Cyclist Injured In JP
Written by Boston Biker on Aug 02A 21-year-old bicyclist was struck by a car early today on Centre Street in Jamaica Plain. He was taken to Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center with life-threatening injures but is expected to survive, Boston Police said.
The motorist told police he never saw the cyclist. The motorist was taking a turn onto Lamartine Street just after midnight when he heard and felt something strike the passenger side of his car, he told police.
He got out of his car and saw the cyclist lying unconscious on the ground. The motorist is not facing any charges, police said.(via)
I have heard from a good friend of this person that he was indeed very injured, swollen brain, and other injuries (mostly mouth and cheek related, leading to a significant swallowing of blood) but that he is getting more lucid, and is having periods of wakefulness., and is improving. This person was riding with him at the time and from what I have heard made is seem like this was a classic right hook situation, but again I don’t have all the facts.
I have heard from many people and have experienced it myself, this intersection is horrible. I can only hope that if this was a right hook that the motorist is charged and that the cyclist sues. I don’t know if the cyclist was wearing a helmet, but it sounds like he might not have been, and while it also sounds like it was not the cyclists fault, if he had been wearing a helmet I am guessing this injury wouldn’t have been as bad. The part that really makes me mad is the whole “I didn’t see you” excuse. If you are going to be operating a vehicle it is your duty to see people. I don’t have all the details (like if the cyclist had lights on, etc), but I have been struck by cars before in broad daylight when I was clearly following the rules and people have said this to me. Keep your eyes and ears open (this goes for everyone) killing someone, or getting killed should not be a byproduct of going from point a to point b. We all need to take care of our fellow humans out on the road.
If I could give one piece of advice to people who drive cars, get in the habit of checking your right mirror, and looking over your right shoulder EVERY TIME you make a right turn. Training yourself to do this could potentially save a cyclists life, and you are legally required to do so anyway. Also if you are a cyclist, be aware that almost no one does this, so if you are on the right hand side of a car and it is approaching an intersection assume that it could turn right (even if the turn signal is not on, which it almost never is).
I hope he heals up fast, and I urge all of you (drivers and cyclists alike) to be courteous and careful out there.
edit: I just found out the rider was not wearing a helmet…while this in NO WAY make it the riders fault, it does illustrate why it is a very good idea to wear a helmet. This rider suffered brain injuries that in all likelihood would have been dramatically reduced had a helmet been on. Be safe out there people.
Tags: injury, JP
Posted in news | 5 Comments »
By alydar
on Aug 2, 2009 | Reply
I’m sorry, I have to disagree with your assertion that drivers should turn and look over their shoulder every time they turn right. Taking your eyes off the road — and in a turn, off of where the car is headed — is far more dangerous (read Tom Vanderbilt’s great book “Traffic” for more).
Certainly the driver could have been at fault here — not using a turn signal, for example. Certainly the biker could have been at fault — no lights, for example.
I am a driver, a biker, and a pedestrian, and sometimes the biker is at fault (nor do I have any soft spot for bad drivers — I was hit by a car while biking, driver at fault, back in May, and I’ve only started to walk again this past week).
By Boston Biker
on Aug 2, 2009 | Reply
alydar: How is looking over your right shoulder before you turn right (or using your right mirror) any different than looking to the left and in front of you before you turn left, or looking both left and right before coming out of a drive way? In my opinion it is not only possible, but totally safe to look over your right shoulder/look in your right mirror before turning right.
By Charlie
on Aug 3, 2009 | Reply
I hope the cyclist has a full recovery. There’s no reason why something like this should ever happen. Part of the responsibility of driving a motor vehicle is being aware of other people on the roadway.
Whenever I cycle, particularly at night, I’m always extra cautious. Whenever a motorist passes me, I pretty much always assume that he/she will cut me off at any time. It sucks that we have to bike so defensively, but the outcome of not doing so is clearly not in our favor…
By Paul Schimek
on Aug 3, 2009 | Reply
Boston Biker wrote:
“Also if you are a cyclist, be aware that almost no one does this, so if you are on the right hand side of a car and it is approaching an intersection assume that it could turn right (even if the turn signal is not on, which it almost never is).”
Therefore, never pass a car on the right at a place where it could turn right (which is pretty much anywhere, except if the car can’t move because there is another car stopped in front of it). If necessary, merge left into the travel lane to prevent a motorist behind you from making a right hook.
I don’t think requiring motorists to look to the right before turning will solve the problem. Car drivers have a blind spot on the right rear, and drivers of big trucks have a huge blind spot. Further, you can’t look to your right rear and look ahead at the same time. You can only check one and hope that the situation doesn’t change while you are checking the other. And it’s pretty dangerous to do this while moving, so to do this proposed practice safely people would need to stop at every intersection (including on a green light) before making a right turn.
But there is a better way — do as the traffic law requires:
- motorists (and bicyclists) must merge as far right as practicable BEFORE turning right, including into the bike lane.
- bicyclists (and motorists) should not pass on the right if there is any chance the vehicle ahead may be turning right.
See video of “Motorist right turn across bicyclist’s path” on this page: http://massbike.org/police/
By Dot Deb
on Aug 3, 2009 | Reply
While it does not sound like the cyclist was crossing Centre St. on the SW Corridor, this is one of the SW Corridor road crossings. I am surprised at how tricky nearly all these crossings are, with light cycles that always require a cyclist to be competing with turning traffic, even when there is a pedestrian walk signal (actually, this Jackson Sq. intersection is one of few where you really can cross at the walk signal with all car traffic at red lights). I have seen a few people hit at these crossings and assume there have been many more.
I am also surprised at how often a fellow cyclist flies by me into the crossing while I am waiting for a safer opportunity.
I wonder if it’s possible to check the traffic patterns along the SW Corridor roads and see if there are any intersections that could include in the light cycle an opportunity to cross while all traffic has a red light.