Cyclist Hit by Car in Arlington

[care free family]

@Arlingtonrider 67739 wrote:

I’m so very, very sorry this happened to you! You did everything right, and you deserve tons of kudos for your quest to live car-free, your efforts to do everything right and for writing your blog to share ideas with others. I truly hope you’ll be ok and feeling much better soon!

I wanted to add that local (bike accident) attorney Bruce Deming just published a great book called “Surviving the Crash: Your Legal Rights in a Bicycle Accident,” that is excellent and just now became available through Amazon (on Kindle or paperback). It’s an easy read, but very informative and well-written, and it could be incredibly helpful to you right now. I got a copy last week and am very happy to have it. Welcome to the forum.

Thank you very much for the information about the book. Already feeling like I need more information on how to manage things with the insurance company. I will definitely check it out.

[mstone]

@jpetty1 67781 wrote:

Sorry to hear about this, I hope you have a quick recovery.

This is a tricky intersection and difficult connection to the trail. The proposed Marymount University project is planning a cycletrack along the northside of Fairfax between Wakefield and Glebe. The presentation from October 17th meeting that illustrates the cycletrack is still not online. They said it should be uploaded soon.

1000 N. Glebe Road

I probably don’t want to know how much they’ve spent on reconfiguring that stretch right before it gets ripped out again.

[baiskeli]

@car(e) free family 67782 wrote:

Hi, so on the day in question, October 24, 2013 sunrise was at 7:27 a.m. So, I was using the phrasing “daybreak” and “it was light out” to indicate that it was much brighter than dawn light since the sun was about to rise.

Okay, thanks. It sounds like the worst possible time for visibility – in some ways, worse than night time. Cars may not have headlights on, and bike lights may be less noticed. That’s something I hadn’t thought about until reading about your experience. Thanks for posting it. I’m going to get a few strobing bike lights.

[consularrider]

@mstone 67785 wrote:

I probably don’t want to know how much they’ve spent on reconfiguring that stretch right before it gets ripped out again.

No, you really don’t.

[consularrider]

@baiskeli 67786 wrote:

Okay, thanks. It sounds like the worst possible time for visibility – in some ways, worse than night time. Cars may not have headlights on, and bike lights may be less noticed. That’s something I hadn’t thought about until reading about your experience. Thanks for posting it. I’m going to get a few strobing bike lights.

Under the Virginia code lights are required between sunset and sunrise. I run at least one of my rear lights (I always try to have two) inflash mode when I am on the street at least a half hour after sunrise and at least a half hour before sunset. I will tend to run a regular headlight on flash mode during the evening dusk hours and once it is light enough to see by in the morning before the sun is fully up. I keep it on steady when on the trails except when I am riding through wooded areas without much bicycle traffic.

[bikeeveryday]

Fuzzy – I recently raised this question on twitter with Mobility Lab. I think that licensing/re-licensing drivers requirements should be strengthened with some form of continuing driver’s education which covers how to be aware of cyclists when driving, or disembarking from, a vehicle. Periodic testing would be mandatory. This is the only way to reinforce the rules of the road and the consequences of inattentiveness.

@fuzzy 67744 wrote:

It changes when culture changes.

how old was that driver? Did she get her license in 1974, 1984, 1994, 2004? Earlier? What was being taught then & now? You get your license and pay the state XX$ to renew and aren’t aloud to smile in your new photo. That’s it!

How about instead of looking pissed of in the dmv line, and in the photo, you have to take some sort of written or practical test? No- I know why we will not be doing that- because no one has the time for it, so until then folks like you will be getting creamed out there. The only beneficiary to this system is the insurance company & medical service providers.

A few days after I took the WABA safety class I followed the advice of one of the instructors. He said that he finds during the day he is more visibly if he ride with his front light on. A few days later I almost got creamed by a car turning left in-front of me opposite my direction. The driver stopped when she saw my headlamp. Perhaps you could run a red rear and clear flashing lamp on the bike of the bike, something flashing on the ridiculous side of things…Photon torpedoes or something.

[DaveK]

@bikeeveryday 67821 wrote:

Fuzzy – I recently raised this question on twitter with Mobility Lab. I think that licensing/re-licensing drivers requirements should be strengthened with some form of continuing driver’s education which covers how to be aware of cyclists when driving, or disembarking from, a vehicle. Periodic testing would be mandatory. This is the only way to reinforce the rules of the road and the consequences of inattentiveness.

This was a big issue when I lived in Florida. To get right to the point, older folks vote in numbers far higher than do younger age groups. Any sort of required periodic re-testing will not be looked on well by older drivers and any politician sponsoring or voting for such a thing would have a serious issue at election time. Unfortunately it’s always been a political third rail.

[Steve O]

Perhaps I missed it, but I didn’t see any information on whether or not the motorist was cited and for what offense. I would hope failure to yield right of way, careless driving and failing to come to a complete stop as starting points.

[Rootchopper]

There is ample evidence that visual clutter can make even the most obvious thing invisible. The famous dancing bear video demonstates this. But that video and most of this thread assume that the driver has reasonable visual accuity. Serious visual imparements from a detached vitreous, detached retina or cataracts (especially bad in low lights situations), or uncorrected astigmatism are not uncommon. Drivers only get tested once for visual acuity – when they get their licenses, usually in their teen years. In the course of commuting most of us encounter hundreds if not thousands of drivers. Assuming the numberis 1,000. if only 1/2 of 1 percent of them have a vision problem, that means 5 drivers we encounter are have a vision impairment.

[consularrider]

@Rootchopper 67863 wrote:

… Drivers only get tested once for visual acuity – when they get their licenses, usually in their teen years. In the course of commuting most of us encounter hundreds if not thousands of drivers. Assuming the numberis 1,000. if only 1/2 of 1 percent of them have a vision problem, that means 5 drivers we encounter are have a vision impairment.

Every time I go into the DMV to get my license renewed, there is at least a cursory vision check. Since you can renew online now as well, there wouldn’t even be that. They picked up on my having glasses and so restricted my license. However, I don’t need the glasses for regular vision, the are bifocals mostly for reading.

[bikeeveryday]

I took a quick look at Virginia’s Drivers Manual which is online at http://www.dmv.virginia.gov/webdoc/pdf/dmv39.pdf.

When searching for “bicycle” (12 instances) there is a lot of good language that instructs motorists to be aware of bicycles and yield or use caution.

For example, the first reference to bicycles is under the various traffic signals, signs and pavement markings section. The “Right Turn on Red” traffic signals sub-section says “Be sure to check for less visible vehicles such as motorcycles, bicycles and mopeds.” This is repeated for “left turn on red”, “flashing yellow arrow”, and “green light or arrow” subsections. The traffic signs sub-section explains the “Bicycle Crossing/Bike Path” sign with the following language “Bicycles regularly cross or ride beside traffic in this area. Drive with caution.”

Then in the “Changing Lane” section, motorists are told “when approaching or passing a person riding a bicycle, moped, or power-assisted bicycle or other device, reduce speed and pass at least two feet to the left NOTE: I believe VA has passed a 3-foot law, so this needs to be revised. When making left turns, motorists are also instructed to “When the way is clear, make the left turn, yield to any vehicles (including bicycles and pedestrians) approaching from the opposite direction.

There is also a section called “Searching” which explains that motorists should “search the road, avoid staring at one thing.” Bicycles are only specifically referenced in the instructions regarding driving in rural areas. NOTE: This section should probably be revised to include bicycles in the “search for clues on the road” part.

Finally, there is a section titled “Sharing the Road”. It is the driver’s “responsibility to adjust your driving to avoid other drivers’ mistakes and assure everyone’s safety.” This section also specifically provides that “Bicycles are considered vehicles and have the same right-of-way as motor vehicles. Bicyclists are expected to obey the same traffic rules and regulations as vehicle drivers; however, many are children who may not know or obey the rules. Slow down when you approach bicyclists. Give them plenty of room when passing and be prepared to stop suddenly. Look for bicycles on all public roads.“

So, I think there is plenty of fodder within the VA Drivers Manual for educating and re-educating motorists on their responsibilities around bicycles.

@dasgeh 67774 wrote:

Yep. And we could start that in the schools, which have local control (DMV = Richmond, ugh). Which reminds me, there are 2 empty “community” seats on the MMTSSSC for APS. Any Arlingtonians out there without kids in APS want to join in the fun. We could really use some more voices with a longer range, community-based perspective.

[bikeeveryday]

We aren’t in Florida. People’s safety should over-ride any political third rail concerns.

@DaveK 67830 wrote:

This was a big issue when I lived in Florida. To get right to the point, older folks vote in numbers far higher than do younger age groups. Any sort of required periodic re-testing will not be looked on well by older drivers and any politician sponsoring or voting for such a thing would have a serious issue at election time. Unfortunately it’s always been a political third rail.

[consularrider]

@bikeeveryday 67879 wrote:

… Then in the “Changing Lane” section, motorists are told “when approaching or passing a person riding a bicycle, moped, or power-assisted bicycle or other device, reduce speed and pass at least two feet to the left. NOTE: I believe VA has passed a 3-foot law, so this needs to be revised …

Nope, it has never made it out of committee.

[chris_s]

@mstone 67785 wrote:

I probably don’t want to know how much they’ve spent on reconfiguring that stretch right before it gets ripped out again.

Exhibit A in how good projects go wrong

Also relevant: who knows when (or if) 1000 N Glebe will go to construction. It could be next year, it could be a decade from now, it could fall through completely.

[mstone]

@consularrider 67897 wrote:

Nope, it has never made it out of committee.

Correct. One of the good ol’ boys was concerned that it would make unsafe passes in his pickup truck illegal.

@bikeeveryday 67884 wrote:

We aren’t in Florida.

Southwest VA is as far south as Florida on issues like this. See above.

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