Bike Forums - I hit a cyclist...

Quote:

Originally Posted by SingingSabre

I saw the road hazard as he turned off a side street about 5 meters in front of me. I moved to the right and he decided to move to his left. He crashed into me. I looked over and saw he was standing and I took off.

I had lights, I had a rear blinkie and a front halogen, also an orange vest with yellow reflective striping.

The guy who ran into me had on black.

Who's gonna come after me for hit and run? Seriously. That's absolute malarky. He is totally at fault and I didn't know how he would feel about colliding. The information at hand, him riding illegally sans lights and against traffic at 12:20am lends me just enough reason to assume he could be dangerous. I don't need to stick around to find out if my assumption is right or not.

In summation: yes, one could call it hit and run, but that is only after removing all the nuances and details of the incident.

Now that you have told the total story, it is easier to see how you had little time to avoid him, and how the collision happened. Next time, to avoid confusion, tell it all at once, hmmm?

As to it being a hit and run, I dont care what the cop said, it is hit and run, at least where I am from. (keep in mind that laws vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction.) Here in Ontario, a bike is a vehicle. If two vehicles collide, and one buggers off, it is hit and run. In the dark, you have no way of determining if the person was injured or not if you dont even bother to stop. His standing after it in no way means he is not hurt. If you feel threatened, the responsible thing to do is get to a cop and explain what happened. If the cop you talked to is correct, you cover your behind legally, and a report is filed which states your side in case the other rider comes in with a different report which places the blame on you.