Know of any Narrow Lane crashes?

[Helmet Head]

Does anyone know of any crashes (please cite online article or BF thread) where a cyclist was hit from behind while riding in a narrow lane that did not have sufficient margin space (bike lane, shoulder or extra width) in order to safely share the outside lane?

Please note (if you know) whether the crash was day or night (and if cyclist had proper lights/reflectors if at night) and whether the cyclist was taking the lane, or trying to share it (riding as far right as possible) despite the narrow width.

[donnamb]

What about left turn lanes?

[Brian Ratliff]

Hmm... I've almost been hit, and have been hit (two different occasions, different locations spaced a few years apart), were in narrow lanes. My father got hit in a narrow lane. I've never had an incident in a bike lane.

I seem to remember a thread somewhere here about a cyclist getting hit on one of our rural roads near my house.

Most of the bicycle fatalities my co-worker picks up (he is a volunteer firefighter in in the rural areas south of Portland) are on rural roads (no shoulder). I don't think he's ever seen one in a bike lane.

The only incidents where people have yelled at me, including the one where a guy saw it fit to get out of his car, were on narrow lanes. Basically all the times when I have felt threatened or in danger by cars or drivers (i.e. unintentional and intentional harm) have been in narrow lanes.

[Helmet Head]

Hmm... I've almost been hit, and have been hit (two different occasions, different locations spaced a few years apart), were in narrow lanes. My father got hit in a narrow lane. I've never had an incident in a bike lane.

The crash I'm aware of he was in a bike lane.

I seem to remember a thread somewhere here about a cyclist getting hit on one of our rural roads near my house.
That too was a bike lane, as I recall.

Most of the bicycle fatalities my co-worker picks up (he is a volunteer firefighter in in the rural areas south of Portland) are on rural roads (no shoulder). I don't think he's ever seen one in a bike lane.
In that case I wonder if the cyclists were hugging the edge inviting a close pass, and sideswiped, or whether they were further out and hit flat-out from behind. Articles?

The only incidents where people have yelled at me, including the one where a guy saw it fit to get out of his car, were on narrow lanes. Basically all the times when I have felt threatened or in danger by cars or drivers (i.e. unintentional and intentional harm) have been in narrow lanes.
Interesting.

[Helmet Head]

What about left turn lanes?
Sure.

[Brian Ratliff]

The crash I'm aware of he was in a bike lane.

That was the least serious of the two, the one where he hit his head, he was in the left turn lane preparing for a left turn.


That too was a bike lane, as I recall.

There are no bike lanes on rural roads around here. I looked on the google maps, and there was no bike lane. I believe my father was on site and reported a shoulder of 6 inches or so.


In that case I wonder if the cyclists were hugging the edge inviting a close pass, and sideswiped, or whether they were further out and hit flat-out from behind. Articles?


Interesting.

Most stuff like this doesn't get reported in the paper. The stuff in the paper happen in the city, where most roads have bike lanes and cycling is more important to the community (for better or for worse). Since the stuff being reported is in the city, where there are bike lanes, it is not surprising that most of the reported incidents happen to be on a road with a bike lane.

[CTAC]

Friend of mine was hit on a narrow mountain road riding downhil. Car was overtaking him and hit his handlebar with the mirror. I do not have any more details on that, except that he is a very experienced rider.

[deputyjones]

Working as a paramedic in Grand Rapids I took a crash where a cyclist was taking the lane and was left hooked by a car coming out of a driveway from his right.

Narrow, busy, urban 2 lane road with cars parked on both sides. It was daylight.
I am not sure on lane position as I did not speak with witnesses, but the road is so narrow that it would be virtually impossible to fit a car and bike side by side in one lane. The only way you would know would be to see the final accident report or speak with someone who witnessed the crash. They wouldn't report that sort of thing in the news as most people wouldn't care.

[I-Like-To-Bike]

Does anyone know of any crashes (please cite online article or BF thread) where a cyclist was hit from behind while riding in a narrow lane that did not have sufficient margin space (bike lane, shoulder or extra width) in order to safely share the outside lane?

Please note (if you know) whether the crash was day or night (and if cyclist had proper lights/reflectors if at night) and whether the cyclist was taking the lane, or trying to share it (riding as far right as possible) despite the narrow width.
I was hit by a motorist while traveling in the outside lane of Broad Street in Philadelphia in the Logan section, 1975. The car came up from behind, started to pass in the left and came back in my lane to knock me to the ground. Daylight, I was taking the middle of the right lane. Good enuff for ya?

[sbhikes]

The only time I ever crashed I was not in a bike lane, and it was a single-vehicle crash. Just me and my bike.

A friend of mine was hit and suffered a brain injury when crossing a street. He saw the guy coming to his left, made an attempt to turn and ride parallel to him, but was struck from behind. The guy claimed he did not see the red light at the traffic signal because he was focused on a traffic signal further ahead. My friend has to carry around a PDA because his memory is shot.

[chipcom]

http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?t=270492

[bigpedaler]

Does anyone know of any crashes (please cite online article or BF thread) where a cyclist was hit from behind while riding in a narrow lane that did not have sufficient margin space (bike lane, shoulder or extra width) in order to safely share the outside lane?

Please note (if you know) whether the crash was day or night (and if cyclist had proper lights/reflectors if at night) and whether the cyclist was taking the lane, or trying to share it (riding as far right as possible) despite the narrow width.

there have been three in my area over the last few years -- actually within an 18-month span. all three resulted in fatalities.

one was on a two-lane road between my city and a nearby smaller town; a long-distance touring cyclist was riding in the lane (right 1/3), when an elderly woman in a car ran into him. she claimed the sun was in her eyes at the time.

another was on the west side of town, and involved a cyclist traveling coast-to-coast. he was similarly struck and killed by a driver claiming not to have seen him. this driver, though, was under he influence.

the last was a 'utility cyclist', riding in town on a main arterial, on the 'outbound' side of a curve (about 30 deg), was struck by another drunk driver who was caught with vehicle damage over a month later.

unless someone dies, people around here don't care.

[Bekologist]

initial response indicates YES.

mr. head, if the majority of crashes between bikes and cars are due to ONCOMING traffic, what does this little straw poll attempt to prove? that yes, cyclists ARE hit from behind?

And isn't your pet theory surrounding maximizing conspicuity to oncoming traffic?

Cyclists are hit regardless of lane position. cyclists, cars, motorcycles are hit regardless of lane position. this straw poll proves nothing.

[pj7]

You said "cyclist" and not just "bicyclist" right? I was on my old HD a few years ago riding to work one morning, it was at 6:45AM in the summer months and the sun was coming up to the east, I was heading north on Romeo Plank in Macomb Township, MI between 22 Mile Rd. and 23 Mile Rd. I had my lights on and was riding at appx 40mph. If I still had the police report I could verify the details. I was hit completely from behind by a motorist and went down on my right side, the bike slid away from me and we both slid off to the right of the road. I ended up in the ditch, the bike cleared the ditch and ended up in the field. The damage to me was just a fractured elbow and a donation of a good ammount of leg flesh to the asphalt gods. It took me over a year and a half to get the old sow back on the road again.
The driver claimed to the officer that he saw me, but did not know how far ahead of him I was and he was beginning to gain speed in order to overtake me. By the time I realized that I was too close for him he had already become my impromptu proctologist.
If I would have been on my bicycle I'd most likely not be here typing this post. I HAVE ridden my bike to and from work when I was employed up that way, and only had a few incidents (you can search for my post regarding some fat chic barking at me, about 2 years ago), but was always a little weary ever since my "incident".

[sggoodri]

Does anyone know of any crashes (please cite online article or BF thread) where a cyclist was hit from behind while riding in a narrow lane that did not have sufficient margin space (bike lane, shoulder or extra width) in order to safely share the outside lane?

Please note (if you know) whether the crash was day or night (and if cyclist had proper lights/reflectors if at night) and whether the cyclist was taking the lane, or trying to share it (riding as far right as possible) despite the narrow width.

Four, in six years, from official police reports that I collected here in Cary, NC.

All had the following characteristics in common:

- The cyclist was riding on the right edge of the lane
- The lane was less than 12 feet wide
- The vehicle was wider than a car, i.e. it was a van or trailer
- The posted speed limit was 45 mph
- It was daylight
- The side of the vehicle clipped the side of the cyclist.
- The cyclist's injuries were minor

Two of these collisions were the same driver towing a trailer, clipping two cyclists riding single-file on a narrow two-lane rural road.

One involved a two-lane road with a raised center median at an intersection, creating a narrow lane between the median and a soft shoulder.

The last involved a four-lane road with narrow lanes. This road is part of my regular bike commute; I ride near the center of the lane here. This was a hit-and-run; in the other cases the drivers stopped, and admitted that they saw the cyclist; they simply passed too closely or passed where there was not enough room.

In the six years of car-bike collision reports that I collected, there were no direct rear-end collisions involving motorists hitting cyclists . There were the above too-close passes, a child cyclist who swerved across the road into the side of an overtaking car that had moved all the way into the oncoming lane (no serious injury), and a motorist who deliberately drove off the roadway onto a wide striped shoulder to bump a cyclist before fleeing (no serious injury). The other 68 reported collisions were generally intersection and parking-lot related.

-Steve Goodridge

[Bekologist]

i've been clipped from behind while on a bike in a narrow lane, and hit from behind while operating a slow moving vehicle :D.

seems like cyclists ARE hit from behind, regardless of how much they pretend they are a tractor, mr. head.

[braingel]

I've been sideswiped in a narrow lane before...I was riding in the middle of the right lane with two lanes of traffic moving in each direction, and someone tried to squeeze in between me and the lane of traffic on his left...when that proved impossible, he swerved into me, knocking me into the parked cars. Now I ride in the left tire track.

[bragi]

I've been hit by cars twice, but never from behind; not even close. On both occasions, it was because a motorist stopped to allow me to pass at an intersection. When I then tried to enter the intersection, another motorist would became impatient and speed around the first vehicle, and run into me as I tried to cross or turn. (In both instances, I was largely unharmed, and the damge to my bike was less severe than the damage to the car...)

I've learned not to worry about traffic from behind. Motorists might get annoyed for several seconds on narrow roads, but I'm visible, and it's not like they're going to run me down or anything. And if traffic is really heavy, and the road is narrow, and it's a longish stretch, I'll break down and use the sidewalk for several blocks (gasp), to keep the traffic moving and to be a good neighbor. (It doesn't pay to be a wimp around drivers, but it's no good being a dogmatic jerk, either.)

[sbhikes]

I have been almost hit by the rear wheels of large vehicles on narrow roads as they passed me unsafely.

And I've been almost hit head-on by an angry driver upset that other vehicles passed me on a narrow road.

Driver impatience was the cause in all these cases. If they would simply wait behind me until there is room these things would not happen. They don't like to wait.

[Paul L.]

Two in my youth before Bike Lanes were a reality. Thread in roadie forum of down at 40 due to a trailer collision (I might add a bike lane would have prevented that one 100% as the vehicle would not have hit him if it didn't have to go around him).

Oh and nearly squished by fast moving semis on several occasions between guard rail and lane due to semi's not stopping for anybody when they are climbing steep hills.

Oh, also forced off road by drivers passing cars in the opposing direction to me.

[SSP]

Four weeks ago, while riding down a narrow canyon road at 40 mph, I was sideswiped by a dumb*ss who was towing a largish trailer with his pickup. He didn't realize how fast I was moving, and panicked when he realized he was approaching a blind left curve with his vehicle well over the double yellow line.

As he moved back into my lane, the wider rear tires of the trailer hit me and put me on the ground.

Full details here (http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?t=270492).

FWIW, I was centered in the lane.

[Brian Ratliff]

Four weeks ago, while riding down a narrow canyon road at 40 mph, I was sideswiped by a dumb*ss who was towing a largish trailer with his pickup. He didn't realize how fast I was moving, and panicked when he realized he was approaching a blind left curve with his vehicle well over the double yellow line.

As he moved back into my lane, the wider rear tires of the trailer hit me and put me on the ground.

Full details here (http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?t=270492).

FWIW, I was centered in the lane.

Oh yea, something like this happened around here about a year ago, a woman got forced off the road by a passing pickup truck towing a wide trailer and broke her arm. This was a rural road; no bike lanes there. The police actually investigated this one and found and I think prosecuted the driver of the pickup truck. I might be wrong about that though.

[ghettocruiser]

News Article
http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/thestar/access/1093516581.html?dids=1093516581:1093516581&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&date=Aug+10%2C+2006&author=Hannelore+Volpe&pub=Stouffville+Tribune&edition=&startpage=1&desc=Cyclist+killed%2C+husband+hurt+on+Warden
Location:
http://maps.google.ca/maps?f=q&hl=en&q=warden+and+stouffville,+Markham,+ON&layer=&sll=43.486079,-79.88418&sspn=0.006944,0.014935&ie=UTF8&z=17&ll=43.941657,-79.355278&spn=0.006891,0.014935&t=k&om=1


News Article:
http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/thestar/access/1138608031.html?dids=1138608031:1138608031&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&date=Oct+2%2C+2006&author=San+Grewal&pub=Toronto+Star&edition=&startpage=E.3&desc=Cyclists+ride+in+memory+of+officer
Location:
http://maps.google.ca/maps?f=q&hl=en&q=Tremaine+Road+and+Derry+Road,+Milton,+ON&sll=43.943329,-79.356077&sspn=0.003333,0.007467&layer=&ie=UTF8&z=17&t=k&om=1&iwloc=addr

[sbhikes]

*chirp chirp chirp* go the crickets.

A lot of silence from HH in this thread.

[Helmet Head]

*chirp chirp chirp* go the crickets.

A lot of silence from HH in this thread.
I'm not getting much help with respect to this request from the OP:

Please note (if you know) whether the crash was day or night (and if cyclist had proper lights/reflectors if at night) and whether the cyclist was taking the lane, or trying to share it (riding as far right as possible) despite the narrow width.

[Helmet Head]

Thread in roadie forum of down at 40 due to a trailer collision (I might add a bike lane would have prevented that one 100% as the vehicle would not have hit him if it didn't have to go around him).

I might add that extra width "would have prevented that one 100%", regardless of whether the extra width happened to be demarcated as a bike lane stripe or not.

[SSP]

I'm not getting much help with respect to this request from the OP:

Please note (if you know) whether the crash was day or night (and if cyclist had proper lights/reflectors if at night) and whether the cyclist was taking the lane, or trying to share it (riding as far right as possible) despite the narrow width.

Whiner....my post included those details.

I think you meant to say "I'm not getting much support". :rolleyes:

[Helmet Head]

Working as a paramedic in Grand Rapids I took a crash where a cyclist was taking the lane and was left hooked by a car coming out of a driveway from his right.

Narrow, busy, urban 2 lane road with cars parked on both sides. It was daylight.
I am not sure on lane position as I did not speak with witnesses, but the road is so narrow that it would be virtually impossible to fit a car and bike side by side in one lane. The only way you would know would be to see the final accident report or speak with someone who witnessed the crash. They wouldn't report that sort of thing in the news as most people wouldn't care.
If you're not sure on lane position, then how can you say he was taking the lane?

[SSP]

I might add that extra width "would have prevented that one 100%", regardless of whether the extra width happened to be demarcated as a bike lane stripe or not.


So freakin' what??? Your thread asked about "narrow lane crashes"...and several such examples have been cited.

[Helmet Head]

Whiner....my post included those details.

I think you meant to say "I'm not getting much support". :rolleyes: Yours is an exception in that it provides lane position info.

It is also an exception in that it involves a passing incident.

The primary purpose of this thread (for me) is to see if anyone knows of incidents where riding in a lane caused a motorist to run into a cyclist from behind because he never saw the cyclist.

[chipcom]

Yours is an exception in that it provides lane position info.

It is also an exception in that it involves a passing incident.

The primary purpose of this thread (for me) is to see if anyone knows of incidents where riding in a lane caused a motorist to run into a cyclist from behind because he never saw the cyclist.

I think the guy had to come up from behind to pass SSP. :rolleyes: But of course, you are looking for examples to support one of your theories, and since SSP wasn't hugging the curb or in a bike lane, you need to discount his experience.

[SSP]

Yours is an exception in that it provides lane position info.

It is also an exception in that it involves a passing incident.

The primary purpose of this thread (for me) is to see if anyone knows of incidents where riding in a lane caused a motorist to run into a cyclist from behind because he never saw the cyclist.

Given that rear end traffic collisions occur many times per day in which a car runs into the back of a large vehicle stopped in the middle of the roadway...do you have any doubt that such an "incident" could also occur with a bicycle in the roadway?

Or, perhaps your VC "Power Shield" technology confers some sort of "force field" that mitigates that accident scenario? :rolleyes: :rolleyes:

[Helmet Head]

The primary purpose of this thread (for me) is to see if anyone knows of incidents where riding in a lane caused a motorist to run into a cyclist from behind because he never saw the cyclist.

I think the guy had to come up from behind to pass SSP. :rolleyes:
But he chose to pass, so therefore the driver noticed the cyclist.

But of course, you are looking for examples to support one of your theories, and since SSP wasn't hugging the curb or in a bike lane, you need to discount his experience.
Actually, I am looking for examples to contradict one of my theories: that motorists are highly unlikely to not notice a cyclist riding relatively slowly up ahead in their path, particularly if visibility is not an issue (driver is not not blinded by the sun; if it's daytime cyclist is propertly lighted/reflectorized).

[Helmet Head]

Given that rear end traffic collisions occur many times per day in which a car runs into the back of a large vehicle stopped in the middle of the roadway...do you have any doubt that such an "incident" could also occur with a bicycle in the roadway?

Or, perhaps your VC "Power Shield" technology confers some sort of "force field" that mitigates that accident scenario? :rolleyes: :rolleyes: That's one possible explanation.

The point is, that as long as there aren't any blatant visibility problems, motorists tend to notice and not run into cyclists riding in their path up ahead with such regularity that we are apparently able to cite few if any examples of this ever happening.

[chipcom]

Actually, I am looking for examples to contradict one of my theories: that motorists are highly unlikely to not notice a cyclist riding relatively slowly up ahead in their path, particularly if visibility is not an issue (driver is not not blinded by the sun; if it's daytime cyclist is propertly lighted/reflectorized).

So why didn't you just state your intent in your OP and subject, rather than playing charades? Another example of honesty?

[deputyjones]

If you're not sure on lane position, then how can you say he was taking the lane?

Because I stated that a bike and car could not fit together on that road. How much clearer do you need me to be?

[deputyjones]

So why didn't you just state your intent in your OP and subject, rather than playing charades? Another example of honesty?

Exactly, +1

[CommuterRun]

I almost saw one this very afternoon. Two-lane, NOL, 55 mph speed limit. I am in the center of the lane to preclude passing because of oncoming traffic. JAM decides, "Damn the oncoming, full speed ahead." The two hotties in the oncoming car had to run off the road to avoid Moron Cager. Of course while they did this, the driver was on the horn and the passenger was throwing the cager the bird out her window.:D

Pretty cool. The passenger waved at me, with all five fingers, as they were pulling back on the road and went by.:D

But to answer the question the way it was intended: It has been my experience that the further from the right the cyclist is, the more likely it is that motorists will not only notice them, but will also take more measures to avoid a possible collision, i.e. slowing before passing and giving more lateral space while passing.

[joejack951]

The only local rear end accident that I know of (I've only paid attention for the past two years) was about 1.5 years when a young boy riding at night without lights swerved out of the shoulder into the path of a passing bus. The driver could not slow quick enough and rear ended the cyclist. The onboard camera caught the whole thing.

[Helmet Head]

So why didn't you just state your intent in your OP and subject, rather than playing charades? Another example of honesty? I'm looking for unbiased responses. Why does my purpose matter?

[pj7]

Yours is an exception in that it provides lane position info.

It is also an exception in that it involves a passing incident.

The primary purpose of this thread (for me) is to see if anyone knows of incidents where riding in a lane caused a motorist to run into a cyclist from behind because he never saw the cyclist.

I believethat I answered your question thoroughly enough.
With the exception being that the motorist saw me but was unaware of our distances apart.

[pj7]

Here's some meat to chew on.
With 3 minutes to spare and a decent search engine anyone should be able to find news accounts online of a motorist rear-ending another motorist on rural and non-rural roads with the claim that "I did not see him".
Now, a car/truck/motorcycle is just slightly larger than a person on a bicycle and it would be safe to assume that the vehicle WAS traveling in the travel lane and not "hugging the curb or white line" at the time of the incident.
All it takes is a curve and for someone behind the wheel to sneeze or take their eyes off the road for a few seconds for this to happen. This is common sense knowledge here and you don't need mad_google_skillz to figure it out.
So what if these incidents don't involve a bicycle, they very well could. Just the same that they could involve a pedestrian, a horse-and-buggy, or a combine. It all fits into the same frame here.

[Helmet Head]

Here's some meat to chew on.
With 3 minutes to spare and a decent search engine anyone should be able to find news accounts online of a motorist rear-ending another motorist on rural and non-rural roads with the claim that "I did not see him".
Now, a car/truck/motorcycle is just slightly larger than a person on a bicycle and it would be safe to assume that the vehicle WAS traveling in the travel lane and not "hugging the curb or white line" at the time of the incident.
All it takes is a curve and for someone behind the wheel to sneeze or take their eyes off the road for a few seconds for this to happen. This is common sense knowledge here and you don't need mad_google_skillz to figure it out.
So what if these incidents don't involve a bicycle, they very well could. Just the same that they could involve a pedestrian, a horse-and-buggy, or a combine. It all fits into the same frame here.
Yes, in theory they very well could involve a bicycle, or so it seems. What I'm trying to figure out is if they ever do, and if they do, how often. If it's never, or almost never, the next question is why?

I suspect that if you look at the causes of rear-end collisions you'll find that "did not see" really means "did not notice him slowing down and/or stopping, which stems from not expecting them to slow down and/or stop in that context".

Not seeing due to inattentional blindness, which is what we're talking about in car-car rear enders, has much more to do with expectations, and not the inability to "see" a car.

Further, if you spend much time taking the lane in traffic, with motorists behind you, you know how rare it is to have a tailgater. Further, if you're a mirror user and have discovered how to use the left-arm slow/stop signal, you know how effective that is to get tailgaters to stop tailgating you.

[deputyjones]

I suspect that if you look at the causes of rear-end collisions you'll find that "did not see" really means "did not notice him slowing down and/or stopping, which stems from not expecting them to slow down and/or stop in that context".

Not seeing due to inattentional blindness, which is what we're talking about in car-car rear enders, has much more to do with expectations, and not the inability to "see" a car.

Further, if you spend much time taking the lane in traffic, with motorists behind you, you know how rare it is to have a tailgater. Further, if you're a mirror user and have discovered how to use the left-arm slow/stop signal, you know how effective that is to get tailgaters to stop tailgating you.

This is correct in my experience that inattention causes rear end accidents. "Failure to stop in the assured clear distance ahead" is the #1 ticket I have written by far.

What would be the reason behind not explaining this in the OP as is the normal protocol in this and other internet forums?

[pj7]

I suspect that if you look at the causes of rear-end collisions you'll find that "did not see" really means "did not notice him slowing down and/or stopping, which stems from not expecting them to slow down and/or stop in that context".

I'm talking about cases where one party said "I did not see him". And as I pointed out, it is VERY likely for that to happen when you take:
1 part curvy road
1 part taking your eyes off the road
toss in a little radio tuning
and shake well for 3 seconds with a daydream
If the accounts in which I refer to were about the motorist did not notice a person slowing down or stopping, then I'm sure they would be reported as so.
With the way your comment here seems, if one were to show you an example of exactly what you are asking for, you could easily dismiss it by saying "I suspect the driver was..."


Not seeing due to inattentional blindness, which is what we're talking about in car-car rear enders, has much more to do with expectations, and not the inability to "see" a car.

Inattentional blindness, or as I call it, not paying attention, (why must people be so neologistic online?) is one way of "not seeing a person" Maybe you are looking for examples of people who have some sort of medical problem where they have blind spots in their eyes and can only see things at certain angles? You did ask for examples where the motorist "did not see" the person, which is pretty broad to say the least, and this inattentional blindness does fit that bill.
I am saying this because you use the exact phrase "inability to see" which means a physical issue.
So what are you looking for here exactly? Examples of people with medical problems hitting people, or examples of nattentive drivers hitting people? I see no other group in this case. Because driving a car with 200+ watts of flod/spot lighting in front of you makes it all but impossible to "not see" something dead ahead of you unless it is completely transparent or just too small for the human eye to visually comprehend at the distance of 10-20 feet.


Further, if you spend much time taking the lane in traffic, with motorists behind you, you know how rare it is to have a tailgater. Further, if you're a mirror user and have discovered how to use the left-arm slow/stop signal, you know how effective that is to get tailgaters to stop tailgating you.
I agree with your first "further" statement to some extent. But totally disagree with your latter one.
How are we defining "rare" in this case? I get tailgated almost daily when riding in traffic, at least thrice a week. Now to me, this is rare considering that I probably have upwards of a thousand cars behind me at some point on my commute. Three out of a thousand is a very small percent. But I'd feel safe in saying that others would call this "too excessive" and therefor, not a rareity.
As for using your arms and signals to deter a person from tailgating you once they have started, then I challenge you to go to a more hostile enviroment and try the same thing. when someone is tailgating you, they have an axe with the word "anger" imprinted on it to grind. Otherwise, why would they be doing it in the first place? If someone were behind me, tailgating me, and I threw up an arm to signal a slow/stop on my part, the person tailgating me would take my gesture as some sort of assertive and agressive move I was making. When people are mad they do not make rational choices. If they did, then we'd have a lot less murder, asaults, road rage, etc in our nation today. So throwing up my arm in that manner would most likely further enrage the individual behind me who could, in their mind, interpet my signal as me flying the bird, and upon this determination they may take a more agressive action. The EXACT same thing happened to a guy on here the very year I signed up for my account, in which some guy in a truck was being agressive, when the cyclist threw up his arm the motorist interpeted in incorrectly and swerved into the cyclist, causing some brain damage and other injuries.
But then again, we are upposed to be talking about narrow roads and not traffic, aren't we?

[ghettocruiser]

The point is, that as long as there aren't any blatant visibility problems, motorists tend to notice and not run into cyclists riding in their path up ahead with such regularity that we are apparently able to cite few if any examples of this ever happening.

Actually, I cited 2 incidents in my area from last fall alone. Did you look at them before you made this claim? I'll add that they were both broad-daylight mishaps.

I remember more hit-from-behind accidents from last summer, but the articles are long gone. Of course, the news coverage on these incidents has almost no detail on direction, much less lane position, but the two articles I posted, based on the fact that only one narrow lane exists in each direction, are of the type that you describe.

I'm not sure what vast accident data archive remains to be tapped, and I think we all have better things to do.

Point remains: the only relevant study in my area, which I have sourced before, found that overtaking motorist is the most common fatal accident type.

Maybe it never happens anywhere else, but no one has posted a direct link to the contrary.

Again, motorists plow into the back of other motorists ALL THE TIME.

[deputyjones]

I'm talking about cases where one party said "I did not see him". And as I pointed out, it is VERY likely for that to happen when you take:
1 part curvy road
1 part taking your eyes off the road
toss in a little radio tuning
and shake well for 3 seconds with a daydream
If the accounts in which I refer to were about the motorist did not notice a person slowing down or stopping, then I'm sure they would be reported as so.
With the way your comment here seems, if one were to show you an example of exactly what you are asking for, you could easily dismiss it by saying "I suspect the driver was..."


Inattentional blindness, or as I call it, not paying attention, (why must people be so neologistic online?) is one way of "not seeing a person" Maybe you are looking for examples of people who have some sort of medical problem where they have blind spots in their eyes and can only see things at certain angles? You did ask for examples where the motorist "did not see" the person, which is pretty broad to say the least, and this inattentional blindness does fit that bill.
I am saying this because you use the exact phrase "inability to see" which means a physical issue.
So what are you looking for here exactly? Examples of people with medical problems hitting people, or examples of nattentive drivers hitting people? I see no other group in this case. Because driving a car with 200+ watts of flod/spot lighting in front of you makes it all but impossible to "not see" something dead ahead of you unless it is completely transparent or just too small for the human eye to visually comprehend at the distance of 10-20 feet.


I agree with your first "further" statement to some extent. But totally disagree with your latter one.
How are we defining "rare" in this case? I get tailgated almost daily when riding in traffic, at least thrice a week. Now to me, this is rare considering that I probably have upwards of a thousand cars behind me at some point on my commute. Three out of a thousand is a very small percent. But I'd feel safe in saying that others would call this "too excessive" and therefor, not a rareity.
As for using your arms and signals to deter a person from tailgating you once they have started, then I challenge you to go to a more hostile enviroment and try the same thing. when someone is tailgating you, they have an axe with the word "anger" imprinted on it to grind. Otherwise, why would they be doing it in the first place? If someone were behind me, tailgating me, and I threw up an arm to signal a slow/stop on my part, the person tailgating me would take my gesture as some sort of assertive and agressive move I was making. When people are mad they do not make rational choices. If they did, then we'd have a lot less murder, asaults, road rage, etc in our nation today. So throwing up my arm in that manner would most likely further enrage the individual behind me who could, in their mind, interpet my signal as me flying the bird, and upon this determination they may take a more agressive action. The EXACT same thing happened to a guy on here the very year I signed up for my account, in which some guy in a truck was being agressive, when the cyclist threw up his arm the motorist interpeted in incorrectly and swerved into the cyclist, causing some brain damage and other injuries.
But then again, we are upposed to be talking about narrow roads and not traffic, aren't we?

well done, +1

[ghettocruiser]

To clarify my post above: I'm not saying that I think there is an unreasonably large risk to rear-end collisions. They are the most common fatal accident type, but fatal accidents are rare. I ride on the road, I take the lane, I don't think I'm suicidal for doing so.

But to deny the existence of this collision type is inane.

[pj7]

well done, +1

well done eh?
hrm, yeah, that would make my posted recipe a bit better
so, append this to the end of my recipe above
"bake at 350 for 25 minutes, or until well done"
:D:D:D:D

[pj7]

To clarify my post above: I'm not saying that I think there is an unreasonably large risk to rear-end collisions. They are the most common fatal accident type, but fatal accidents are rare. I ride on the road, I take the lane, I don't think I'm suicidal for doing so.

But to deny the existence of this collision type is inane.

I totally agree with you.
On my bicycle I have never had the fear of being hit from behind once I learned how to control the thing better than a hobbled gimp. And I ride in traffic quite frequently and quite comfortable when needed. But I perfer to ride on the shoulder of the road where I can slow down to a crawl if I feel the need and kno that I am not slowing anyone down in the process. On the shoulder I alos have no fear of being hit from behind. I know that it could happen in either case, but I also could be diagnosed with ALS the next time I go to a doctor, at which time, none of this would mean squat to me anymore.
These collisions have happened. But to ask for direct examples that provide full details is asenine really. Can anyone here find me an example online of a two car accident that involved someone smoking a pipe, having the ashes fly out and burn their eyes, at which point they slammed into a guardrail and a passer by stopped and hosed their crotch down with a fire extenguisher? I doubt it. But the fact is, that happened to a buddy of mine a few years ago. (long story)