# Article Saturday in Chronicle on bicycle crashes and fault



## singlespeed.org (Feb 14, 2006)

This article doesn't look like it will be good...

_*Chronicle investigates bike crashes*

Bicyclists were twice as likely as to be "at fault" in the nearly 2,000 collisions that killed or severely injured Bay Area bike riders in the last decade, a Chronicle analysis shows.

Bicycle and safety advocates are saying the deaths two weeks ago of two cyclists - hit by a Santa Clara sheriff's deputy - should serve as a call to improve relations between cars and bikes on the roadways.

"There is a juggernaut out there - the tension between the cyclists and the drivers is so high that it's become a war," said cycling coach Marc Evans.

Saturday: Read the full story in the Chronicle. Download the database on sfgate.com _

Going to be interesting to hear what they say.


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## mytorelli (Dec 19, 2004)

wow... they dont blame the speeding drivers or speeding motorcycles, or drivers falling asleep?


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## ukiahb (Jan 26, 2003)

the full story is now at http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/03/22/MNU3VOB22.DTL


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## wipeout (Jun 6, 2005)

I agree with the article. I see a lot of fools on 2 wheels out there - I'm one of the rare people that stop at stop signs and red lights.


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## singlespeed.org (Feb 14, 2006)

Yeah, I am happy to see that the article was much more balanced than the pre-article I posted made it sound like it would be.

Interesting that people talk about cyclists blowing through stops as something they see often, yet unsafe speed and riding on th wrong side were listed as the most common cyclist errors when they were listed as the cause of the accident.


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## Chef Tony (Mar 2, 2004)

(rant>
Running stop signs is certainly the most common complaint about cyclists. But man, I live on the corner of a 4-way stop in a residential area, and I can see about 8 out of 10 cars roll that stop any time of the day out my kitchen window. The only time cars make a full stop is when there is traffic & they have to negotiate the right of way. Calling out cyclists for running stop signs, there's no comparison. 
Like most other situations the key is common sense and predictability. The cars aren't making a full stop when all the vehicles are in plain view and taking their turns. Put a bike in the mix and the same rules should apply. 
But even so, me & my bike (200lbs) don't have much chance of of hurting anyone if I run the stop sign at 10-15mph, but a car? F=mA folks. Plus, I can stop faster, maneuver quicker, and see the intersection better than someone behind a 5 ft long hood, 4 ft wide bumper, a windshield, and the stereo blasting.
(/rant>

Back on topic, the article lists unsafe speed as the 'most dangerous' violation. I wonder how an unsafe speed was determined? And riding on the wrong side of the road? Those are pedestrians on bikes, not cyclists.


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## K-Zero (Feb 7, 2004)

*Warning clueless/dangerous riders?*

I'm not too surprised to hear this, since I see riders on the road with no regards to law/common sense all the time. Which makes me curious -- do you guys every say something to other riders when they're riding dangerously? I saw two guys riding abreast on a narrow/busy road this afternoon, and the guy on the left kept swinging out with no regards to the cars behind him. I just yelled "car-back" (which he totally ignored), and I'm wondering now if I should've said something before I went around them...

Anyhow, what's really interesting about this whole cyclists-at-fault thing is that when I took traffic school last year, I think the study material said something like 90% of accidents involving motorcycles are fault of the drivers. 

K-Zero


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## filtersweep (Feb 4, 2004)

What constitutes a "cyclist" ? A kid darting out in the street and getting hit by a car? A drunk riding at night against traffic with no lights? I am guessing "cyclists" of the type who might post here constitute a small minority of total cyclists.




singlespeed.org said:


> This article doesn't look like it will be good...
> 
> _*Chronicle investigates bike crashes*
> 
> ...


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## K-Zero (Feb 7, 2004)

filtersweep said:


> What constitutes a "cyclist" ? A kid darting out in the street and getting hit by a car? A drunk riding at night against traffic with no lights? I am guessing "cyclists" of the type who might post here constitute a small minority of total cyclists.


Good point. For better or worse, anyone can just get on a bike and go for a ride as opposed to car/motorcycle which requires testing/license. Large group of inexperienced riders can definitely skew the numbers.

K-Zero


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## ukiahb (Jan 26, 2003)

K-Zero said:


> Good point. For better or worse, anyone can just get on a bike and go for a ride as opposed to car/motorcycle which requires testing/license. Large group of inexperienced riders can definitely skew the numbers.
> 
> K-Zero


true...though I often see some amazingly bad riding on club rides by "serious cyclists" who should know better...


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## K-Zero (Feb 7, 2004)

ukiahb said:


> true...though I often see some amazingly bad riding on club rides by "serious cyclists" who should know better...


Yep, same here...and that really pisses me off both as a rider and a driver. Us "serious" riders should be setting good example for everyone else.

K-Zero


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## wipeout (Jun 6, 2005)

I'm amazed at all the media attention given to the Adam Gaillard trial where 2 pedestrians were run down and killed. Why isn't this latest tragedy given as much attention?


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## filtersweep (Feb 4, 2004)

It is a lot more difficult to blame the victim if it is a pedestrian (who is not jaywalking or drunk).

The Adam case further highlights the reluctance to criminalize vehicular crimes. The fact that he fled an accident is considered to be far more serious than the fact that he killed two people--- and he certainly was impaired or negligent in some manner. The law should simply treat anyone who flees an accident as if they had the highest BAC possible--- in addition to the fleeing charges.



wipeout said:


> I'm amazed at all the media attention given to the Adam Gaillard trial where 2 pedestrians were run down and killed. Why isn't this latest tragedy given as much attention?


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## Leopold Porkstacker (Jul 15, 2005)

K-Zero said:


> Which makes me curious -- do you guys every say something to other riders when they're riding dangerously?
> 
> K-Zero


All the time. The most common phrase I emit is, “YOU’RE GOING THE WRONG WAY!!!”, since the signs clearly visible on the streetlight posts state “BICYCLES WRONG WAY” when viewed from the wrong direction of the flow of traffic. Usually it’s some inbred Raiders fan kid wearing all black taking his helmet for a ride on the handlebars, and his response is some sort of suggestion of what I should do with myself. Of course my response is even more coarse and degrading but I shall not repeat them here.


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