Bad pedestrian/cyclist crash on W&OD in Falls Church

[sjclaeys]

A tragic event, but it looks like the pedestrian was in the wrong and yet the article and most of the comments complain about cyclists.

[consularrider]

It’s also interesting how many of the comments focus on lights and clothing colors, the hours the trail is closed when the incident happened at noon on a bright and sunny day, and cyclists not providing audible warning of overtaking when it was a head on collision when the runner was the one overtaking. As is frequently the case, internet comments have little to do with the facts of the story at hand.

More to the point, does anyone know the cyclist or the runner, and how are they doing?

[jnva]

On a mixed use trail with lots of traffic, accidents are bound to happen. Cars don’t like cyclists riding on the street, pedestrians don’t like cyclists on the mup. I say widen the W&OD and make a dedicated bike lane.

[KLizotte]

Beyond the first paragraph or two that described the accident the rest of the article is a cut and paste from any random WO&D cycling article. The focus on stop signs, for instance, was bizarre given that the accident was not at an intersection. Lazy reporting.

97% of the comments were the usual anti-cyclist rants. Funny how none of the peds ranting admit that they need to acknowledge bells/calls when cyclists are passing to keep everyone safe.

*sigh*

I really, really hope the two individuals pull through and don’t have life long injuries.

[dcv]

We didn’t see the accident but saw 3 emergency vehicles driving on the WOD after the accident. They were on the WOD between Great Falls and Little Falls St, I guess it was a shortcut?

[PeteD]

Ah, I was wondering what the re-appearance of the scare-o-sign was from. Thanks.

–Pete

[dasgeh]

Sounds like the jogger was at fault, and I have NO IDEA of the details. It is a good reminder that peds can be crazy, and sometimes you just have to slow down and expect them to be crazy.

[Drewdane]

@sjclaeys 65888 wrote:

A tragic event, but it looks like the pedestrian was in the wrong and yet the article and most of the comments complain about cyclists.

Actually, I found the article and the comments quite balanced and cordial, especially in comparison to the usual tone displayed on local media and accompanying comments when the subject is cyclists.

And I have to point out, when it comes to using the WOD (and, I imagine, other area MUTs), we really are our own worst enemies. I commute from Falls Church to DC on the WOD/MCT several times a week, and frequently walk along the WOD at other times. By my rough estimate, maybe one quarter of cyclists call out their passes – on a good day. I routinely see cyclists ignore oncoming traffic and “thread the needle” while passing. ELITE riders in team kit go way too fast for the conditions, cyclists consistently ignore stop signs and lights (erm, guilty) etc., etc. etc.

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