Was the driver driving into the sunrise? (Going to check the article now.) Tragic, and I'll bet the driver 'didn't see' the rider. Such a convenient excuse. Unfortunately, it just means the driver wasn't paying close enough attention.

I almost didn't see a pedestrian in the middle of a (very busy, 50 mph speed limit) street the other night. It was full dark (after 9pm), there are no street lights in the area, and he was walking in the double left turn lane, wearing dark, non-reflective clothing, at least a couple hundred yards from the nearest crosswalk. I still managed to see and avoid this idiot as I was pulling into the left turn lane to turn off the main street.

EDIT: It was a northbound lane, so in theory, the sun wasn't an excuse. Keep us posted as (if) more details are released.