfortunate but blessedly rare occurrence (one per 100,000,000 vehicle miles traveled, a rate that is down more than 80 percent in my lifetime). No, to Warren, cars are instruments of violence like, I don’t know, nunchucks or fuel-injected guillotines, and so she issues her clarion tweet to #EndTrafficViolence. So, right now, November 18, 2019, “it’s time” for us to zero out deaths from cars? How? On what planet?
He concludes with this brilliant observation.
Down here in America, where almost nobody has ever doubted that the benefits of motorized transportation have more than justified the various costs, even when the chance of getting killed in a car was 20 times higher than it is today, I’d say cars have a much brighter future than Elizabeth Warren’s White House bid.
Never mind that an estimated 36,750 lost their lives on American roadways last year. And that traffic deaths are going up for anyone not safely ensconced in a few tons of glass and steel, surrounded by numerous safety devices not afforded to the rest of us.
Or that countless Americans, and a number of American cities, are working to bring that death toll down to zero.
And the future of automobiles is in question, thanks to rising traffic congestion, inefficiency and climate change.
So I hope he enjoyed his laugh at Warren’s expense. And pray that no one he loves loses their life to traffic violence.
The next Metro BEST ride will roll to CSUN two weeks from tomorrow.
Mark your calendars. Our next #MetroBEST ride will be Saturday Dec. 7, Valley Roll to CSUN! Ride will include a stop & brief presentation on the proposed NSFV BRT corridor. And a film fest at the end? How can you NOT sign up?!! https://t.co/os36AFW0ao#bikeLApic.twitter.com/igfUmJAkAy
Robert Leone forwards word that this week’s closure of San Diego’s Rose Canyon Bike Path was postponed due the Wednesday’s rain.
Due to forecasted inclement weather conditions this week, the full closure of the Rose Canyon Bike Path originally scheduled for Tuesday, November 19, has been postponed and rescheduled for December. The path will remain open this week. The rescheduled closures are anticipated as follows:
Beginning Tuesday, December 3, there will be a temporary full closure of the Rose Canyon Bike Path as crews pave the final section of the newly constructed permanent bike path. The full closure will begin at 6 a.m. on Tuesday, December 3, and will be in place for approximately four days.
More information is on the mid-coast website, click here. During the closure, and as was planned prior, Mid-Coast Trolley crews will facilitate a “bus bridge,” which will include bicycle-carrying capable vans, to transport cyclists and pedestrians around the closure area. Signage will be in place to direct cyclists. The bike path is anticipated to reopen by 6 p.m. on Friday, December 6. As always, we appreciate your patience! Thank you.
My apologies for the late notice, after I lost his email for a few days.
Not only is San Francisco’s new transportation boss one of us, he’s an advocate for increased density, opposes free parking and parking minimums, and prefers automated buses over self-driving cars.
Utah police literally ran down a woman suspected of riding a stolen bicycle, dragging her 40 feet beneath the patrol car; remarkably, she didn’t suffer any major injuries, despite ending up pinned beneath the car with her ankle behind her ear. The cops swear it was just an oopsie, even though the officer behind the wheel is no longer with the department.
No bias here. After a Minneapolis bike rider was fatally right hooked by a truck driver, police say he was the one who struck the truck. Note to WCCO-4 — If police are blaming the victim for striking the truck, it’s a pretty good indication they don’t think the victim was stopped.
The founder of Britain’s Black Cyclists Network says his recent run-in with police — where he was ordered to move his bike to an unsafe spot, then stopped and searched because he allegedly “smelled like marijuana” — says a lot about how the general public views bicyclists.
It’s unclear which street the victim, described only as a Hispanic male, was riding on.
Based on the limited description, this could have been a right hook collision if the victim was riding on Hindry, or he may have been hit as he was riding in front of the truck on Manchester or just after the driver’s turn.
I might just have to re-evaluate my opinion of my local neighborhood council.
Last night, the Hollywood Hills West Neighborhood Council cast a nearly unanimous vote to reject a proposal to weaken the Yucca Street bicycle friendly street, aka bike boulevard.
Literally the only bike boulevard in Los Angeles. And the only safe east-west route through Hollywood.
In other bikeway news, the new two-way Main Street parking protected bike lanes are nearly finished, even if the traffic signals aren’t.
The 2-way protected bike lane on Main St is looking better every day. Keep in mind the signal heads are not functioning if you're riding southbound (the lane is not officially open yet). SB riders keep an eye on those ped signals and be wary of left turning drivers. #bikeLApic.twitter.com/1cTHOvelwh
In a new study that should concern any parent or coach, researchers found that prompt treatment is the key recovering from a concussion. Yet girls wait longer than boys to seek treatment, delaying their recovery.
Bike Snob visits the Arkansas hometown of Walmart, calling it the Disneyland of mountain biking. Which makes suggests you’ll have to stand in line for an hour for a five to ten minute ride.
Antwerp, Belgium does its best to imitate Los Angeles, as a drunk, speeding, red light-running, hit-and-run driver crashed into two cars while fleeing the scene after running down a bike-riding woman, before slamming into two more drivers waiting at a red light. His plates were expired, too.
November 20, 2019 /
bikinginla / Comments Off on Morning Links: Unmaintained Long Beach bike lane, and riding the newly threatened Yucca Street bike boulevard
Richard Rosenthal notes one of my long standing complaints, accompanied by the photo on the left.
Cities construct protected bike lanes with great fanfare, then promptly lose interest in maintaining them.
There are brand-new bike lanes on Marina Drive at the 2nd & PCH Center in Long Beach. I ride down the center of that street with the cars rather than being in that debris-filled chute.
Simply put, it’s not enough for cities to build a bikeway, then forget all about it.
They have to be maintained on a regular basis, with particular attention paid to problems affecting that particular bike lane.
Like fallen palm fronds, for instance.
Even in a city as bike-friendly as Long Beach.
Because objects that would simply be a bump for someone on four wheels can be a major hazard to someone on two.
Or you can email your comments, though I’m told they will only be seen by the board president, and only be read at the meeting if there’s time remaining after the comments, which is pretty unlikely.
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The LACBC is pulling the plug on today’s bike light giveaway in Koreatown.
An Oregon website offers a surprisingly practical — and affordable — holiday price guide for the bike rider on your list, ranging from extra tubes and wool socks to a new WaveCel helmet. Or you could just buy them a subscription to BikinginLA.com. No, wait, it’s already free. But still.
Completing our Chicago triptych, the police walked back a victim-blaming statement, saying the death of a bike rider at the hands of an unlicensed and uninsured driver had nothing to do with where he was riding on the wide, high speed street.
If you’re riding a stolen $3,000 mountain bike, probably not the best idea to tell strangers it’s hot. When you’re carrying a handful of stolen credit card numbers on your bike and already have an outstanding drug warrant, just stop for the damn stop sign, already.
A Kansas paper totally misses the point, after woman followed a man in her car before trying to run him down as he jumped off just in time, then chased him across the parking lot with it. But the local paper only says she hit a bike ridden by a man. Note to Salina Journal — the past tense of ride is rode, not road.
This is why people keep dying on our streets. A Chicago woman only faces a trio of misdemeanor charges for killing a man riding a bike, despite driving with a suspended license.
Modern Family star Ariel Winter is one of us, posing with a bicycle in front of an Amsterdam canal. There’s just something about a bicycle that makes anyone look good. Although it helps if you already look good without one, too.
And how many times do we have to say it? If you’re already on probation and riding your bike carrying a concealed weapon after dark, put a damn light on it.
The bike, not the gun.
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On a personal note, we’re once more hearing the pitter patter of corgi feet around our apartment. We’re fostering a ten-year old corgi for the next few months while his owner is in rehab.
This is Bowser — that’s really his name — sleeping off the trauma of what his owner claims was his first ever bath.
November 18, 2019 /
bikinginla / Comments Off on Morning Links: Motion to unprotect Yucca Street, more on the Great Helmet Debate, and Elizabeth Warren gets it
It’s hard to fight for safer streets when we have to keep fighting to protect what little we already have.
Also known as bicycle friendly street in LA bike plan parlance.
The motion would remove the diverter on Yucca Street at Las Palmas Ave that allows bicycle traffic to pass through while diverting motor vehicle traffic off the street, to create a low-stress environment for people on bicycles.
Something that’s desperately needed in high-stress Hollywood, which is virtually devoid of bicycling infrastructure.
Unless you consider sharrows more than just something to help drivers improve their aim.
And Treehugger’s Lloyd Alter says he got it wrong, and Peter Flax got it right regarding the NTSB’s call for mandatory bike helmet laws, instead fixing the problems that are really killing bike riders.
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One presidential candidate gets it, anyway.
Elizabeth Warren marks World Remembrance Day for traffic victims with a call to end traffic violence. Thanks to Ms. Fast for the link.
Traffic violence kills thousands and injures even more Americans every year. On World Day of Remembrance for Traffic Crash Victims, I'm sending my love to the families and friends of those who have lost loved ones. It's time to #EndTrafficViolence.
Meanwhile, the transportation minister for Trinidad and Tobago marked World Remembrance Day by saying bike riders will be given more space on the roads in one of the island nation’s most developed areas; that follows the deaths of two bicyclists killed on a club ride last year. Thanks to Stormin’ Norman for the tip.
That compares to Los Angeles, where city officials said nothing to mark the day.
Let alone actually do something about it.
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The war on cars may be a myth, but the war on bikes just keeps on going.
Police in the UK are looking for the victim of a drive-by BB gun attack after witnesses saw him knocked off his bike and into a ditch by the shooting; the jackass behind the wheel also spooked the horses being ridden by a group of kids.
Long Beach gets a $275,000 grant to improve bicycle and pedestrian safety through workshops on the importance of reflective armbands, bike lights, reflectors and helmets. If they really want to improve safety, skip the workshops and stand on any corner to pass out lights, and arm and ankle bands.
A San Jose site takes a deep dive into why the city’s quest for safer streets has failed, resulting in worsening rates for bicycling and pedestrian injuries. Thanks to Robert Leone for the heads-up.
A Seattle-area driver fled the scene of a crash at speeds of up to 60 mph after running down a man on a bicycle, dragging his bike under the car for nearly a mile, then covering the car with blankets to hide the damage; when investigators examined the car, they found it peppered with rice from the groceries the victim was carrying.
Chicago bike riders respond to recent deaths by saying the city is falling behind in protecting bicyclists by failing to build more protected lanes and requiring side guards on trucks, along with keeping people and businesses from parking in bike lanes.
A drunken hit-and-run driver talks about the emotional weight she carries after killing a 15-year old New Zealand boy riding his bike last year, and how hard she was slapped on the wrist by being confined to her home for a whole 11 months. Although it probably doesn’t compare to the emotional burden the kid’s parents will carry for the rest of their lives.
Evidently, the pros feel the same way we do. Four months after Italian cyclist Alessandro de Marchi was seriously injured when he crashed out of the Tour de France, he was livid after a dangerously close pass on a training ride nearly put him back in the emergency room; naturally, the driver told him to go to hell when he complained.
Every superhero has an origin story. British cyclist Katie Archibald relates how hanging out with the fixie crowd led to track racing in Edinburgh — and eventually an Olympic gold medal. A reminder that you never know where riding a bike could take you. Or the kids just starting out.
November 15, 2019 /
bikinginla / Comments Off on Morning Links: The real reasons bike riders keep dying, $100k OCTA bike safety grant, and Oaxaca Day of the Dead race
He starts by recounting the last decade’s decline in bicycling deaths.
Then this.
The situation seemed great—until it wasn’t great. Right around 2011, things started arcing in the wrong direction. In 2010, a total of 618 cyclists were killed—hardly miraculous, but the lowest toll in at least 40 years. Then every year after that, the number of casualties has gotten progressively worse. The newly released 2018 statistics mean that the fatality rate for riders has risen 37 percent in just nine years—and NHTSA data indicate that the death rate for urban and female cyclists has soared even more.
So while the NTSB analysis focused primarily on encouraging or mandating greater helmet use, as well as things cyclists, road designers, and carmakers should do so riders are more conspicuous to motorists, those factors don’t really explain why a serious, sustained uptick of deaths began in 2011. It’s not like helmet use had a major decline, or cities ripped out quality protected bike lanes, or high-viz apparel or auto headlights got worse. These factors, especially related to road design, might have an impact on fatalities going forward, but they don’t explain why more cyclists have been dying in the past decade.
It’s a must read for anyone who wants to understand what the real problems are, and why we keep dying.
And do something about it.
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Orange County’s OCTA announces a grant to improve bicycle safety and education.
The Orange County Transportation Authority has been awarded a $100,000 grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety for a year-long community program dedicated to pedestrian and bicycle safety classes and distribution of safety equipment for people walking and biking.
The aim of the program is to increase safety and reduce traffic-related injuries and fatalities. OCTA will use the funding as part of the agency’s ongoing commitment to deliver transportation solutions, including for active transportation – biking, walking and skating.
“OCTA appreciates the strong partnership we have formed with the state’s Office of Traffic Safety to work toward enhancing safety on our streets,” said OCTA Chairman Tim Shaw, also a City Council member in La Habra. “OTS has provided grant funding for the past three years to develop programs improving conditions for walking and biking, and ongoing grant funding will help us with one of our primary goals of reinforcing safety throughout Orange County.
Activities to be funded by this year’s grant include:
Pedestrian and bicycle safety classes
Distribution of bicycle lights and helmets
Distribution of reflectors for pedestrians
The need for increased safety training is clear. Bicycle and pedestrian-related collisions have been on the rise for the past decade.
“No matter which way you get around, you play a part in roadway safety,” OTS Director Barbara Rooney said. “These grant programs are intended to educate residents on ways they can make themselves and those around them safe when they walk or bike.”
The pedestrian and bicycle safety program and distribution of safety materials will occur throughout 2020. Funding for this program was provided by a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety, through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
For more information on bicycle programs and safety in Orange County, and to stay updated on where classes are being scheduled, visit octa.net/bike.
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The LACBC is looking for volunteers to help give out free bike lights to riders who don’t have them in Koreatown next week.
A 35-year old Fontana man was arrested for a Pasadena hit-and-run that left a juvenile bike rider hospitalized with critical injuries; he was booked on suspicion of hit-and-run and DUI resulting in serious injury or death. Let’s all say a pray or offer best wishes that the kid makes a full and fast recovery.
The future of Santa Monica’s Breeze bikeshare is in doubt as it faces stiff competition from dockless bikeshares; the city will have to fork over $225,000 in subsidies just to keep it operating for the next year. West Hollywood has already pulled the plug on its money-losing sister operation.
The long-promised bike and pedestrian lane on the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge connecting Contra Costa and Marin counties will open tomorrow, despite continued efforts in some quarters to convert it to a yet another lane for motor vehicles. Because everyone knows just one more traffic lane will solve all our traffic problems forever.
