recent trend of bike deaths in the southbay

[ivanooze]

has anyone been noticing this terrible trend of bike deaths in southern california?

-i believe there have already been 4 hit and run deaths in Palos Verdes alone as well as one unfortunate death of one of my teammates going down hawthorne blvd. towards the beginning of the year.
-i also just got word of another hit and run cycling victim in placerita cyn road who unfortunately did not make it

-not sure what sparked this sudden hate for cyclists during the 2016 year but this is definitely a habit that i want to have stopped. Especially when there are 1000s of riders in the southbay alone that look to Palos verdes as a cycling mecca, now some of the most ridden roads in california are turning into a hunting ground for impatient drivers to run us off the roads.

-And i dont mean to talk so low of cops but the police in PV have to nut up or shut up. People are dying in their city but are doing little to create a solution to this horrific problem.

-would anyone like to chime in on these issues at all?

[alexstar]

I've been following along, mostly by reading Seth Davidson's blog. Seems like a big mess. Palos Verdes PD seems to be mostly sitting on their collective ass.

[ivanooze]

We're on the same team so I get updates about cycling news daily.unfortunately the news isn't always good

Sent from my SCH-I535 using Tapatalk

[William]

Very sorry to hear this, it's hard enough just trying to ride safely sharing the roads with big hunks of moving metal. Unfortunately there are many out there that take the attitude that - if you are going to "play" in the road then maybe you deserve what you get.

Might help explain why cyclists tend to get shafted, or the purps just get a slap on the wrist when something goes down.









William

[MattTuck]

Obviously, it is a tragedy to see deaths (whether they be cyclists, pedestrians, dogs, other motorists) caused by the recklessness of drivers. So, I'm not going to dwell on that, other than to say it is a phenomenon that should be stopped.

Here are a couple ideas that I think could work. These are all somewhat beyond the, "appeal to local authorities to get them to do more." These are ideas that should be done after that path is exhausted.


Idea 1
Work within your community to create a cycling voting block. And, more importantly, a cycling funding block that is able to contribute to local election campaigns. These voting/funding blocks should, obviously, focus on supporting and/or recruiting candidates who will support cyclist's rights. I'm not sure of the law enforcement situation in your locale, but sometimes law enforcement offices are elected. Even if they're not elected, municipal government can exert pressure on local police departments.

The general idea here is to talk in terms of money (we're talking elected officials now) and a position that they can and should support, protecting their constituents. I don't think it would require additional laws (not sure of your specific area) but would most likely involve enforcing existing laws in a strict way to change the culture of the local drivers. The police should run sting operations where they have a cyclist on the road and watch for drivers that cause problems. Changing a culture is hard, it takes consistent enforcement of rules to re-enforce the new culture, and must be done for longer than you'd expect. I am careful here to avoid the idea of cyclists 'asking' for more. I think the idea of enforcing the rules to protect cyclists should trump the building (at tax payer expense) of new cycling infrastructure. That's my personal view, others might see the cycling infrastructure as necessary to protect cyclists. I'd rather talk about the law and order, safety angle of it, than trying to get funds allocated to cycling infrastructure.

Idea 2
Create a non-profit funding organization at the national level that interested people pay into (ie. all cyclists might pay $5 into it), and then it channels that money to local elections into 'hot spot' areas, where it can make a difference to bring more cycling friendly elected officials into government.

Idea 3
Change the conversation. Stop focusing on cyclist rights or cyclists vs. cars. Bring the conversation back to the roads being a public space for commerce and conveyance. They are not race tracks, they should be as sacrosanct as city hall or the local library, with an expectation that people treat each other with respect. I think the idea of protecting a 30 year old dude in Spandex on a $7,000 bike is a hard sell. I think the idea of safe streets for kids and pets is a more palatable one.

Idea 4
Get a rear facing camera. May not help you, but maybe it can bring some justice in the event that something does happen, and that can be an example for others.


Ok, that's all I've got. Hopefully it'll only be a few more years before we get autonomous cars that won't run us down.

[giverdada]

totally sucks. and i'm sorry to hear of it.

Toronto is in the same state. i was in a hit and run two weeks ago. i've been driving to work, as a result, since, and the radio reports at least one cyclist-automobile collision per day, oftentimes per commute trip (one in to work, one on the way home). disgusting. and terrible. and i was lucky to be pulled out of traffic by very generous witnesses who called the cops but couldn't get the guy's plates. many of the radio reports are of people who are in critical condition afterwards or deceased. very very sad. the weather just turned, and now everyone's learning how to share the road, and not everyone's making it through this learning process well. ride safe, my friends, and like you're invisible unless they're aiming for you...

[austex]

https://pvcycling.wordpress.com/2016/05/26/report-card/

[carpediemracing]

In the last two years? I had probably 5 or 6 notices of local riders getting hit by cars, meaning friends of mine posted that they got hit by a car. This is around here, not SoCal, but still, it seems like a lot. It seems like most of them were the driver's fault - one the driver crossed the road, went into a ditch, steered to get out of the ditch, and then hit the rider head on. Another was going straight through an intersection with a green light, a car was waiting to make a left across his path, and another car went around the waiting car, made the left, and hit the cyclist. Etc.

I've also seen a number of death notices. I don't know any of those people. However a lot of them seem like the driver must have been distracted. One road (it's basically 2 roads away from me, it's one of two main roads we use to drive away from the house) had a massive, massive shoulder, like 6 or 8 feet wide. It might as well be another lane. The pick up that hit and killed the rider was well over the white line when the driver hit the cyclist.

One of my friends is a legislative lawyer, so he helps write laws based on what regular people say they want in the law. So, for example, he'd help define what a "3 foot passing law" would mean, in a legal sense.

He's the one that got passed by about half an inch. I caught the incident on camera, I've posted the still here a few times. Although he was a bit shaken by the incident his lawyer side immediately pointed out that the driver had done nothing wrong.

When we talk I sometimes ask him about how "they" (meaning legislators) could make laws that meant really high penalties for hitting and severely injuring or killing a cyclist or pedestrian. He usually gives me examples of situations where the law might not apply the way I would want. I can't think of any right now but luckily I'm seeing him tomorrow so I'll ask him.

Anyway that's a long way of saying that sometimes the law isn't written properly or in such a way to favor going after people hitting cyclists. I just read that in California they just reduced theft of product worth under $900 or so to a misdemeanor. I think it used to be that over $400 meant arrest and jail time. What this has done is, at least anecdotally, increase thefts of product worth just under $900, and encouraged organized rings to steal many sub-$900 items (think electronics and such). The law was written to give individuals a break so that the system would not have to prosecute every shop lifter. However there was nothing in the new law that addressed organized stealing, like by a gang of thieves. So now those gangs are apparently operating much more aggressively, knowing that they are just going to be hit with a misdemeanor and nothing else.

[54ny77]

SoCal has become just plain hellacious for riding. I grew up there, rode (& raced) everywhere in 80's/90's. It's not like it was. I travel there quite a bit on biz and when I get a chance to do some riding, the only time I'll do it is weekdays or weekends being out the door by 6 a.m. at latest so as to get back before the madness gets worse. Too many cars, too many riders, too many drivers who hate riders and are looking for a fight, too many riders who do all cyclists a disservice in their riding behavior, and on & on. Personally know 1 person tragically killed in recent years, and am acquainted with several who've been hit, all by cars.

This looks like paradise, and it is, the only thing being that behind that paradise curtain are cars whizzing by on their personal drag strip at 60+ mph mere inches from riders.

[dgauthier]

The problem isn't aggessive driving -- they're reading their phones.

You don't need to be riding to see the difference in the last few years, it's plain as day from behind the wheel too. If you see a car drifting all over their lane, used to be they were drunk. Now they're reading their phone. A car's speed suddenly drops to 20 mph? Used to be car trouble. Now they're reading their phone. See a car braking for no reason? Used to mean you were in Santa Monica. Now...

You can't tell people not to do it. They don't listen. The best we can hope for (short of $1000 fines and ruthless enforcement) is that self driving cars appear sooner then later.

[unterhausen]

if you see someone cruising in the left lane of the interstate, that means they are texting. Sure, it's much safer over there . Makes me really happy when a trucker does it. Wish there was something I could do about it, these people are no doubt texting on surface streets and other places where it isn't quite as controlled

[campy man]

Mostly this - way too many distracted drivers ... no single demographic is worse than another.

Originally Posted by dgauthier

The problem isn't aggessive driving -- they're reading their phones.

A lot of this - see it all the time with cyclist obstructing the flow of traffic and breaking common sense laws. While most seem to have the mindset of sharing the road there are those that either need education or looking for a confrontation. I used to think it was the fixie crowd causing most of the problems but it seems roadies, commuters, fixies, neighborhood cruiser, bmx, ...

Originally Posted by 54ny77

too many riders who do all cyclists a disservice in their riding behavior

Over time I have become selective on the roads I ride & time of day.

[54ny77]

That's an excellent point, and the most relevant as to danger to cyclists. Texting/smarphone-reading drivers is the #1 risk.

Originally Posted by dgauthier

The problem isn't aggessive driving -- they're reading their phones.

You don't need to be riding to see the difference in the last few years, it's plain as day from behind the wheel too. If you see a car drifting all over their lane, used to be they were drunk. Now they're reading their phone. A car's speed suddenly drops to 20 mph? Used to be car trouble. Now they're reading their phone. See a car braking for no reason? Used to mean you were in Santa Monica. Now...

You can't tell people not to do it. They don't listen. The best we can hope for (short of $1000 fines and ruthless enforcement) is that self driving cars appear sooner then later.

[cachagua]

"The best we can hope for (short of $1000 fines and ruthless enforcement) is that self driving cars appear sooner then later..."

First -- does anyone really believe that self-driving cars are going to improve traffic safety? I expect a LOT of rear-end collisions when the automatic emergency stop feature gets a false positive, just to name one problem, and there will be plenty of others. I'd really like to see a regulation that they're unmistakably marked, so you can know to stay clear of them.

Second, what would be so wrong with some meaningful disincentive and enforcement for impaired driving? I think $1000 is trivial; I'd like to see something like six months' house arrest. You just sit in your living room and get ALL your texting done, son, and then after that we'll let you out on the road.

Sorry if I sound a little indignant. I'm frankly astonished and horrified that we, as a society, put up with this.

[Saint Vitus]

Welp, I'm going to go suit up and ride out there wish me luck.