vol

I would most times slow down, occasionally speed up, to minimize the time being next to a big truck. In this particular case, if already in that situation, maybe the most one could do is to stop instantly and abandon the bike. If already fell, try best to crawl away if possible but probably no way. (I ride in an obscure little town called Manhattan )

Taking the lane works only for fast riders.

dynodonn 

It appears that the truck driver was operating his vehicle at an unsafe speed for them to adequately check the adjacent lane to their right, before making the turning movement. Operating procedures for a large vehicle in an urban environment must be more stringent than that of those on a open highway, or some back road.

northernlights

Wow, so much fuss over something that is completely irrelevant. I didn't notice what the first two people were riding because it isn't relevant. They were not involved in the accident and I prefer not to waste my time paying a lot of attention to things that are not relevant. What's next? Are you going to tell what color shoes they were wearing too? Sorry but its not relevant.


That old nonsense again? Not sure why you keep beating that dead horse but let me know when you decide to post something that is actually meaningful and relevant.



350,00 miles on a bicycle? Wow, that's more mileage than I have put into driving automobiles for the last twenty two years. You put more miles on a bike than an average person has driven in a car. Hard to believe, but its certainly not typical if true.



The title of thread is called HOW COULD THE TRAGEDY BE AVOIDED? We are here to give suggestions on what the cyclist could have done to avoid getting run over. Number one on the list would be to look both ways before crossing the street, and just paying attention to your surroundings which the cyclist failed to do and which I already mentioned. She didn't even look one way. I don't know how you can continue to defend the indefensible but if she had been paying attention she would have noticed the giant truck turning in her path.

Whether you take the lane or not you still have to look both ways when crossing the street. You don't have to be an expert to know that it's just common sense. But apparently you don't believe in such basic safety and prefer the blind luck approach. Hard to believe you're still alive after 350,000 miles on a bike with that approach.

In case you haven't noticed the name of the forum is "Advocacy and SAFETY" not "How to ride like an unsafe reckless idiot" like this cyclist. Sorry I don't have much sympathy for reckless idiots who can't even be bothered to look before crossing the street.

dynodonn 

While some here are focused on what the cyclist should have done, what also needs to be done is for the local population to advocate for considerably stronger criminal and civil penalties for large vehicle operators who negligently operate their vehicles, and cause a fatality.
To me, it greatly appears that the truck driver was more concerned about their destination, and less about the journey at hand.

Number400

Sad thing that life is cheap to many people. Your safety is not a concern as people go about their daily business. People drive to their calendars and god forbid that you get in the way. Sure, they are sorry when something goes wrong but then it's too late.


Some cyclists and pedestrians don't even watch out for their own safety. I see people wandering in the street, talking on the phone and not even looking out for traffic. Combine that with inattentive, distracted and unconcerned drivers and you get the above video. No-one gives a crap until it all goes wrong and then it's a tragedy. Sounds awful, but is the ever increasing normal as I see it.


Stay vigilant out there!

vol

So what if she did look both ways and saw the truck? What should she have done? What would you do? As pointed out, the truck's turn signal didn't start until already making the turn.

Btw, would like to know if/whwat you have to say to my last reply to you (post #24).

Stadjer

Trucks have blind spots and mirrors. Mirrors work both ways, if you can't see the driver in the mirror, he can't see you. Don't be where you can't see the driver.

SHBR

This is a common occurrence in China. The victim, probably an ebike rider, didn't bother to even look left or check behind before entering the intersection. I've seen far too many people do that, situational awareness is an after thought. The truck also appeared to be oblivious to the whole situation, just kept going even after the collision. Also, those trucks are often quite noisy, usually the brakes have a deafening howl, pretty hard even for the hearing impaired to ignore.

Legally, the truck is at fault, (same as the US) however the law is only applied if you get caught, usually after an incident. Traffic enforcement is a lost cause in China.

Taking the lane isn't always the best option if there is heavy traffic, sometimes the traffic lane can be more unpredictable than the bike lane. The traffic lane can suddenly stop, making it all too easy to get boxed in, surrounded by unskilled drivers with nowhere to go. Many times there will be motorists that will move over two or more lanes without signalling cutting off whoever happens to get in the way.

I always check for right hooks, then left hooks, and finally check for anyone that is pulling in from the right when going through intersections.

Mirror use is essential.

Here is another fine example of poor situational awareness:

HTupolev

In the moment, by never assuming that the driver of a vehicle in the right-hand motorized lane saw you, and hesitating to make sure they won't run you over, even if you clearly should have the right-of-way.

On a larger scale, incidence of such right hooks could probably be reduced by teaching people to merge into bike lanes before making right turns.

northernlights

Are you serious with that question? The only sensible thing to do after seeing a giant truck at an intersection is to stop riding and let the truck go by you, not keep riding into it and let it run over you. If the cyclist saw the truck but kept riding anyway that makes her an even bigger idiot, high on drugs, suicidal or all the above. Whether the truck signaled or not is irrelevant. Drivers often fail to signal before turning so relying on them to do the right thing is just sheer stupidity and a fast ticket to the cemetary.



None of what you wrote in that post made any sense to me. I can't respond to nonsensical gibberish.

mconlonx

I don't see that the truck was signalling a turn, and in the USA at least, there would be some kind of side indicator flashing in view of the cyclist to at least give some warning.

Since the lane was marked with at least a forward arrow and I think we catch a glimpse of a painted right turn arrow, and since the truck was not signalling a turn, the cyclist could certainly have actually been aware of the truck and assumed it was going straight through the intersection instead of turning.

It doesn't help that the moped rider behind the cyclist actually cut off the cyclist's avenue for escape by passing on the inside while turning right. It appears to me that the cyclist actually looked right and started to dodge right, but hesitated due to the presence of the turning moped.

At some point, considering traffic speed, the truck must have passed the moving cyclist and at least have had some awareness of the cyclist. It's not clear but the moped rider might have been signalling a right hand turn and the truck driver might have mistakenly assumed the cyclist was also turning right, as well.

As a commuter, I do assume quite a bit of responsibility for my own safety, and there is probably a small percentage of fault that might be laid on the cyclist in this case, but the vast majority of fault lies with the truck driver.

However, it didn't happen in the USA, I am unfamiliar with what country is portrayed, let alone traffic laws regarding cycling there, so I won't make any assumptions about the relative legality of that unfortunate situation.

njkayaker

Not really true. But it isn't always easy to do.

Anyway, it's not clear whether taking the lane would have been legal there (or customary).

njkayaker

There was a flashing turn signal at the rear of the truck visible in the turn. I can't tell if the signal was set before the turn. The cyclist might have missed the side flasher (they might have been looking forward) but having/using a side flasher is certainly better than not having it.

JoeyBike

She was mindlessly cycling on the "Red X" as shown in this safety video I produced way back in 2008.

Red Light Running Tutorial

Go to 6:15. Problem solved. She should never have been on that spot.
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italktocats

ban truck from cities, the end

italktocats

if you cant see objects around you, you should give up driving.

JoeyBike

The cyclist appears to me to be directly UNDER his passenger-side mirror. She could not have picked a better spot if she were attempting to commit suicide. We don't always live to learn from dumb behavior unfortunately.

I don't know who would be "right" or "wrong" legally, but I know who is dead.
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italktocats

so 36000 people a year commit suicide by going outside, into car territory??

JoeyBike

They all took a risk, except for the kids who were forced to go along. And 36,000 is just the ones who died. How many were severely injured? I bet that is a frightening number.
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Stadjer

Trucks are not disappearing from cities very soon and they will keep having a blind spot. That's something cyclist will have to learn to live with. And that can be done, car drivers and truck drivers should try the cyclist's point of view more often, but for your own safety, you can try to understand a truck drivers troubles too.

CB HI

You have proven yourself to be a name calling troll who is afraid to ride on the road but wants to tell everyone else how to ride on the road.

By the way, there are several cyclist in BFs that have far more mileage than I, many top over 500,000 miles.

CB HI

The truck had a convex mirror. The purpose of that mirror is to see everything on the side of the truck. The convex mirror is probably mandated by law there, but the driver does not bother to use it.

northernlights

And you are a mindless ignorant troll who will never learn. I ride for recreation and exercise, and have no need to ride on the road. That's what parks, bike trails and MUPs are for. It is much more pleasant than riding in traffic. If you insist on riding like a reckless maniac on highways where cars are traveling at freeway speeds that don't even have so much as a decent bike lane no one can stop you. Have fun playing in traffic with the cars.

italktocats

or perhaps truck drivers should be aware that they are driving and thus responsible for their damages and deaths, but im not expecting any decrease in human casualties

79pmooney

When I was 13, my best friend's dad was real cyclist. Good bike was an Allegro plus he commuted 12 miles each way into Cambridge, MA. He impressed on us that we HAD to avoid that situation; we WOULD die. 50 years later, a truck pulled into a gravel parking lot of a farm store when I was right where that woman was. Truck straightened out, there was no contact and I lived. I turned around and met the driver, shaken to his core, getting out of the truck. He pointed to the woman getting out the other door and said we had her to thank. He never saw me. She did and yelled. I never heard the yell. I just knew I was looking at my death right in front of me.

The month was June. That fall two Portland cyclists were killed by right turning trucks.

Ben