April 29, 2022 /
bikinginla / Comments Off on 69-year old man riding bike killed in Simi Valley right hook crash; 32nd SoCal bicycling death already this year
There just doesn’t seem to be any end to the carnage on Southern California streets this year.
According to Ventura County Star, 69-year old Simi Valley resident Stephen Wright was riding his “10-speed style” road bike north on Sycamore Drive, south of Los Angeles Ave, when he was right hooked by the driver of commercial flatbed truck around 12:15 pm.
He died at the scene.
The driver stopped following the crash and cooperated with investigators. Police don’t suspect he was under the influence of drugs or alcohol.
A police commander notes Wright was wearing a helmet, which clearly didn’t do any good in this case. Nor would it be likely to in a collision like that.
Anyone with information is urged to call Simi Valley Traffic Officer Bryan Sarfaty at 805/583-6189 or email bsarfaty@simivalley.org.
This is at least the 32nd bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the second that I’m aware of in Ventura County.
That puts us on a pace for nearly 100 bicycling deaths this year — almost twice the average from just a few years ago.
My deepest sympathy and prayers for Stephen Wright and all his loved ones.
Let’s start with a quick reminder about today’s Metro Board meeting.
The board will give a final hearing for the North Hollywood to Pasadena bus rapid transit line, which includes plans for lane reductions, protected bike lanes and a more livable street on currently car-centric Colorado Blvd, based on the Beautiful Boulevard plan developed by Eagle Rock residents. .
Streets For All offers these tips for making a comment during the 10 am meeting.
In order to make comments by phone, you will need to call in using the number and code above. When the item comes up, click #2 (pound-two) to request to comment.
You will only have 1 minute for your comment. (It may be helpful to write your comment down and read it aloud to maximize use of your comment time)
If you are watching online, please note that the video feed is delayed by 30 seconds and that you will need to mute your video stream when you speak to avoid background noise.
SB 932 would force cities to take action to improve safety on the most dangerous corridors; otherwise, anyone injured there would have the right to sue.
Never mind that Los Angeles hasn’t updated its community plan since Ronald Reagan was in the White House.
………
Megan Lynch forwards a horrifying story from Sacramento, where a former San Diego County sheriff’s deputy has allegedly been brandishing a gun while threatening homeless people.
Rich Eaton, who now operates a business in the city, was named by victims in three police reports, in one case reportedly growling “I should put a bullet in the back of your head.”
And he apparently doesn’t let a little thing like a bike trail stop him.
The same victim claimed he saw Eaton brandishing a gun at another homeless man a few days earlier.
“Richard was in his vehicle on the bike trail at the top of the levee and I could see him pointing a gun out of the vehicle window,” the report says.
The other victim said Eaton pointed the gun directly at him as he tried confronting Eaton about driving on a path intended for bikes and pedestrians.
“I could see him holding the guns in his hand with the barrel sticking out the window pointing at me,” the second victim said. “He pulled the gun back and said ‘pussy.’”
Eaton is suing the city for failure to enforce its own laws by allowing homeless people to remain on his property, claiming significant damage and a loss in property value.
Even though the writer for Newsbreak says the value of the property has increased $2.3 million in just the last five years.
According to the story, police dropped the investigation into the incidents, at the discretion of the sergeant.
Maybe they could at least tell him to keep his car the hell off bike and pedestrian paths.
Correction: In the first reference to Rich Eaton, I somehow wrote his last name as Williams, for reasons that will forever escape me. Thanks to Andy Stow for the catch.
………
The war on cars may be a myth, but the war on bikes just keeps on going.
No bias here. The headline on this story from San Diego’s CBS8 isn’t the least bit misleading, suggesting that the city apologized to Rancho Peñasquitos residents for the new bike lanes on Azuaga Street, when the San Diego director of transportation actually apologized for a lack of effective outreach before they were installed. And yes, that was sarcasm.
But sometimes, it’s the people on two wheels behaving badly.
Police in Charlotte, North Carolina announced a crackdown on aggressive young bike riders they accuse of wrecking havoc in the city by riding recklessly and endangering drivers and pedestrians; one is accused of punching a driver in the back of the head, and later shooting into his car, leaving the man paralyzed.
………
Local
This is the cost of traffic violence. Relatives of Monique Munoz, the 32-year-old woman killed by a 17-year old boy in West LA, who slammed into her car after running a red light at over 100 mph in his Lamborghini SUV, have settled a wrongful death lawsuit against his family for a whopping $18.8 million. Which barely seems like enough under the circumstances.
Los Angeles Magazinelists beach cruisers as one of the 60 ways the city has changed the world, placing them between The Beach Boys and breast implants; they were invented by in 1976 by a 21-year old mechanic in his dad’s bike shop. The bikes, that is, not The Beach Boys. Or the breast implants.
The curator of a museum in San Diego’s University Height neighborhood says he doesn’t think it can survive plans for a parking protected bike lane and fewer parking spaces on Park Boulevard. Because evidently, people who ride bicycles never, ever visit museums. Especially not if they’re safer and easier to get to.
The 13th Annual Redlands PossAbilities Para-cycle stage race rolled alongside the Redlands Classic last week, using the same courses for the four stage race; national paracycling time trial and road cycling champ national Owen Daniels dominated the series, finishing first in the paraplegic category.
April 27, 2022 /
bikinginla / Comments Off on Wrist slap for fatal Jurupa Valley hit-and-run, prelim for killer hit-and-run socialite, and bank robbing cyclist talks to BBC
Pizza deliveryman Andrew Scott Walters struck Guzman as he was riding his bike, then got out and pulled Guzman’s bike out from under his car before driving away, leaving the injured victim lying in the road when he was struck and killed by another driver — assuming he wasn’t already dead from the first crash.
Walters went so far as to call 911 to report seeing an injured man down in the road, without bothering to mention his own involvement.
He then went back to the Pizza Hut he worked at, where he explained the damage to his car by telling his boss that a drunk homeless man had hurled his bicycle at him “out of nowhere.”
Hidden Hills socialite and philanthropist Rebecca Grossman faces a preliminary hearing for the alleged street racing death of two young boys, who had the misfortune of crossing the street with their family while she was speeding down it.
She faces two murder counts, two counts of vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence, and a single charge of hit-and-run driving resulting in death.
Which proves the over-privileged can be just as idiotic and deadly as the rest of us.
The war on cars may be a myth, but the war on bikes just keeps on going.
The Texas car shop owner who posted video of himself rolling coal at a bike rider, then denied knowing anything about it, now says he’s really, really sorry. But only after the video went viral, leading to calls to boycott his shop.
Streetsblog looks at the new “protected” bike lanes on westbound 1st Street from Boyle Heights to Little Tokyo. Although once again, the protection is only in the form of little plastic bollards that won’t stop anyone from crashing through.
Residents of a San Diego apartment complex voiced their anger over new bike lanes in the Rancho Peñasquitos neighborhood, which they say were striped in the dead of night with no advance warning. Although that’s hard to believe, since the parking spaces that were removed to make room for the bike lanes would have been full of cars at that hour.
This is why people keep dying on our streets, part two. A Las Vegas food delivery driver faces her third DUI in recent years after she ran into a child riding a bicycle, leaving the kid with moderate injuries. Although the two “popular food delivery service providers” she claimed to work for disavowed any knowledge of her. One more example of authorities keeping dangerous drivers on the road until it’s too late.
YK Design looks at the top ten bikes designed for an eco-friendly urban commute, including some that are seriously weird, and/or just vaporware at this point. Although number nine may be very strange, but in a very cool way, even though you probably wouldn’t want to ride it with those wires just begging for your crotch.
A British van driver was sentenced to a total of eight years, including four behind bars, and barred from driving for 12 years, all for killing a 71-year old man riding a bicycle while so drunk he couldn’t to stand on his own following the crash; he had 25 previous traffic convictions. Yet another example of keeping a dangerous driver on the road until they kill someone.
A Malaysian paper decries kids riding the popular basikal lajak, illegally modified bicycles that allow users to race downhill in the Superman position, calling them “a threat to road safety.” Even though it was a woman driver who was convicted of killing eight teens who were riding them, rather than the other way around.
The victim, who has not been publicly identified, died at the scene. His brother was treated for minor injuries.
However, a crowdfunding campaign set up by the victim’s coworkers identifies him only as Leonidas, who died in front of his brother Wilder.
Police are looking for the driver of a white Jeep Cherokee, who fled west on Olympic.
The bizarre sequence of events began when the driver was parked on the north curb of Olympic Blvd. As they pulled away, the victim of an unrelated vehicle theft jumped on his hood, believing the driver had something to do with the earlier crime.
The driver sped off with the other man still clinging to his hood, before he fell off into the street.
Both victims appear to jump up and chase after the driver in the immediate aftermath of the crash; there’s no word on when the victim succumbed to his injuries, or what caused his death.
Reflectors can be seen on their bikes, but they don’t appear to have had lights in the nighttime darkness. There’s also some confusion over whether the driver’s SUV was stolen, or whether he may have been involved in nearby tagging.
The crowdfunding campaign to send the victim’s body back home to Guatemala has raised over $9,400 of the $10,000 goal.
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 call West Traffic Detectives at 213/473-0234.
This is at least the 31st bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the 11th that I’m aware of in Los Angeles County. It’s also the seventh in the City of Los Angeles.
Twelve of those SoCal deaths have been hit-and-runs.
Update: A late report from KNBC-4 says the brothers were just four blocks from their jobs at a Koreatown bakery, where Leonidas worked as a pastry chef, when they were killed.
I did my best to write today’s Morning Links, despite battling a killer headache. But it looks like the headache has won.
So I’m going to bed, and hoping it’s gone by morning. As usual, we’ll be back tomorrow to catch up on anything we missed.
But before we go, let me share this comment from Rob X, followed by my response. Because it is a conversation worth having, and one that continues to come up from time to time, in one form or another.
I’m a cyclist who’s way past tired of the “SO DANGEROUS!” whining. Bicycling seems to be the ONLY activity whose fans actively discourage others by claiming their favorite activity is dangerous. Or by claiming that it can’t be safe until all territory is redesigned with them in mind.
So you beg for bike lanes. Those bike lanes fill with gravel, glass and junk because car tires never sweep them clean. You demand sweepers, then you demand posts or other barriers that prevent sweepers from fitting. You demand parked cars to hide the bikers from drivers then you complain when a turning car runs over an unseen biker – a biker who doesn’t bother to check for cars because, hey, she’s “protected!”
Look, there are fewer than 1000 bike deaths in the U.S. every year. That’s not “dangerous.” Biking is way safer than even walking, whether you figure total deaths or deaths per mile. Biking is way safer than swimming or motorcycling. It’s safer than walking down stairs! But where are the calls stair walking helmets and elevators at all stairways?
Half of biker deaths are the fault of the biker. Those people are too confused or ignorant to follow simple rules of the road. Complicating those rules things with special lanes, opposite-direction bike lanes, “mixing zones,” blind intersections and more won’t help.
Bicycling is literally safer than NOT bicycling. It has health benefits WAY bigger than its risks. Quit scaring people into their noisy, polluting cars!
Here’s my response:
“Evidently, you haven’t spent much time on this site. Right up there, under Facts & Stats, it says this:
How safe is bicycling? Cyclists suffered in an estimated 52,000 injuries in 2009; making your odds of returning home safely from any given ride nearly 77,000 to one; the chances of surviving any given ride were over 6.3 million to one in your favor.
Sounds pretty safe to me.
On the other hand, statically, an average of 2 – 3 people are killed riding bicycles in the US every day. So while your risk on any given ride is infinitesimal, it’s going to happen to someone, somewhere. And every one of those “less than 1000” deaths you cite is someone’s son or daughter, mother or father, friend or loved one.
I often hear from the relatives of people killed while riding their bikes. And I can assure you it’s no small matter to them. I also hear from riders all levels, from beginning bike riders to experienced cyclists, who have been frightened off their bikes by one too many close calls, or one trip too many to the emergency room.
I’ve made four trips there myself, as I enter my 40th year of riding a bike as an adult.
So should we just tell everyone bike riding is safe, so get out there and just enjoy the ride, when their own experience tells them otherwise? Should we just say “oh well” when yet another innocent person gets sacrificed on the altar of the almighty automobile? Or should we fight like hell to make our streets safer for everyone?
I know what my answer is, because I’ve been doing this for 14 years now.
But remember this. Bike infrastructure isn’t there for experienced vehicular cyclists who have no fear of mixing it up with traffic. It’s for all the little kids and older folks, all the timid riders who won’t bike without it, and all the people like my wife, who are tired of picking their loved ones up at the hospital.
I’m glad you feel safe on your bike. But I hope you open your heart a little more to those who don’t, and those who haven’t been.”
So what do you thinK?
Personally, I think an average of nearly 1,000 people killed riding their bikes is about 1,000 too many.
But I’m willing to listen if you disagree.
Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to put my head to bed before it explodes.
Friday, I witnessed what too many of us face too often on LA streets.
I stood in front of my building watching as a man rode his bike down our residential street, narrow enough that drivers traveling in opposite directions have to negotiate clearances to pass safely.
He was positioned correctly, just outside the door zone, while leaving plenty of room for drivers to pass.
However, an impatient driver sped up from behind, and was apparently angry that he had to wait a few seconds for driver coming the other way to pass. So he subjected the rider to a needlessly close punishment pass — then brake checked him after the man on the bike strenuously objected to the close pass, like most of us would.
The incident ended when they exchanged words at the stop sign at the end of the block, then turned in opposite directions. Although I’m not sure if the guy on the bike turned left simply to get away from the jerk in the car.
It all happened too quickly for me to react and get my phone out, let alone catch the driver’s license plate.
But it serves as yet another sad reminder that we are all subject to the whims and temperament of those we share the road with.
Because it’s far too easy for drivers to take their bad day out on the nearest person on a bike.
Driving home from work tonight in Hollywood around 6:50pm I saw a black Tesla model X right hook a cyclist travelling southbound on Wilcox. Tesla sped away and I followed them to get their license plate number – if that sounds like it was you shoot me a DM and I’d be happy to share.
This is the last week to register for this year’s Finish the Ride in Griffith Park, which is all the more important after the events of the last two weeks.
Only 1 more week to register for FTR Griffith Park!! Join us in the fight for safer streets and register today at https://t.co/oYvXR1XCu7… Registration closes at NOON on Thursday, and spots are limited, so register today! #FinishTheRide#NeverGiveUp#phoenixrising
It started as a single event to call attention to the hit-and-run epidemic, and finish the ride he was unable to complete because of the 2013 crash. And has morphed into a powerful nonprofit movement to fight the scourge of fleeing drivers.
Renée Zellweger is one of us. And knows how to dress the part.
Born on this day, April 25: Renée Zellweger, actress, shown here ready to conquer Laguna Beach with her electric fat tire bike. Happy #bicyclebirthday, Renée!#botdpic.twitter.com/cIe2fo19Op
The war on cars may be a myth, but the war on bikes just keeps on going.
No bias here. A Staten Island website says traffic deaths continue to rise in New York, despite the city’s Vision Zero, and nearly a “decade of demonizing motorists as almost the exclusive cause of deaths on the road.” Considering drivers are the only ones who are killing people, it seems appropriate.
The rich get richer. San Diego continues its drive to be bike friendly with the opening of the new 3.1-mile Landis Bikeway connecting North Park and City Heights, part of a 12-mile network of bike boulevards. Although it’s probably not named after former San Diego resident and ex-Tour de France winner, and current CBD purveyor, Floyd Landis.
This is who we share the road with. A Florida teenager with a history of recording himself driving at extreme speeds on public highways now faces six counts of vehicular homicide after he rear-ended another vehicle while traveling at 151 mph. Vehicular homicide carries a maximum penalty of 15 years per count in Florida; if the judge imposes consecutive sentences, he could end up serving up to 90 years behind bars.
Typical. After a Welsh driver got the equivalent of a $532 fine for passing a group of bicyclists too close at too high a speed, other drivers insist on social media that he didn’t do anything wrong. Unfortunately, I can’t get the video to load; it may not be available in the US.
Thousands of Scottish bicyclists turned out for the 10th Annual Pedal on Parliament to demand safer streets. In Los Angeles, we’re lucky if we can get a could dozen people to show up for a protest. Maybe if we had numbers like this, city officials might actually listen to us. And do something.
Competitive Cycling
Dutch pro Annemiek van Vleuten won the women’s Liège-Bastogne-Liège to complete her best ever spring campaign; she also won the Omloop Het Nieuwsblad, as well as notching three second place finishes and one fourth in the spring classics.
LA’s elected leaders will undoubtedly pontificate and issue all kinds of public statements stressing the importance of protecting the earth and fighting climate change.
But won’t do a damn thing about it.
And if you happen to see outgoing CD5 Councilmember and current candidate for City Controller Paul Koretz, ask him how he can be a self-professed environmentalist while blocking bike lanes in his district.
Using the recent death of a 13-year old Mountain View boy as a starting point, Farhad Manjoo writes that the boy was right hooked by a truck driver who reportedly never saw the kind on his bike hidden in his blind spot.
And that Andre Retana and the man who killed him didn’t do anything. But Andre lost his life anyway, thanks to roads designed to prioritize automotive throughput over everything else.
Including human lives.
Manjoo goes on to say this —
The United States is in the midst of a traffic fatality crisis. Nearly 39,000 people died in motor vehicle crashes on American roadways in 2020, the most since 2007. American roads have grown especially dangerous to “nonoccupants” of vehicles — that is, bicyclists and pedestrians. In 2011, 16 percent of traffic deaths were of nonoccupants; in 2020 it was 20 percent. The trends are a major reversal — from the 1970s until the late 2000s, deaths on American roadways of bicyclists, pedestrians and people in cars had steadily declined. There are a number of potential reasons for rising deaths — among them that many more of our cars are big and deadly S.U.V.s, that states keep raising speed limits, that ride-sharing vehicles have made our roads more chaotic, and that people drove much more recklessly during the pandemic. But while many cities, states and the federal government have unveiled plans to mitigate the horror, progress has been elusive.
The intersection of El Camino and Grant Road illustrates a major part of the problem. A big reason our roads are unsafe is because they were designed that way — because, as the advocacy group Smart Growth America puts it, policymakers at nearly every level of government continue to prioritize the speedy movement of vehicles over the safety of everyone else on our streets. And even when the dangers of our bad roads become glaring, officials have limited options for fixing them.
Our roads are deadly because officials will still call the inevitable consequences of this ill-design a tragedy rather than a choice.
It’s more than worth taking a few minutes from your day to read the whole thing.
Despite putting both plans in motion more than six years ago, L.A.’s streets are deadlier now than they were then, especially for people walking.
In 2015, 186 people were killed in crashes on city streets. Last year, the death toll was 294, according to city data. Pedestrians make up the largest share of victims, with 132 people killed by drivers while walking last year. That’s up 50% from 2015.
Fed up, a coalition of safety advocates and community groups is working to get a measure on the local ballot this November. The measure would compel the city to follow its mobility plan whenever it repaves a street. That’s rarely happening now, according to the group, called Healthy Streets LA.
Once again, it’s worth a few minutes of your day to read the entire piece.
Because, to paraphrase the NYT’s Manjoo, riding a bike — or walking, or even driving or riding in a car — shouldn’t be this dangerous.
Or deadly.
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Unfortunately, the mean streets of Los Angeles aren’t likely to get any safer anytime soon, as the mayor’s new budget cuts $14 million from the city’s already underfunded transportation budget, while pumping another $125 million into the LAPD’s bloated $3.2 billion budget.
Things like this are why both the LA Times and I have endorsed Kenneth Mejia for city controller, because he’s already doing the controller’s job of digging into the city’s finances to uncover what’s hidden there.
Today I welcomed bike advocates and city leaders to unveil the newest portion of the LA River Bike Path. Located at the headwaters of the River from Owensmouth Ave to Mason Ave, this 1.5 mile of new path connects to established portions we helped create over the past few years. pic.twitter.com/iaj6N3kPfV
This, too, is the cost of traffic violence. A mountain lion was killed on the busy 405 Freeway just south of the Getty Center early Thursday morning, apparently trying to get across the massive billion dollar car sewer.
Costa Mesa opens a new bollard-protected bike lane on Bristol Street, while “enhancing” existing bike lanes on Baker Street. That protected lane is pretty much just separated bike lane marked by green plastid bollards that aren’t going to stop anyone.
The wives of fallen bicyclists Adam and Matthew Bullard, the Whittier brothers killed while riding near St. George, Utah, thanked tlocal residents for honoring the men with a ghost bike; the city is also moving forward with plans for a permanent memorial near the site.
The City Fix calls out five ways to cut oil and gas use through clean transportation, including building safe bicycling and walking infrastructure, and prioritizing both in transportation budgets. Unlike, say, the budget presented by LA’s mayor this week.
The Belize cycling federation called on all bicyclists to don their team jerseys to ride along with the funeral procession honoring cycling coach and race organizer Edison “Vintage” Usher, who died just days before his 49th birthday when the motorcycle he was riding with another man exploded while on their way to livestream a women’s cross country race.
Canadian mountain bikers call for an apology after an Adidas marketing manager wrote a “willfully ignorant” blog post “steeped in white privilege,” which they say suggests the reason women of color don’t succeed in the sport is due to their own lack of hard work.
In addition to murder, prosecutors charged Martinez, 37, with fatal hit-and-run and driving with a suspended or revoked license after being convicted of driving under the influence. He was scheduled to appear in court Wednesday.
If Martinez was convicted of DUI in California, he would have been required to sign a Watson notice acknowledging that he could be charged with murder if he killed someone while driving under the influence anytime in the future.
And kill someone, he did.
Allegedly.
It’s clear from the charges that losing his license didn’t stop Martinez from driving, or from getting behind the wheel after drinking.
California has to do more to keep people like him from continuing to drive after losing their license. Let alone continuing to drive drunk.
Interlock devices that check a driver’s blood alcohol level before the ignition will engage is a start.
But it would be far more effective to impound a driver’s car for the full duration of any drivers license suspension. Or force them to sell their car if their license is revoked.
Because as the charges against Martinez demonstrate, just taking away someone’s license doesn’t stop them from driving.
Griffith Park is the largest park in the United States which still allows private cars. It is a haven for the community and a popular destination for cyclists, runners, walkers, and families with young children – getting out for some physical activity and get-togethers. Yet the few bike lanes that exist do not have barriers separating riders from cars. The posted speed limit is 25 MPH, but many drivers go 40 – 60 MPH using Griffith Park as a way to avoid the crowded 5 freeway.
And yes, I signed it. I hope you will, too.
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Twenty-eight down, 71 to go, as over a quarter of Los Angeles’ neighborhood councils have signed on to the Healthy Streets LA ballot measure, which would require the city to build out the already approve mobility plan as streets get resurfaced.
The Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition is hosting the second in their series of Bike Salons tonight.
The LACBC is also looking for volunteers as they resume the Operation Firefly light giveaway program.
Operation Firefly has begun a new season and we're always looking for volunteers. Meet us in the field as we hand out lights and collect feedback from some of our most vulnerable communities. Sign up to volunteer here: https://t.co/3CRtNUQJRrpic.twitter.com/jvYQ0bd8Nx
The other news isn’t so welcome, as the organization has cancelled their formerly annual River Ride for the third consecutive year, while hinting at an event later this year to “celebrate the joy of bicycling.”
And lowly Wyoming claimed the lanterne rouge as the nation’s most bike-unfriendly state.
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Sometimes, it’s the people on two wheels behaving badly.
A Charlotte NC Uber and Lyft driver is out of work after a “gang” of teenage bike riders chased him down and beat him up, stealing his phone, wallet, car keys and car, after he got out of his car when he “clipped” one of the wheelie-popping riders at a red light.
No bias here. A San Diego TV station actually says California’s requirement that carmakers replace cars that run on gas with other cars that run on batteries is a prime example of the mythical war on cars.
And now you, too, can buy a bike for the same price I paid for my last car.
Colnago launches hyper-premium C68 with an accompanying NFT. A new monocoque handlebar tops off the latest and greatest $15,999 machine from the storied Italian brand.https://t.co/Z6hLTdFFqe
Jelmert was run down from behind as he neared the finish line of a training ride for this year’s AIDS/LifeCycle Ride, which would have been his seventh time completing the weeklong San Francisco to Los Angeles fundraising ride.
He had already raised over $20,000 for the ride, which could now be lost along with his life.
Thirty-seven-year old Jairo Martinez was attempting to pass another car when he slammed into Martinez with enough force to shatter the windshield of his BMW, as well as Jelmert’s bike. The impact scattered bits of the bike across the hillside, where they were later found by Jelmert’s husband.
The only blessing is that in all probability, Jelmert literally never knew what hit him.
Martinez was arrested by sheriff’s deputies shortly after the crash, after he attempted to run away on foot. At last report, he was being held on suspicion of vehicular homicide, with more charges likely to follow pending results of his blood tests.
Uranga succinctly captures the problem bike riders face riding in the park/freeway bypass.
Griffith Park, which occupies more than 4,000 acres of rolling hills, is popular with cyclists who whiz down its tree-lined roads, often crossing over from the nearby L.A. River bike path.
But the few bike lanes that exist do not have barriers separating riders from cars, according to the L.A. Department of Transportation.
Crystal Springs Drive parallels the 5 Freeway and is sometimes used as a cut-through during traffic jams. The posted speed limit is 25 miles per hour, but many drivers go significantly faster.
Too often, drivers come off the 5 and 134 Freeways, and continue through the park at freeway speeds.
I’ve had the crap scared out of me by speeding drivers using the wide shoulder to pass slower cars on the right, while I was riding on it.
We should all demand — not ask — that city leaders move immediately to block the offramp leading into the park, as the first step in banning cars entirely from Griffith Park.
Let the park flourish as just that — a park, not a high-speed sewer for overly aggressive drivers.
Because the simple fact is, parks are for people, not cars.
And tragedies like this will inevitably keep happening if we don’t.
The 73-year old man from a small village in Mexico’s Sinaloa state was in Long Beach visiting his sister when he suffered shortness of breath, and died 30 minutes after being transported to the emergency room.
However, he went unidentified for weeks because he had left his ID at home, and was considered missing until his body was discovered on Saturday.
Yet another reminder to always carry ID when you ride.
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Jim Lyle forwards a Nextdoor notice about a Palos Verdes resident targeting people on bicycles.
The male owner of this green truck has been accelerating towards people riding bikes on the street as though he’s intending to hit them with his car. And, I don’t mean the part of the street where cars belong. I mean the parking area near the gutter not in the way of vehicle traffic. He’s done this to me twice, once so close I was sure he was going to hit me. He swerves away before contact. Be aware of this truck if you ride…I don’t know his name or or know him personally. I learned from a neighbor who saw him accerlerate towards me this morning that he’s known for unsafe, aggressive behavior (I wasn’t given other examples). This info has been given to the sherrif’s department as well.
………
It’s been awhile since we’ve heard from longtime bike advocate, neighborhood council member and Bicycle Advisory Committee member Glenn Bailey, who forwards photos of Waste Management trash bins illegally blocking the heavily used bike lane on Reseda Blvd in Northridge.
He’s filed a complaint with the city’s Bureau of Sanitation, so hopefully he’ll get a response soon.
Or better yet, actually get action to keep it from happening again.
An LA City Councilmember creating an inspirational 2 minute video about how our roads are for everyone and cyclists deserve to feel safe. So rare. And so on point.
Join Sunset For All and the LACBC as they explore the corridor while promoting local businesses and plans for protected bike lanes on Sunset Blvd.
Our next Coffee Walk is this Saturday! Join us for neighborhood business outreach along Sunset Blvd with @lacbc. Local business support is crucial to the success of Sunset4all–help us share our vision! pic.twitter.com/5QxgCgL8HS
Also from Texas, the owner of a car customization business is catching well-deserved flack after posting video of a pickup driver rolling coal at an unsuspecting bike rider, then claiming to be just “vaguely aware” of the video he himself posted, while suggesting that someone’s personal actions shouldn’t reflect on the business they work for. Or own, evidently.
A Colorado judge dropped the murder case against Barry Morphew, whose wife disappeared without a trace after leaving for a Mother’s Day bike ride two years ago. However, it was dismissed without prejudice, allowing prosecutors to refile when and if they have a better case.
Once again, a bike race spectator has taken down a competitor, as a fan applauding on the side of the roadway caught the handlebars of Belgian pro Yves Lampaert during Sunday’s Paris-Roubaix.
April 18, 2022 /
bikinginla / Comments Off on San Diego destroys bikes in homeless cleanup, Ojai ride honors ‘cross legend, and peacock on two wheels
This is so wrong in so many ways.
An infuriating video shows San Diego sanitation workers cleaning up a homeless camp — and mindlessly tossing a pair of bicycles in a garbage truck to be crushed. Destroying what was likely someone’s only form of transportation.
Let alone failing to check if the bikes were stolen, or if someone else could have used them.
Or considering that even homeless people have to be somewhere. And should be allowed to keep what meager possessions they have.
Please spread the word: May 15th in Ojai, California there'll be a memorial ride for the late Laurence Malone, superstar cyclocrosser, Hall of Famer, writer and cycling legend. This free event is a fundraiser for his 9-year-old son Ikal. https://t.co/44IMD8E4VQpic.twitter.com/N0P3m03TIP
Deer Park police, after seeing this video of a Jeep driver barreling the wrong-way toward a cyclist in an apparent fit of road rage, determined this was a case of "he said, she said"
But sometimes, it’s the people on two wheels behaving badly.
British radio host Jeremy Vine was metaphorically spanked on social media after he complained about a woman of walking in front of him without looking, and people responded by accusing him of riding too fast. Although he doesn’t look that speedy to me.
I know there are bad drivers and bad cyclists, but is there any such thing as bad pedestrians? pic.twitter.com/42HG51dzVe
A Minneapolis bike rider discovers the risks of ignoring physical symptoms and not seeing a doctor, when his girlfriend talks him into his first medical examination in at least seven years, revealing a rare form if thyroid cancer. As I’ve learned the hard way, bicycling doesn’t keep you from experiencing serious medical problems, and can mask symptoms that could otherwise point to danger.
This is who we share the road with. A road raging New Jersey driver faces an attempted murder charge for chasing a woman onto a lawn after she attempted to take pictures of his car following a minor collision, and running over her, then backing up and doing it again.
A Swedish university professor explains the problems caused by our current automotive hegemony, and lists the 12 best ways to get cars out of cities, including congestion pricing and swapping curbside parking for bike lanes. So why choose? Let’s just try all of them, at the same time.
An Australian development company is deservedly catching heat for spending nearly three-quarter of a million dollars to build a bay front bike path, only to rip a large segment out to conduct soil remediation underneath — even though they knew it was necessary before the path was built.
