genec

Fair enough... let's not forget the jaywalkers though.

MrCoffee

So, what happened to the bicyclist? It looks to me like he was boxed in by the crowd, and the taxi driver in the end, with the taxi driver complaining about damage to his rear passenger door. Will the bicyclist get sued or ticketed? What was the outcome?

vol

I'm a little surprised so many people gathered and stayed watching for all that time, in the heart of Manhattan. What I would worry, if I had such an accident, is that no one would care--everyone busy for their business--and the car drives away leaving me behind as if nothing happened, with no witness or evidence.

(I chuckled at seeing the beloved Citi bike squeezing through at 3:29 )

P.S. It seems to me the two taxi passengers could be tourists. Everyday New Yorkers are not so likely to apologize in such polite manner.

walrus1

Yeah cause NYC cyclists would totally be able to get to our destinations if we stopped for every single jaywalker in a bike lane....... next week or maybe the week after. Many people view bike lanes as sidewalk extensions and cross them midblock without looking he clearly had the right of way. It drives me crazy that this has become a point of attack on the cyclist. I personally know that stretch of 4th ave very well and it's a cluster **** of jaywalkers double parked trucks and taxis. I try to avoid it however if you just need to go a few north blocks in the village sometimes it's your only choice cause 3rd and 6th Aves can be death traps.

I belive in terms of causing the accident the cyclist did NOTHING wrong. This accident was 100% the fault of the taxi and the passenger. He got doored at the south side of Union Square West and the 14th street intersection. Again it's a cluster**** of taxis, trucks, jaywalkers all trying to get north or turn east or west on 14th street. If you don't know the Village 14th street is a major two way road with many large subway stations and a NJ transit station. It's always busy and always hairy to get through. I don't believe he was doing 25mph and even if he was it wouldn't have made any difference. He was doing his best to avoid the door zones but sometimes the city FORCES you yes forces you into them. It's sometimes simply unavoidable.

He did mess up after the accident however. He should have insisted on a police report. Also if he felt any pain whatsoever he should have let the bystander call 911. The taxi's insurance will eventually pay him back and having every piece of documentation will be a big help since, even though NY is a no fault state, he will probably end up having to go to court. This is a perfect example of why I have a helmet camera.

@iconicflux While jaywalking is, technically illegal, there is next to no enforcement. Every time a NYPD precinct goes on a mini jaywalking crackdown, they're never citywide, people scream bloody murder and it's abruptly ended.
@vol Many New Yorkers are decent people and we'll help you if we can. Plus we love a good show.

mr_bill

17 mph - I did the maths. Less than that when he got doored.

-mr. bill

I-Like-To-Bike

Try expressing? Cute.

Yeah I can express what is obvious to anyone with experience cycling in busy and tight city traffic environment; almost all city cyclists who aren't riding on the sidewalk would be cycling in the same lateral location of street real estate, whether or not bike lane use is mandatory, and even more significant, whether bike lane paint stripes exist or not.

What would I do? Adjust my speed as appropriate for the existing traffic conditions.

kickstart

As you and I know this is common knowledge, it only highlights why one should ride within their skill level, and not rely on luck. An inability to budget ones travel time is not a valid excuse.

keyven

Hear hear.

Being legally right matters less when you get seriously injured unless your goal is to sue the bejeezsus out of the offender after the fact.

Reminds me of an incident in China...

Chinese man trying to con driver into thinking she'd run him over, is run over | Mail Online

Yes, drivers should be educated and fined heavily for such reckless actions, but it's much harder to control the actions of children, passengers, tourists, etc. This is absolutely one example of where you'd be a fool if you believe dooring can be resolved anytime soon. Meanwhile, just go slower and take a few extra minutes to reach your destination unscathed (hopefully).

Clyde1820

Sure, two wrongs don't make a right. But the typical situation of a blind jaywalker crossing immediately ahead of an onrushing vehicle makes for a very dicey situation, one which isn't always best avoided via slamming on the brakes and praying to the gods. At such proximity as that video seemed to show, it might well have been the single most reasonable step to take, given the gap between the two jaywalkers. Every situation is different.

Which has nothing to do with the door opening blindly into the other lane, really.

vol

Even if the bike was slower, it could still have been bad accident. I never ride fast. One day during early evening rush hour time in midtown Manhattan (Fifth Ave. around 37th street), cars were jammed bumper to bumper, so you can imagine how slow I could be riding. A taxi stopped in front of a hotel and the passenger opened the door on the left side, hitting me, displacing my derailleur shifter and brake shifter . Only the hotel guard came over to apologize.

kickstart

No matter how one tries to spin it........the cyclist was riding too fast for conditions. The most reasonable step to take is ride at a safe and prudent speed. Why? Because it's the only thing actually under the riders control.

Ride with respect for how conditions actually are, not how one thinks they should be.

CrankyOne

The bicycle rider SHOULD be able to ride that fast through that area. Motor vehicles do.

Is the bikeway designed properly for reasonable speeds as it should be (especially if it's mandatory use)? Are laws/rules adequate? Is NYPD or other agency enforcing the laws? These all deserve blame before the jaywalkers and others who were (illegally?) encroaching on a legal travel lane who all deserve blame before the bicyclist. Saying that all of these others failed so now we're going to blame the bicycle rider is quite backwards.

keyven

We can't control what stupid drivers, passengers and pedestrians do - law enforcement may reduce but by no means eliminate such acts. With slowing down, it does not mean you're NEVER going to get doored, but it does reduce the possibility and seriousness if it does happen.

And if the law is not doing anything about it, is the best response to be even MORE reckless? Talk about cutting off your nose to spite your face.

VTBike

This is a rather myopic viewpoint that pretends to seek "equality" when in reality it is seeking preferential treatment.

The truth is that motor vehicles in Manhattan are CONSTANTLY having to make concessions. They cannot travel as fast as they like, often have to slow down for hazards, hit huge potholes, etc. Just as motor vehicles have to make concessions in the interest of safety, it is reasonable to expect bicycles to do likewise. If everyone acted with only their self-interest in mind, it would not be a pretty picture.

This is not meant to excuse the behavior of the jay-walkers and the person who opened their door.

dynodonn 

From personal urban riding experience, a bicyclist has a much lower visual profile, is much quieter than most motor vehicles operating on the roadway, making the cyclist less noticeable, and that most peds don't put cyclists on a level of a threat to their personal safety quite like they do a motor vehicle. Peds in my locale don't run across the street when I'm approaching on my bicycle as they do with approaching motor vehicles.

Essex

I would argue that most hard-boiled denizens of Manhattan act in their own self interst. The exceptions are visitors, or the uninitiated who still have a sense of equality. It's less of free for all now, but the residents still carry the DNA/working ethos of the defunct Five Points...Gangs of NY.

kickstart

As I posted previously,
Those who don't learn from the mistakes of others are bound to repeat them. Fault and blame don't even matter if one rides in a way that allows them to avoid hazards in the first place.

dynaryder

The time I got doored,I was surprisingly calm. I looked at the guy and said,"you know DC law requires you to check before opening your door?". I was however more than a bit gruff with him the next day after the insurance info he gave me turned out to be BS and I showed up at his workplace. I got the impression he was trying to keep the incident from his wife. Lesson learned: always call the cops.

surreal

I think this video demonstrates many of the problems created or exacerbated by mandatory bike lanes.

Essex

I hope you were able to collect. And your advice about calling the police is a very good idea.

noglider 

What do you know of New Yorkers? I grew up here, and I live here, and I encounter countless nice, caring people all the time.

Traffic is insane, though. It's funny when people who haven't been here are aghast that there are jaywalkers and learn that cyclists run red lights. It's the wild, wild east here. There's very little respect for the law. You have to see our actions in that context.

It annoyed me that the taxi passenger said she didn't see the cyclist. I bet I know why she didn't see him. She didn't look down the bike lane.

noglider 

Oh, I see you are in New York, at least during the day time. I apologize. Still, you make New Yorkers sound nasty and uncaring. Why is that?

achoo

Watching that video, and the moment I saw that cab pulled near the bike lane, flashers on, I thought, "I bet he gets doored by a passenger getting out of that cab."

If it's that obvious...

Yeah, the passenger was legally at fault. But the cyclist could have avoided it easily, lots of ways. Best one IMO would be slow down, and if the door opens anyway just blast the airzound (which I noticed mentioned in the thread) and traumatize the passenger.

dynaryder

I did,although the settlement wasn't quite enough to replace the bike and equipment. If it were to happen again,in addition to calling the cops,I would insist on replacement value.

JonnyHK 

I picked it coming too. If it is obvious on the distorted angle of the camera then the rider should have picked it up as a risk and reacted sooner.

That being said he didn't do anything wrong.

My only other thought is that I'd be a bit louder with my shouted warnings. It could just be his cam/mike set up, but the warning to the jaywalking girl sounded a bit weak.