For the first 26 days of this month, there hadn’t been a single bicycling fatality anywhere in Southern California. It looked, for a time, like we might actually finish the year without another rider losing his life
Witnesses told police that he began weaving as he struggled to ride uphill. As he did, he reportedly drifted into the far left lane on the six lane street, and was clipped from behind by a car traveling in the same direction.
He was pronounced dead at the scene.
The driver stopped, and was not suspected of being under the influence of drugs or alcohol.
To make matters worse, Mark Friis reports the collision occurred in the same spot where David Mendez lost his life earlier this year. Mendez was the first bike rider killed this year; with luck, Contreras will be the last.
This is the 82nd bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the 13th in Riverside County.
Let’s hope we can finish the year without another one.
My deepest sympathy and prayers for Israel Contreras and all his family.
Recently, we linked to a horrifying security cam video of a Chinese bike rider being run over by a massive semi-truck; fortunately, the victim miraculously survived, apparently unscathed.
To a bike rider, it seems pretty obvious that the truck overtook the rider before right-hooking him.
Yet from a trucker’s perspective, it’s the cyclist’s fault for riding into the truck’s blind spot, and not looking over his shoulder before crossing the intersection.
And if that doesn’t scare the crap out of you, it should.
Because far too many people excuse dangerous driving and instead blame the victims; the writer even acknowledges that the truck driver never seemed to notice the cyclist on the road directly in front of his truck as he turned.
Yet somehow, it’s the rider’s fault.
It shouldn’t be up to the rest of us to stay the hell out of the way of the big dangerous machines.
Thanks to Michael Eisenberg for the heads-up.
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It’s happened again.
An Oregon driver faces manslaughter charges after hitting a man crossing a busy street, then driving 11 blocks with the dying victim on the roof of her car before stopping to dump his body and flee the scene.
At least this time it wasn’t a cyclist. Not that it makes it any better.
Registration is now open for the 2015 edition of Finish the Ride, now billed as a Ride, Run, Walk ‘N Roll, to call attention the epidemic of hit-and-run and make the streets safer for all of us.
Last year’s event had a huge turnout, and this year’s on April 19th event promises to be even bigger and better, with more options and more challenging courses available.
And yes, I plan to see you there.
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Local
Rick Risemberg says you’re not so special anymore, because more of them are becoming us.
The LACBC is asking for your signature on a petition to create a world-class Beverly Hills Greenway on Santa Monica Blvd through the Biking Black Hole, instead of keeping it the same dangerous street it is now, as city officials seems to prefer. And yes, I’ve signed it.
A petition urges Governor Jerry Brown to amend state law to allow drivers to briefly cross a double center line when safe to do so in order to pass a cyclist. Brown previously vetoed an earlier version of the state’s three-foot passing law because it contained that exact provision. Thanks to Megan Lynch for the link.
Sad news from Santa Cruz, as a bike rider was run down from behind and killed by a hit-and-run driver; it takes until the second paragraph of the story for the local TV station to acknowledge that the truck was not acting on its own. Thanks to John McBrearty for the tip.
A Calaveras woman’s bike is stolen six weeks before a planned cross-country ride, so she decides to backpack through Oregon, instead.
National
Honolulu struggles to keep drivers from parking in a new protected bike lane; it might help if they moved the parking meters next to the cars instead of leaving them on the curb next to the bike lane.
Bike lawyer Bob Mionske talks bike light requirements, at least as they apply in Oregon; most of what he says applies here, as well.
Bono brings the arm he shattered in a New York cycling collision out in public for the first time. Although it looks more like he’s trying to hide it and himself from the paparazzi than trying to show off anything.
According to the latest stats from the NHTSA, overall traffic deaths in the US are down slightly, while bicycling fatalities are the only category that went up in 2013.
That increase, to 743 cycling fatalities — up from 726 the year before — is most likely due to increased ridership.
Because this is the next generation of bike riders. And every kid — or vet, for that matter — deserves the chance to ride a bike, regardless of whether they can afford one.
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Local
Streeetsblog wants your vote for the annual Streetsie Awards for Elected Official and Civil Servant of the year; I’m proud to have a couple of those on my mantle. Not that I actually have a mantle, but still.
Evidently, a NorCal driver failed to note the three-foot law, as he whacks a Siskiyou County physician with his right mirror; the victim suffered a broken collarbone.
The Denver Post questions the $16.5 million cost of the new 18 mile bikeway paralleling a newly rebuilt highway. Funny, but they don’t seem to question what it cost to build the part cars will travel on.
Now that’s more like it. A diabetic motorist in the UK is sentenced to fifteen months in jail and banned from driving for 20 years — yes, years — for killing a cyclist after he failed to monitor his blood sugar levels.
Caught on video: A Brit bike rider confronts a motorist who nearly hit him after not clearing the ice from his windshield; the driver claimed he could see clearly, but somehow couldn’t see the cyclist.
The results are eye opening, and should give insight on how safety efforts should be directed for the greatest impact.
Or better yet, no impact between cyclists and motor vehicles.
But let’s be clear about one thing.
As impressive as Hindman’s study is, it shouldn’t be up to a single person, or organization, to analyze how collisions occur on our streets.
It should be the responsibility of our city government. Because if they don’t know how these collisions happen, they have no idea how to prevent them.
And traffic safety shouldn’t be left to guesswork.
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I have finally completed a list of all the types of 2,421 bicycle involved collisions that were reported by the LAPD in 2013. This was mainly done by just manually counting them. All of these collisions involved injuries.
There were 2,597 pedestrian involved collisions with motor vehicles and 2,277 for bicyclists (some of the reported 2,421 bicycle collisions for the year did not involve motor vehicles). Eighty of those pedestrian involved collisions were fatalities and fifteen were fatalities for bicyclists. There was one bicyclist collision with a train that was fatal. That brings the total reported collision fatalities for bicyclists reported by the LAPD at 16 for 2013.
Bicyclists riding the wrong way are 569 of the collisions. Drivers turning right were involved in 239 (42%) of these collisions. I did not count all the different ways the collisions occurred in this case since the bicyclists were not traveling in the correct direction. Its rather obvious from the raw data that the main danger when riding the wrong way is motor vehicles turning right.
A bicyclist will sometimes ride through a crosswalk in the opposite direction of motor vehicle traffic. From what I have observed, a motorist turning right will frequently just look to their left to see if a motor vehicle is coming and not to their right before proceeding.
Subtracting the wrong way riders from the total leaves 1,852 bicycle involved collisions.
From experience I know that the vast majority of bicyclists are riding between the parked motor vehicles and the front right quarter panel of moving vehicles. Few are riding directly in front of moving motor vehicles in the middle of the moving lane. Since that’s where most of the bicyclists are riding, then it would make sense that most of the collisions would involve cyclists riding in that position on the road. That does not necessarily mean that it is much more dangerous to be riding this way.
The following information does not include the raw collision data of wrong way bicycle riders.
According to some bicycle riders, the danger of being right hooked by drivers is greatly increased when you ride between the parked vehicles and moving vehicles because drivers are much less likely to see you there compared to riding directly in front of them in the middle of the motor vehicle lane. I counted almost as many collisions for bicyclists with motor vehicles turning left (326), as there were for motor vehicles turning right (337). It would appear that drivers tend to not see the bicyclist when turning in either direction before colliding with them.
Parked cars are also sighted as a major hazard by those advocating riding in the middle of motor vehicle lanes. I counted 155 collisions involving bicyclists and parked motor vehicles. I don’t know how many of these involved doors swinging open in front of the bicyclists.
If that sounds particularly hazardous, there were also 55 bicycle collisions with motor vehicles stopped, 125 sideswipes, 16 collisions involving drivers backing up, 7 drivers slowing and the bicyclist hitting them, 6 improper passes by drivers, 5 drivers parking, 17 unsafe driving speed, 72 rear end collisions, 23 lane changes by drivers and 20 lane changes by a bicyclist. That’s 346 collisions. Well over double the amount of bicycle collisions involving parked motor vehicles.
Another argument against riding to the right of moving vehicles and next to parked vehicles is the danger from cars exiting driveways. There were 78 bicycle involved collisions with motor vehicles entering traffic. I presume those to have mainly occurred due to vehicles pulling away from the curb, exiting driveways and freeway off-ramps. Adding this to the parked vehicle collisions still doesn’t come close to the amount of other types of collisions I mentioned above.
There were also 20 head-on collisions where the direction of travel was either E/W or N/S and 367 collisions where both driver and bicyclist were heading straight (typically intersections) but in different directions (not head-on).
Drivers making a U-turn collided with bicyclists 12 times and 3 U-turns by bicyclists involved a collision with a motor vehicle.
Four collisions involved bicycles passing motorists and 6 were unsafe turns by bicyclists.
Right turns by bicyclists were 25 of the collisions and left turns 47.
LAPD reported 29 pedestrian collisions with bicycles. No pedestrian was killed.
Bicyclists hitting an unknown object, slipping and falling or hitting a pothole involved 39 injury reported collisions.
Bicyclist involved in a collision with another bicyclist was reported 7 times.
There were 12 collisions where the primary factor was unknown.
There was one case where a bicyclist hit the driver and the driver (88 years old) was the only one with an injury and also one collision where the passenger of the vehicle was the only one who had an injury when it involved a bicycle rider.
Lastly, a bicyclist injury occurred from colliding with an animal.
My total count is larger than the 2,421 bicycle involved collisions due to counting such things as entering traffic, turning by bicycles and motorists separately for each collision. Each collision could involve a turn by both bicycle and motorist or entering traffic and a turn.
The variety of types of collisions reinforces to me that the Dutch safety principle of separation by mass, speed and direction when possible is the way to go to improve safety. Bicycle riders should not be mixed with motor vehicles that have a much greater mass and are going at a much greater average speed than the bicyclist.
Having more than one motor vehicle lane in each direction on a street increases the likelihood of a higher motorist speed, increases the chance of lane change and also increases the possibility that the driver will get distracted by all of the different actions going on around them. That’s why the Dutch national Crow manual for bicycle infrastructure advises to have a cycle track or bike path built if there is more than one motor vehicle lane in each direction on a street.
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Hindman followed-up with a look at the bicycling fatalities reported to the state for 2013 in the city of LA.
Here’s a list of the 16 reported bicycle collision fatalities by the LAPD in 2013 and the primary factors for the collisions:
1-bicyclist unsafe speed
1-driver unsafe speed. Both driver and bicyclist headed west. Hit and run driver.
1-train
2-parked vehicle
1-driver alcohol/drugs. Both driver and bicyclists headed east. Three bicyclists involved.
1-driver alcohol/drugs. Both driver and bicyclist headed east.
1-driver headed east/bicyclist headed north.
1-stop sign/signal. Driver moving south/bicyclist headed west. Hit and run driver.
1-stop sign/signal. Driver headed west/bicyclist headed south. Hit and run driver.
This shows some of the wide variables in collisions. A bicyclist cannot avoid all of these situations. A barrier between the bicyclist and driver would decrease the potential for drivers and bicyclist to hit each other when changing lanes, rear-end collisions or merging. Removing the parked vehicles from arterial streets or a buffer between the bicyclist and parked vehicles would reduce some of the conflicts. Different signal phases for bicyclists/pedestrians and drivers at the intersections would decrease the potential conflicts further.
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Thanks to Dennis Hindman for caring enough about your safety and mine to assume this responsibility himself.
Now CicLAvia has been sued by the rider, who suffered three broken vertebrae when an impatient motorist drove through the barricades blocking a cross street and sped across the boulevard, striking him in the process.
No arrest was ever made, making it impossible to sue the person actually responsible for the injuries. So instead, the victim’s lawyer is going after the nearest deep pockets, which is what lawyers are paid to do. Although how deep CicLAvia’s pockets are remains to be seen.
Presumably, the non-profit organization has insurance to cover cases like this, so it’s unlikely that it will affect future events. Although increased costs for insurance coverage and security are likely to make them more expensive to stage.
And don’t expect to hear CicLAvia respond to the suit. They’ve undoubtedly been advised by their attorneys not to comment publicly on the case.
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It’s been a long time since we’ve heard from erstwhile bike blogger Will Campbell, now an animal cop with the spcaLA.
Will explains that the local spcaLA is not associated with the national ASPCA, and any donations made in response to the ubiquitous ad with the sad-eyed dogs and cats won’t benefit homeless or abused animals here in the City of Angels.
He invites you to guess how many coins are in a jar he plans to donate to the society; the winner can have the donation made in their name. Or you can donate directly through the society’s website.
Outgoing 4th District councilmember Tom LaBonge’s insistence that no traffic lanes be removed from the soon-to-be redesigned Glendale-Hyperion Bridge force dangerous compromises to accommodate cyclists and pedestrians. The best solution may be to wait a few months until someone else sits in his seat.
The Eastside Bike Club hosts a ride on Sunday, January 4th to protest CD1 Councilmember Gil Cedillo’s misguided comments to the council that bike riders represent the 1%; let’s show him that real Angelenos — and voters — of all types ride bikes. Thanks to Jaime Kate for the tip.
Better Bike discusses how Beverly Hills fails to take California’s three-foot passing law or cyclist safety into account in a planned redesign of Santa Monica Blvd; you’re invited to discuss a new complete streets proposal for the boulevard at 7 pm tonight in the Beverly Hills Public Library. And maybe the topic of how political accountability takes a holiday in the Biking Black Hole will come up, as well.
A 26-year old Pomona bike rider was killed in a drive-by shooting. Bad enough we have to dodge cars; no one should ever fall victim to bullets.
State
An Irvine woman walks out of jail just hours after being sentenced to nearly a year in jail for intentionally running down an airport bike cop. If the courts won’t take a vehicular assault on a cop seriously, what hope is there for the rest of us?
Close associates of ex-six-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong settle a whistleblower lawsuit brought by ex-one-time Tour de France winner Floyd Landis, agreeing to pay the Feds $541,000.
Tucson bike ambassadors give away bike bells, arguing that the bells sound nicer than saying “on your left.” And every time one rings, an angel gets his wings.
The National Parks Service proposes allowing bikes to use a six-mile pathway in Bryce Canyon. However, a recent NPS rule change could mean cyclists could be banned from nearby roads if the bikeway is approved.
As if the state’s highways weren’t risky enough for cyclists, South Dakota expands the use of rumble strips to make them more dangerous.
Massachusetts’ state parks department approves a half-million dollar study on how to better accommodate bikes, recognizing that bicycling is a growing form of both transportation and recreation.
A North Carolina judge rules a motorist gave a cyclist enough passing distance — even though the car’s mirror knocked the rider off her bike. I’d hate to see what he thinks is too close.
Volvo announces a new safety system to provide proximity alerts between drivers and cyclists; of course, it only works if both are using the same system.
Aussie pro Simon Gerrans is out of commission for the next few months after breaking his collarbone while training.
Aussie police conduct a drunk driving crackdown over the weekend, but the most wasted person they caught was riding a bike. Lance insists he would never cheat, at least not at golf; didn’t he used to say the same thing about bike racing?
And bad enough that bike riders have to dodge dangerous drivers; not even ghost bikes are safe. I’m afraid I’ve lost track of who sent this one to me, but thank you, anyway.
An arrest is finally made in the hit-and-run death of an Anaheim mother early last month.
Daniella Palacios was riding her bike across the street just blocks from her home when she was run down by a white pickup, whose driver fled the scene without stopping.
Now 30-year old Buena Park resident Junior Lopez has been arrested for the crime. He’s being held on $50,000 bond, and his Ford F-150 truck has been seized as evidence.
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If you find yourself in San Diego tonight, make your way to the Selle Anatomica Christmas Party at 7939 Silverton Ave, Suite 806, from 6 to 9 pm. Just bring a canned good for the San Diego Food Bank and a “funky” item for the schwag exchange. RSVP in advance to fred@selleanatomica.com.
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Irvine and Riverside personal injury legal firm Avrek Law introduces the BikeSafe Bicycle Accident Reporting App, allowing you to report bike-related incidents throughout the SoCal region, or search for collision data by year or type. And yes, it does make an impact to see all those wreck sites on a single map.
Although I wish lawyers, of all people, would learn to call them collisions instead of accidents, since accident implies that no one is at fault.
Stolen or not, I’d say that’s tempting fate just a little too much.
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Longtime LA Times columnist Patt Morrison says local bike riders should be required to get an “info license” to make them learn the rules of the road.
Aside from the fact that only the state can impose licensing requirements — cities can license bikes, but not riders — it’s an interesting, if muddled, unnecessary and ultimately unworkable idea.
San Diego neighborhoods battle over plans to close an off-ramp to make room for a bike and pedestrian corridor, as local merchants fail to grasp that people on bikes spend money, too.
Paso Robles plans a L’Eroica Vintage Bicycle Event next April; participants are limited to riders on steel frame bikes built before 1987.
The civil trial begins in the case of a San Francisco bike rider killed in a collision with a 13 ton delivery truck. Police initially blamed the cyclist until the SF Bike Coalition found security camera footage that police hadn’t bothered to look for.
New Executive Director Tamika Butler; photo courtesy of LACBC
Finally, we see white smoke rising above the Downtown headquarters of the Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition.
Three months after long-time Executive Director Jen Klausner announced she’d be leaving at the end of the year, the LACBC has hired lawyer and non-profit executive Tamika Butler to lead the organization into its next phase of growth.
The hire comes at the end of an exhaustive, nationwide search that brought in resumes from nearly 100 qualified applicants, which was slowly whittled down to a final three before Butler was offered the job.
I’m told it was a very difficult decision. But at every phase, Butler stood out for her experience in leading a non-profit advocacy organization, as well as her focus on building membership and reaching out to the many diverse, and too often undeserved, communities that make up the City of Angels.
She has big bike shoes to fill.
Klausner has been the face of the LACBC for seven years, taking the bike coalition from adolescence to an award-winning organization with a national reputation and influence far beyond its size. And the only leader of the coalition most of us have ever known.
The thought of replacing her was, as the movie says, inconceivable.
Which is why Butler steps into the same role, not as her replacement, but as someone dedicated to building on the organization’s success, and leading it into even greater growth and influence.
She brings a new face, new ideas and fresh enthusiasm for building a better, safer and more enjoyable community for everyone who travels on two wheels. As well as all those who have been reluctant to give it a try, or thought bicycling just wasn’t for someone like them.
She is not the new Jen Klausner.
She is Tamika Butler, the next leader of the Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition.
And by all accounts, the coalition is very lucky to have her.
You can read the LACBC’s full press release announcing her hire below.
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Introducing the Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition’s new Executive Director!
After an extensive national search, the Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition is pleased to announce that our Board of Directors has selected Tamika Butler to lead LACBC into the next phase of continued growth as we further our mission to make the Los Angeles region a healthy, safe and fun place to ride a bike.
“I’m really proud of the process and results of the search and couldn’t be more excited about Tamika as our next Executive Director,” says LACBC Board President Steve Boyd.
Tamika Butler brings to LACBC a proven track record of sustainably expanding and running programs and organizations, as well as a policy and advocacy background. She spent three years as an employment lawyer at the Legal Aid Society-Employment Law Center and most recently comes from Liberty Hill Foundation, where she was the Director of Social Change Strategies. She first made her mark in Los Angeles as the California Director at the startup policy and advocacy organization Young Invincibles, where she managed the west coast regional staff, was the media and policy spokesperson, organized and led coalitions, developed curriculum and trainings, and fundraised to expand the organization’s presence on the west coast. She also developed relationships with community leaders and state and local lawmakers to advance the organization’s policy goals.
“I am thrilled to have the privilege to become the next Executive Director of the Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition and look forward to continuing the success, growth, and cutting edge work of the organization. Biking in Los Angeles County has personally changed my life and deepens my love of the region every time I go for a ride. We’re lucky to live and bike in a county full of diverse communities that motivate this talented staff and me to push towards building a healthier, more vibrant Los Angeles County. I am excited to start pedaling, dig deep, and get to work with our members and partners, within and across sectors, as we race to the front lines of the nationwide movement to create bikeable, safe, and sustainable neighborhoods.” One of Tamika’s top priorities is to grow the diversity of LACBC staff and coalition membership.
When Jen Klausner started as LACBC’s Executive Director in 2007, there was only one other employee at headquarters, and it was a real struggle to keep doors open. Jen and the organization faced an uphill battle at City Hall to pass the Los Angeles Bike Plan and get pavement striped with room for bikes. Seven years later, under her leadership, there are now twelve employees working on your behalf with a LOT of successes! We continue to expand across the county with twelve local chapters. We are poised to extend that reach even further as we strive to more fully represent the diversity of those who bicycle and want to bicycle in all neighborhoods across Los Angeles County. Tamika brings deep experience in social justice work and looks forward to working with the full range of communities across the county. We couldn’t be more excited.
Jen says, “Our new Executive Director Tamika Butler brings a fresh perspective to the leadership of LACBC, and one that is so relevant to the growth of the bike-ped movement and to important dialogues happening here and in cities across the nation. I am confident in Tamika’s ability to take LACBC to the next level, and I, for one, will be staying tuned and keeping my membership current, because this organization is poised to do great things in the coming years. Please join me in extending a very warm welcome to Tamika!”
Jen Mishory, Executive Director of Young Invincibles, agrees that Tamika will make a great Executive Director: “Tamika is a dynamic, innovative leader who will be a huge asset to the LACBC team. She brought Young Invincibles to new heights and I know that she’ll do the same in her new role!”
We look forward to introducing Tamika to our members, partners and supporters at the first available opportunity in January. Look for announcements of those opportunities in our weekly newsletter, on the website, and through Facebook and Twitter. And don’t forget—as part of our end of year campaign, any donation at the $250 level and above will get you an invitation to our January 22nd Donor Thank You Party—an intimate gathering with our brand new Executive Director, Tamika Butler, in attendance. Hope to see you there!
Evidently, 1st District Councilmember Gil Cedillo doesn’t understand how democracy works.
Word from yesterday’s LA City Council session is that Cedillo turned a deaf ear to the pleas of bike riders begging for a safer street on North Figueroa, and instead went forward with a plan to install diagonal parking rather than the bike lanes called for in the city’s already approved bike plan.
As anyone who has ever ridden or driven past cars attempting to back out of an angled parking space can attest, that does the exact opposite of improving safety.
Standing in the same chamber where retired councilmember Bill Rosendahl famously declared that “the culture of the car is going to end now!,” Cedillo insisted that he would not be bullied by cyclists.
I didn’t know that the pleas of a traffic minority group begging for a safe place to travel on our streets amounted to bullying; it seems more like a constituent group lobbying an apparently uncaring elected leader for relief, to me. Which is the very definition of democracy in action.
But what the hell do I know.
Cedillo also described bike riders as “the one percent,” deliberately miscasting cyclists with a term used to imply social and economic exclusivity, based on census data that bike riders make up just one percent of LA’s commuter traffic.
Never mind that the one percent stat only refers to rush hour commuters, and does not count the many people who ride to school or to do errands. Or the many low income, often immigrant, riders in his own district who ride to and from their jobs any hour of the day, often because they have no other way to get there.
And this from a man who publicly professes his support for immigrants to anyone who will listen.
Cedillo has evidently made the political calculation that he doesn’t need our support to retain his office, in a city where incumbent councilmembers almost never lose elections.
Let’s hope we can prove him wrong.
More disappointing is that no one else on the council, or in city government — all the way up to the mayor’s office — has had the courage to stand up to the real bully in the room.
On that day nearly five years ago when LA bike riders finally found the voice we so desperately needed at City Hall, Rosendahl proclaimed, speaking for the full council, “We’re going to give cyclists the support they should have been getting.”
Unfortunately, Rosendahl has left the council.
And the support for cyclists appears to have gone with him.
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Be careful riding in Glendale, which once again ranks near the bottom on a list of America’s worst drivers.
More Denver residents are biking and walking to work, thanks in part to the city’s investment in better bike infrastructure.
An 18-year old Boston hit-and-run driver was allegedly under the influence of prescription drugs when he took out a cyclist and five parked cars while fleeing police; the rider is expected to survive, no word on the cars.
And caught on video: A cyclist survives a collision with a hit-and-run deer that violated his right-of-way, then fled the scene without stopping to render aid or exchange IDs.
It’s been awhile since I’ve ridden on Fiji Way through Marina del Rey.
Then again, it’s been awhile since I’ve ridden anywhere.
But it looks like those wide, buffered bike lanes that helped tame one of the area’s most frequent sites for bike collisions has been replaced with an awkward and very uncomfortable cycle track, with riders separated from oncoming traffic by nothing more than a few plastic bollards.
Marty Blount of South LA’s Major Motion Recreational Cycling Club forwards a photo of the new, and hopefully temporary, installation taken by members of the new Black Girls Do Bike – LA club.
The question is why bike riders have suddenly been shifted to just one side of the wide, divided roadway. And why riders facing traffic haven’t been placed next to the curb, rather than in the frightening position of riding directly next to traffic coming from the opposite direction.
Hopefully, we’ll get some answers soon.
Update: I received the following response from Daniel Quintana of the Head-Traffic Design Section, Traffic and Lighting Division, Public Works.
The recent temporary changes are due to the installation of a waterline project along Fiji Way. The trench and equipment will occupy a large section of the road on the west side that required the temporary relocation of the bike facility. The condition is temporary, but may be there for a few months. We will check with our construction staff more specific timeline for this temporary change and will have them respond. We will also have our staff review the installation for additional temporary signs or markings may help clarify this temporary condition.
Update 2: Brittany Baker, Program Manager with the Construction Division of the LA County Dept. of Public Works, followed up with additional information on the closure of the bike lane.
As Mr. Quintana has mentioned below, this temporary bike path detour is a result of our Marina del Rey Phase 3B Waterline Project that is just starting up. This project is expected to last from December 2014 through August 2015. The temporary bike path detour will remain in place for this duration. Attached, please find a project information flyer (pdf) with details on the temporary bike path detour.
Please also note, over the course of the next 4-5 weeks, there may be a stretch of the Marvin Braude Bike Path that runs adjacent to Oxford Basin (between Yvonne Burke Park and Washington Blvd in Marina del Rey) that may be reduced to one lane to accommodate construction activities within Oxford Basin. The bike path will NOT be completely closed and signage will be placed that will require bicyclists to walk their bicycle during that short stretch of one bicycle lane.
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You won’t be riding PCH west of Malibu for awhile.
Caltrans reports the highway will be closed between Yerba Buena and Los Posas Roads near Point Magu for the next several weeks while they repair a recent mud slide.
And that’s assuming the hillside remains stable long enough to fix it following this week’s storms.
Let’s hope the City Council will have the courage to call him on his attempt to maintain the 20th Century auto-centric hegemony over streets that should belong to everyone, rather than just the motorists who make the street a dangerous, high speed game of frogger.
And ask why he has developed such an apparent animosity for anyone with the audacity to ride a bike in his district.
Clearly, no one is safe from drunks behind the wheel; a 22-year old Apple Valley woman just walking next to a bike rider was killed by an alleged drunk driver.
No matter how big a hurry you’re in, don’t drag your bike under a stopped train that’s blocking your way; a Delaware cyclist was killed when the train he was crawling under started moving.
Don’t try this at home. An Orlando mother is under arrest for knocking a boy off his bike, then choking and threatening to kill him for bullying her daughter.
Big hearted — and evidently, very strong— Calgary bystanders not only lift a truck off a bike rider following a collision, they pitch in to buy the victim a new bike.
More proof how non-seriously traffic crimes are taken around the world, as a New Zealand driver charged with fleeing the scene after killing a cyclist is excused from court proceedings so he can travel with his wife.
A New Zealand report looks at the economic benefits of bicycling — like every dollar spent on bicycling returns $20 in benefits to the community, and a doubling of European ridership would result in 400,000 new jobs.
Recently, at the Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition Open House, JJ Hoffman was telling me a story about her daily encounter with dog a couple of years ago. JJ said every day when she was riding to work she’d meet up with this same woman who was walking her dog unleashed.
Every day the dog took after JJ, which set the woman off who would run yelling behind her dog. It got so bad that JJ had the pepper spray out before she got to the street where she’d meet up with the dog. All that dog wanted, JJ said, was a taste of her calf.
JJ really didn’t want to spray the dog, though spraying the owner was tempting, and, luckily for everybody, JJ never actually had to take action.
Like JJ, I really like dogs. The dogs are doing what their instincts tell them to do: to chase prey. Irresponsible dog owners are another matter. They put the cyclist, the dog, and especially themselves in danger.
Bitten by a Dog
In California, if you are bitten by a dog, the owner is at fault. It doesn’t matter if the dog is leashed or not. It doesn’t matter if the owner knew or didn’t know that the dog had a “vicious nature.” California holds owners to “strict liability.” If you are bitten, the owner is liable for your injuries. There is no “free bite” in California.
Collision with or because of a Dog
When a dog begins chasing a cyclist, most cyclists tend to try to outrun the dog. When that happens, the dog’s brain goes into get-the-fleeing-prey mode, and the race is on.
Whether or not you can really outrun the dog, the real danger is in possibly colliding with the dog or colliding with something else because you lose control of the bike or you hit a pot hole or even getting hit by a motor vehicle when swerving or not being able to stop at a light or an intersection.
If you suffer serious personal injuries or your bike is damaged, again, the dog owner can be held liable. Your bicycle accident attorney should be able to obtain compensation for your injuries.
Compensation for Dog-related Collisions or Bites
The dog owner may be held negligent for:
Ineffective control of the dog.
Violation of the leash law and other Animal Control Ordinances.
Inadequate supervision or management of the dog.
Putting the dog in a condition in which the owner could have seen that the dog could cause injury to somebody.
Individual cities also may have their own animal control ordinances. For instance, one city limits the number of dogs that can be walked by one person at a time and a number of cities consider it a misdemeanor if a dog is tied to a parking meter, sign or bus bench without food or water nearby.
Some cities have ordinances specific to a breed. In Santa Monica a pit bull on public property must be muzzled.
The dog owner may be held responsible for compensating you for:
Medical bills from doctors, emergency rooms, hospitals, therapists, plastic surgeons, and for prescriptions.
Future medical bills to remove scars or to repair disfigurements. If the money for medical care is not recovered at this time, your health insurance might not cover any future medical procedures you need later, calling them “cosmetic.”
Time you had to take off from work resulting in lost income.
Lost future earnings because of disfigurement or disabilities.
Emotional counseling.
Pain and suffering.
Of course you can only recover compensation for injuries you suffer and care you actually need.
Hesitations to Holding an Owner Liable
One of the major hesitations a cyclist who is bitten by a dog often has in reporting a dog bite is the fear that the dog will be destroyed. A dog that has no history of biting is rarely “put down.”
The court takes into account the severity of the bite and the number of times it has bitten. It may rule that a dog must be muzzled in public or restrained in a particular way, such as kept behind a certain type of fence of a certain height.
Self-Defense
We all have heard that we have the right to defend ourselves against an attack from another person. What few people realize is that the law says you can defend yourself as much as is necessary to foil the attack. Your defense must be proportionate to the attack, and when the danger is past, so is your right to defend yourself.
This is a common law concept, and there is no explicit statement in common law that this also applies in a dog attack. More and more dog owners are counter-suing for compensation when their dog has been injured either intentionally or through someone else’s negligence.
So if you are going to use self defense, be sure that it is proportionate to the attack and that once the attack is over you stop, similar to how you would defend yourself with a human. That is a legally defensible act, though you could still find yourself in a lawsuit with the dog owner.
Personally, I subscribe to the belief that it’s rare to find a bad dog, but bad owners are much too plentiful.
