Long Beach police officers discovered 24-year old San Pedro resident Cole Micek lying on the Terminal Island Freeway at Pier A Way around 3 am last Saturday.
It’s tragic enough when anyone is needlessly killed in a crash.
Worse when it’s a child. Especially one who doesn’t appear to have done anything wrong.
The Long Beach Post reports that a boy in his early teens was killed while riding his bike in the city Thursday afternoon.
According to the paper, the boy was riding with a preteen girl, headed east in the crosswalk on Conant Street at Woodruff Ave at 3:55 pm, when they were both struck by a driver turning left off westbound Conant onto Woodruff Ave.
They were taken to a local hospital, where the boy passed away. The girl remains hospitalized in stable condition with non-life threatening injuries.
Neither victim has been publicly identified.
The driver stayed at the scene.
This is the 57th bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the 25th in Los Angeles County.
It’s also the third bicycling death in Long Beach this year, and at least the 13th since 2011.
Update: According to the Long Beach Report, the two victims were waiting on the sidewalk to cross Woodruff on their bikes, and didn’t enter the crosswalk until the light turned green. The driver turned into them as they were riding across the street.
Anyone with information is urged to call LBPD Collision Investigation Detail Detective Brian Watt at 562/570-7355.
My deepest sympathy and prayers for the victim and his loved ones.
The rider, who has not been publicly identified, reportedly turned onto the street diagonally, putting him directly into the path of the oncoming car.
A police spokesperson says the victim saw the car at the last moment, but was struck as both he and the driver tried to avoid the crash.
He died at the scene.
A street view shows two lanes in each direction on Downey with a center left turn lane, and a parallel access road on either side.
It’s unclear where the rider would have entered the road at a diagonal angle. It’s possible he may have come off a side street intending to turn at La Jara, or vice versa, but that is just speculation.
It’s also questionable why he wouldn’t have seen the driver, since Downey offers an unobstructed view in both directions. As well as who told police he tried to avoid the crash after seeing the driver at the last minute.
It’s impossible to know what he may have seen and when, since he’s unable to give his side of the story. Or just what his actions were as a result unless they were observed by independent witnesses.
This is the 37th bicycling fatality in Southern California, and the 17th in Los Angeles County this year. And it’s at least the 13th bicycling death in Long Beach since 2010.
The driver reportedly moved into the right lane to avoid Holland at the same time Holland made a U-turn to his right, putting him directly into the path of the car.
My deepest sympathy and prayers for John Anthony Holland and his loved ones.
He named a panel of 20 people to the Playa del Rey Safer Streets Task Force, charged with determining if the lane reductions should stay in place. And what other changes, if any, should be made to improve safety in the beachfront community.
The panel is made up of local residents and business people, including those for and against the recent changes.
Although it’s notable that only Peter Flax is identified by his means of transportation; evidently, it’s just assumed that everyone else drives.
You know, like normal people.
Meanwhile, the Easy Reader News offers one of the most in-depth examinations of the controversy to date, as South Bay residents continue to expect everyone else to pay the price for their unsustainable single-occupant commutes.
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A “longtime Long Beach resident” appears to have taken the wrong lesson from the Vista del Mar fiasco, saying LA’s portside neighbor should learn from LA and cancel the planned Broadway bike lanes.
Long Beach really wants to be Amsterdam, where bicycles rule. But we live in Southern California, where distances between home and work are often great, good public transportation is essentially non-existent, and temperatures are often in the 80s and 90s (and it’s getting hotter every year).
Apparently, our council imagines if we destroy our main traffic arteries, those streets will just go “poof,” cars will disappear and lanes will magically fill up with air-conditioned, long-distance commuter bicycles.
Yes, because those moderate temperatures are just too hot for humans to endure. Especially with those cool sea breezes and coastal clouds to cool things off.
And never mind that most car trips in the LA area are three miles or less. Which hardly requires a long-distance commuter bicycle.
Or bicyclist, for that matter.
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Last week we showed you a trailer for Décryptø, the experimental short film from Scott Nichols looking at the custom hand-made carbon fiber bikes from SoCal’s Cryptic Cycles.
Now you can see the whole six-minute film, which dropped yesterday.
A Tour of Norway breakaway was reeled back in when a bridge unexpectedly opened, stopping the lead riders dead in their tracks until the rest of the field caught up.
The legislator who authored California’s handheld cellphone ban says the reason it’s almost universally ignored by drivers is that the penalty is too low. He tried twice to increase the penalty slightly, but both times it was vetoed by a clueless Governor Brown.
A Sacramento mother says the hit-and-run driver who killed her 15-year old son as he rode his bike back home with a friend has changed her family’s lives forever.
The Chico Velo bicycle advocacy group is looking for a new executive director, as the woman who has run the group in the Gold-level bike-friendly city since 2012 is looking to retire.
Now that’s more like it. A Lake Tahoe man gets four years and eight months behind bars for running a stop sign and hitting a bicyclist while driving at three times the legal alcohol limit, then attempting to run down a witness that followed him; he’s also banned from driving for five years after his release. Make that a lifetime driving ban, and we’ve got a deal.
A mystery was solved after a British couple discovered a pool of blood and a backpack on their porch after hearing a knock on their door, and police conducted an unsuccessful search using dogs. It turned out to be a man who had fallen off his bike and suffered a head injury; his friends had taken him to a hotel for help after they found him knocking on the door of the house for help.
Depending on the source, one or both were then struck by the driver of an SUV headed south on Long Beach.
One of the men somehow ended up on the hood of the Ford SUV, and was carried several blocks before being thrown off by the fleeing driver.
He was severely injured, and died at scene after police arrived.
The other rider suffered minor injuries and was treated at the scene.
KTLA-5 reports the driver circled the block once before abandoning his car and fleeing on foot. They also say police believe they know the identity of the driver, but have not yet made an arrest.
That is contradicted by a story in the Press-Telegram, which says authorities have the vehicle, but don’t yet know who was behind the wheel or have a description of the suspect.
KTLA also places the actual site of the wreck several blocks away at the Long Beach Boulevard offramp of the 91 Freeway, saying Bout was where the victim was thrown off and landed in the street.
There is also some dispute over how the victim ended up on the SUV.
Most reports indicate he either landed on the hood as a result of the crash, or jumped onto it in an attempt to stop the driver from getting away.
However, according to KTLA,
The second cyclist then jumped on the driver’s side running board of the SUV, reached into the window and tried to turn off the ignition before the driver took off with the man clinging to the side of the vehicle, a Long Beach police news release stated.
Earlier, Watt said the bicyclist jumped on the hood before police released additional information about the incident.
Either way, the driver had to know the victim was on his vehicle, and made a conscious decision to flee with the victim clinging to his SUV, resulting in the rider’s death.
Which means he should face a charge of vehicular homicide once he’s caught. If not 2nd degree murder.
This is the 35th bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the 16th in Los Angeles County. It’s also at least the 12th bicycling death in Long Beach since 2010.
According to them, the SUV struck one of the victims at the Long Beach Blvd offramp.
The other rider, who was not hit, jumped on the running board of the SUV, and hit his head on a curb when he was thrown from the vehicle as the driver made a sharp right onto Bort.
The victim has been identified only as a 51-year old man.
This is a reminder that it’s not worth your life to stop a fleeing driver.
Gather all the details you can — make, model, color, license and a description of the driver — as well as photos or video, if possible. Then get out of the way and let the police deal with it.
It takes a real jerk to leave a kid lying in the street.
Long Beach police are looking for the hit-and-run driver who struck a 15-year old boy Thursday morning as he was riding his bike at the intersection of Anaheim Street and Obispo Ave in the city’s Zaferia neighborhood.
Fortunately, the victim was not seriously injured.
According to the Press-Telegram, the driver, who stopped briefly before fleeing, appeared to be a blond haired, blue eyed male in his 20s. He was driving a newer model sedan, possibly a Honda, with a flat-black paint job with possible damage to the right front turn signal, as well as previous damage to its front passenger-side door.
Anyone with information is urged to call Long Beach police investigators at 562/570-7355.
Meanwhile, the CHP is searching for the heartless coward who drove away after hitting a nine-year old Murrieta boy as he was riding to school Thursday morning; fortunately the boy, the son of a Marine first sergeant stationed at Camp Pendleton, only suffered minor injuries.
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Heartbreaking news, as a genuine American hero died at the VA hospital in Westwood last month.
According to the LA Sentinel, 106-year old Redondo Beach resident Walter Crenshaw, Jr. was the oldest surviving member of the Tuskegee Airmen when he passed away on October 7th.
The paper reports he used to ride his bike to the Santa Monica pier three or four times a week when he lived in the city.
The Tuskegee Airmen were among the best pilots in the air in WWII, despite dealing with relentless discrimination in the Jim Crow South and on the battle fields of Europe; they proved that black men could fly just as well, if not better, than the white pilots they fought with and against.
Their success in the air paved the way for the integration of the armed forces, and for the civil rights battles that followed after the war.
They were heroes in every sense of the word, yet came back to an America where they were second class citizens.
An auto-centric Seattle radio host calls the author of the excellent Seattle Bike Blog “a notoriously hyper-critical bike activist” for saying a proposed eight-lane waterfront roadway should put people first, instead of cars; he insists the plan does put people first because people drive cars.
It takes a major scumbag to leave an Indiana hit-and-run victim to die alone in the street, and an even bigger one to come upon the scene and steal his bicycle as he lay dying.
Quartz says the real reason behind the worldwide bike boom is concern over weight loss. Except in Paris, where web searchers want to know why cyclists shave their legs.
The Long Beach Press-Telegram is reporting that a man apparently died as a result of what was described as a major medical emergency during the bicycle segment of today’s Long Beach Marathon.
According to the paper, the man, who has not been publicly identified, suffered a cardiac arrest while riding near the intersection of Ocean Blvd and Prospect Ave in Belmont Shore at 6:30 am Sunday.
Despite the effort of paramedics, he was pronounced dead after being transported to a local hospital.
No other information is available at this time.
This is the 62nd bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the 25th in Los Angeles County.
Update: News like this is always tragic; it somehow seems even worse when it’s someone who’s well known in the cycling community.
While the victim still has not been publicly identified, I received the following email from Richard Rosenthal Monday evening.
I was on the ride with my girlfriend, and we both witnessed the paramedics giving CPR to a cyclist on ground. It really shook my up, as he was a older man in full kit, much as I am. It was on my mind the remainder of the ride, and when I found out Monday morning that the cyclist had died I was even more shaken.
The news just got worse for me personally. I found out that the deceased was my friend Steve Hernandez. We both served together on the Board of Directors of Lightning Velo in Long Beach. Steve was one of the kindest people I have ever met….an imposing bear of a man with long hair and beard, but his personality couldn’t have been more opposite. Always quick with a smile and a laugh, he was one of the most beloved members of our club, and he will be missed sorely.
Update: The LA County coroner’s office confirms his identity as 59-year old Steven Hernandez.
My deepest sympathy and prayers for Steve Hernandez and his family.
Thanks to Danny Gamboa and Richard Rosenthal for the heads-up.
In it, Babin argued that the laws governing traffic weren’t written with bicycles in mind, and don’t always work effectively for people on two wheels.
It’s true that Los Angeles is finally taking its first serious steps toward making the city more bike-friendly. But the focus is on building bike-dedicated infrastructure, which can be slow and expensive to build.
The Idaho stop law shows there are other ways for municipalities to encourage cycling while their infrastructure catches up. Cities around the world are demonstrating that simply changing the rules in favor of cyclists can make roads more welcoming.
He continues,
Yet streets are already governed by different rules for different users, such as laws that require slower speed limits for big trucks, or that mandate school buses to stop at uncontrolled railway crossings. Rather than demonize cyclists for their inability to conform to rules designed for cars, laws should recognize that riding a bike is different than driving.
All in all, a reasonable request to simply acknowledge that bikes are different that cars, yet bicyclists are forced to act like motor vehicles, regardless of whether it makes sense.
Yet based on some of the comments, you’d think he declared war on anyone who doesn’t ride a bike.
Like this from OptimisticOrgan, for instance. (Unfortunately, the Times makes it impossible to link to any one comment.)
Stop sign being a yield is fine by me. Cycling culture needs to change, though. Too many jerks are going 15 in a 45 in the middle of the lane. Then they act like yr the bad guy for being annoyed by the fact they’re impeding traffic flow. It’s like “I’m sorry brother, trying to stay far enough behind you,” but the cyclist is still pissed that your car is faster than his bike and projects ill will toward you.
Many commenters went great pains to point out that Los Angeles isn’t Idaho, with many times the population, in case we had somehow missed that point. Apparently failing to notice where he pointed out that the Idaho Stop Law is now in effect in auto-clogged Paris, with it’s 2.24 million population, and a reputation for roadway rudeness that makes our streets seem downright polite.
Other, such as feaco11, apparently couldn’t grasp Babin’s key point that bikes and cars are different.
Better yet, let’s change the law so that motorists can treat a stop sign as a yield sign. Just think of the gas that will be saved if our cars do not have to lose momentum going through an intersection. Maybe the same could be applied to red lights. It would certainly free up the court system because there would be less tickets written.
Then there’s this confession to illegal harassment from boneme8978.
i would not consider riding a bike on a suburban street . but i love the people that do . keeps me laughing all the time . you should see them jump when i blast them with my train horn ! the 300 i spent at ‘summit racing ‘ to buy that bad boy was worth every penny !
And it goes on and on, ad nauseum, just like on any other pro bike piece that appears online, filled with constant reminders of that one time a bike rider broke the law, which somehow projects onto every person on a bicycle who ever lived.
Damnable scofflaws, all.
It’s a reminder of who we share the road with. As well as the Internet.
Protected by layers of glass and steel on one, anonymous pseudonyms on the other.
Spelling and punctuation challenged though they might be.
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Long Beach police arrested a hit-and-run suspect at gunpoint after he was found hiding under a car. Witnesses said the speeding driver hit a bike rider after running a red light, then drove erratically, running red lights and nearly striking pedestrians as he attempted to escape.
Both the victim and the driver were transported to a local hospital; no word on their conditions.
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Turns out the bicycle smashed in two by an angry rider in Milan’s Red Hook Crit wasn’t even his.
Deadspin calls it the pinnacle of human rage, though anyone who has dealt with a road raging motorist — or an angry online commenter — would probably disagree.
A Chico couple propose to replace their daughter’s ghost bike with a sign memorializing her, along with the phrases “How to save a life? Don’t Drink and Drive” and “Share the Road, Drive with Care,” pending approval from Caltrans. Which is not likely, unfortunately.
After being diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes, a Nebraska man takes up bicycling and a better diet, and loses 75 pounds while bringing his illness under control.
A Scottish parliament member says even a small increase in bicycling could lead to an improvement in air quality, while calling for a decrease in speed limits around schools and residential areas.
At least it’s a creative protest. A Scottish man shows his objection to a new separated bike lane by rowing in it.
A South African provincial transport minister says bicycling must be seen as a form of mobility, disputing plans by the mayor of Johannesburg to halt bike lane construction in the city.
And wondered why there wasn’t a sign warning cyclists using the Aviation Blvd bike lanes to beware.
Now there is.
Except it’s not at LAX.
A reader who prefers to be anonymous was inspired to reach out to the staff of the Long Beach Airport to ask that signs be installed there.
The result was newly installed signs warning of jet blast just off Cover Street, and Lakewood Blvd. And at her insistence, with a self-explanatory graphic for non-English speakers.
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The nationally recognized Tour de Taco hosted by Stan’s Bike Shop and the Eastside Bike Club rolls this Saturday, with stops promised at six taco stands on the 25-mile social ride.
The Pomona Valley Bicycle Coalition will host a bike ride and community meeting on the 19th, and a bike-in movie on the 30th.
The third annual Tour de Laemmle rolls on July 24th, as you’re invited to ride with chain president Greg Laemmle to visit all the Laemmle Theaters in a single day.
Join the Los Angeles Public Library’s Book Bike for a community bike ride in San Pedro at the end of this month.
The Feds call Lance a “doper, dealer and liar” in legal papers. So tell us something we don’t know.
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Local
An Op-Ed in the LA Times says the vehicular cycling philosophy that pitted drivers against cyclists for 40 years is finally giving way to separated bike lanes.
The first Los Angeles roundabout in modern times is coming to Northeast LA where the Riverside Bridge intersects with North Figueroa and San Fernando Road. We still can’t seem to get a bike lane on North Fig, though.
A Long Beach teenager will ride 525 miles from San Francisco to LA this fall to raise funds to fight juvenile arthritis, after overcoming the disease herself.
Newport Beach becomes the latest SoCal city to crack down on traffic violations that endanger bicyclists and pedestrians today. So ride safely and obey the law.
A North San Diego County columnist calls for five communities along the coast highway to band together for a more complete Complete Streets plan.
Clovis police are waiting for an expert witness to review the evidence in a fatal bicycling collision before deciding whether to file charges; the police chief says the rider was struck even though he didn’t do anything wrong. I’ll be happy to review the case for them. Trust me.
National
A woman with just one hand will ride around Oahu 12 times to raise $180,000 to buy 12 service dogs for veterans with PTSD.
The Denver area driver who killed the Good Samaritan that stopped to help another driver retrieve a bicycle that had fallen off his car will face charges of vehicular homicide and DUI.
Clearly, not everyone who visits Copenhagen gets it, as the editor of the Denver Business Journal calls on the Mile High City to ditch plans for bike lanes, shortly after returning from the bike-friendly Danish capital.
Toronto considers catering to the anti-bike crowd by charging riders for bicycle licenses to pay for bike lanes. Even though everyone else who has studied the idea has concluded it would cost more to license bicyclists than the program would bring in.
A British writer points out what should be obvious, saying we bicyclists aren’t all in this together, despite the perceptions of many drivers. Something I considered myself awhile back.
A new Danish study shows bicycling can lower your risk of Type 2 diabetes. It didn’t work for me, but hopefully you’ll have better luck.
According to an article posted today by the Long Beach Gazettes, the victim, who was not publicly named, was riding westbound with a friend in the center median on Market when she was struck by a speeding car.
Emergency personnel found her lying unconscious in the eastbound lane; she was transported to a local hospital where she was pronounced dead.
The driver was illegally passing another car when he or she struck the victim’s bike from behind before fleeing the scene.
Police later found the vehicle, a 2013 Kia Optima, abandoned 5300 block of Atlantic Avenue. The car, which had a smashed windshield and major front end damage, had been reported stolen in a carjacking the day before.
There’s no word on why the couple were riding in the painted center lane instead of in the traffic lane, where they presumably would have been protected by the car that was being passed.
Police are looking for four people who were reportedly in the the stolen car at the time of the crash. Anyone with information is urged to call Long Beach collision investigations detective Brian Watt at 562/570-5520; tips can also be reported online at www.lacrimestoppers.org.
This is the 48th bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and 20th in Los Angeles County. And it’s at least the tenth fatal bike crash in Long Beach since 2010.
Update: The victim has been identified only as a white woman in her 40s, pending notification of next of kin.
My deepest sympathy and prayers for the victim and her loved ones.
