Oregon Cyclist Wins in Court...

[paredown]

...but it took three years and a good lawyer:

http://bikeportland.org/2015/06/25/man-wins-court-three-years-police-insurance-company-blamed-collision-145087#more-145087

The cyclist was originally blamed for the accident when he tried to move out of the bike lane to avoid getting right hooked, then the SUV driver pulled into the bike lane, slammed on his brakes without warning, and the cyclist clobbered the back of the SUV.

[toadbike]

That's great news! As much press as Portland gets as a "Bike Friendly" City, it's still dangerous as ···· to ride in here!

[JAllen]

Wooohoooo!

:banana:

[gasman]

Excellent outcome. So glad to hear it. I know of a couple others that have been right hooked in Pdx and I hope they don't have to go to court.

[unterhausen]

That's great news! As much press as Portland gets as a "Bike Friendly" City, it's still dangerous as ···· to ride in here!
I look at the lists of bike friendly cities and think they should be blank. Having said that,
right turns were prohibited at the intersection where this collision happened because of the danger to cyclists. That's pretty bike friendly, if you ask me. Pretty sure that would not happen here, and we beat Portland in "bike friendliness" in a recent study

[kevinvc]

I got right hooked at the same intersection a few years ago. Fortunately I was able to avoid colliding with the car. Unfortunately, I crashed and broke my wrist in doing so. Still better than being run over though.

[tiretrax]

The last paragraph in which the jurors admitted they had preconceived perceptions based on biased news coverage is the reason to celebrate this case.

I've been commuting in Dallas, and I have noticed how much more patient drivers have become. Still not a great place to ride, but at least it's getting better.

[JAllen]

The last paragraph in which the jurors admitted they had preconceived perceptions based on biased news coverage is the reason to celebrate this case.

I've been commuting in Dallas, and I have noticed how much more patient drivers have become. Still not a great place to ride, but at least it's getting better.

I think it's due to the increased amount to cyclists out there. Everyone knows someone... hopefully that will continue to increase.

[Don49]

Good outcome for the cyclist, but I'm trying to understand the comment about the bike lane:

Zickrick also learned that not every police officer knows bike laws. He said the police investigator he spoke with while in the emergency room admitted to him that he didn’t know the laws about bike lanes and right-of-way. “He talked to me on the phone as if I should have yielded to the SUV, like a car would have to do.”

In Calif I don't believe we have any extra protection by being a cyclist in a bike lane. Anybody know what is being referred to above?

[kevinvc]

Good outcome for the cyclist, but I'm trying to understand the comment about the bike lane:

Zickrick also learned that not every police officer knows bike laws. He said the police investigator he spoke with while in the emergency room admitted to him that he didn’t know the laws about bike lanes and right-of-way. “He talked to me on the phone as if I should have yielded to the SUV, like a car would have to do.”

In Calif I don't believe we have any extra protection by being a cyclist in a bike lane. Anybody know what is being referred to above?

In Oregon, motor vehicles cannot merge into a bike lane; it cannot be used as a turning lane. Instead, they have to stay in their lane and turn through the bike lane at the intersection. Since they are crossing another travel lane (the bike lane), they have to yield the right of way to any oncoming bikes and cannot start their turn unless it is clear.

It's common in right hook collisions for some people to claim that the bike should have stopped and yielded to the motor vehicle, but that's not the law.

I hope that makes sense, I may have over-explained it and made it even more confusing.

[gasman]

In Oregon, motor vehicles cannot merge into a bike lane; it cannot be used as a turning lane. Instead, they have to stay in their lane and turn through the bike lane at the intersection. Since they are crossing another travel lane (the bike lane), they have to yield the right of way to any oncoming bikes and cannot start their turn unless it is clear.

It's common in right hook collisions for some people to claim that the bike should have stopped and yielded to the motor vehicle, but that's not the law.

I hope that makes sense, I may have over-explained it and made it even more confusing.

Nope, perfect explanation but I don't know that any drivers know the rule.

[JAllen]

In Oregon, motor vehicles cannot merge into a bike lane; it cannot be used as a turning lane. Instead, they have to stay in their lane and turn through the bike lane at the intersection. Since they are crossing another travel lane (the bike lane), they have to yield the right of way to any oncoming bikes and cannot start their turn unless it is clear.

It's common in right hook collisions for some people to claim that the bike should have stopped and yielded to the motor vehicle, but that's not the law.

I hope that makes sense, I may have over-explained it and made it even more confusing.

Both of you hit the nail on the head. The entitlement that some drivers have is plain deadly.

Nope, perfect explanation but I don't know that any drivers know the rule.

[Don49]

I hope that makes sense, I may have over-explained it and made it even more confusing. Nope, perfectly understandable and logical. AFAIK we don't have that law in CA.