16-year-old driver who killed cyclist was speeding & using social media

[Tandem Rider]

Originally Posted by Clean39T

But I don't. And so I keep riding, hoping the inevitable doesn't happen today - or tomorrow - or next week.

Sigh.

Dude!!! I don't know where you're riding at or at what time of day, but I've been averaging about 1 or 2 "buzzes" per year. In fact the last time they had an AZ plate, and a Deschutes Co Sherriff was right behind us, he pulled up nodded, and pulled them over. After living and riding/racing all over the country, this is the most cycling friendly place I've been. If there's a better one, please share it!!! I'll pay in beers!!

[Black Dog]

Originally Posted by XXtwindad

Hard to know how to process this.

On one hand, I dislike cars. I don’t like driving. And I think that distracting driving should be WAY more criminalized than it is. And I cycle defensively.

But, on the other hand, how much do you let fear dictate your cycling decisions? I mean this in the most respectful way possible.

Fear is not the driver of my decisions. Risk is. I can mitigate risk by using lights on my bike and avoiding roads at certain times or all together if they pose a risk. You have to accept some risk as soon as your feet touch the floor in the morning. How much is quite personal and can involve some calculus. I agree with you completely about the need to criminalize distracted driving and hope we can do a much better job training and retraining drivers.

[nortx-Dave]

I guess I'm lucky. Here in rural North Central Texas, since I moved here 6 years ago I've had no one swerve their car into me, open their doors into me to force me off the road, "coal roll" me, throw things at me, yell at me or even honk at me. On the contrary, people generally give me the lane when passing on the road. However, when I started riding back in the early 1980's around San Antonio TX, I had all the above happen, on a fairly regular basis. At least from a public perception standpoint, things have improved - for me, on the road.

[Dave Ferris]

Originally Posted by George M

It’s getting to the point that I’m ready to quit riding. I’m 80 years old and I can’t see it getting any better in my life time. I just wish the police would start getting these people, but there are to many of them . Be safe out there.

Soon to be 68 here. I think I made a huge $7200 mistake in buying this Moots. The more I ride on the road, the more it fuels anger and paranoia about getting hit. It's simply not a fun, relaxing or fulfilling experience. I'd actually rather be walking for 90 to a 105 minutes on days I don't run.

The speeding around this area is known for being over the top. It's so common and blatant I really think the Glendale PD have given up. Glendale is consistently ranked as one of the most dangerous cities for peds and bikes. Living here for 24 years I knew that going in buying the new bike...don't know what I was thinking. Should have bought another mtn. bike.

[soulspinner]

Yesterday an elderly woman in a new Buick came inches from mirroring me because she was so far to the right. Took a while on a MUT to clam down.

[oldpotatoe]

Bottom line: Disabling phones just isn't going to happen. Instead of taking the lazy way out, try to come up with a good solution.

People are inherently dumb and lazy. Unless you FORCE them to do something, like NOT drive distracted, they will continue to do that and continue to have accidents.

You are probably too young to remember when seat belts came to cars. NOBODY used them. Then ignition interlocks or obnoxious buzzers unless you hooked them..Still nada, until big, fat fines for not wearing a seatbelt..viola!!

One way is to hit them in the wallet..tough to enforce tho..no cell phone use by driver. The other 'lazy' way is to have the car somehow disable the phone when the car is moving, or vice versa..the phone is disabled when it's moving. Perhaps a weight on driver's seat type gig(so all those poor, poor people who commute by train and bus can have their internet..thank GOODNESS!!..What would they DO w/o the interweb??).

BUT, cars moving in opposite direction with uber connected cars with giganto screens. Car makers, telecomm companies are complicit and the carnage will continue.

[unterhausen]

According to the numbers that I saw (from coroners) only 60% of people in the U.S. use seat belts, and that's only because women are much more likely to wear seatbelts. There is actually an anti-seatbelt coroner out there somewhere, drums up business, I guess.

[makoti]

Originally Posted by unterhausen

According to the numbers that I saw (from coroners) only 60% of people in the U.S. use seat belts, and that's only because women are much more likely to wear seatbelts. There is actually an anti-seatbelt coroner out there somewhere, drums up business, I guess.

I find this stat amazing. I know no one who doesn't use them. Not one person I've ever been in a car with in the last 25 years didn't buckle up. Still, I don't doubt it is true because humans will human.

[gdw]

Originally Posted by unterhausen

According to the numbers that I saw (from coroners) only 60% of people in the U.S. use seat belts, and that's only because women are much more likely to wear seatbelts. There is actually an anti-seatbelt coroner out there somewhere, drums up business, I guess.

Coroners should stick to dealing with the dead because the figure you reference isn't accurate to put it mildly.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seat..._United_States

[b33]

Originally Posted by merlinmurph

In addition, the screens in cars now are as bad as phones, if not worse. I can just see a day sometime in the very near future where those screens will have all the functionality of a phone. Facebook on the car screen. Now what do you do? Ugly, huh? You bet.

In the past when this was brought up, the response was usually something like yours. Well, it's not 1960 anymore, times change.

I wish I had an answer.

This not my experience. My GPs, my media, my incoming calls, my speed, the speed limit are all displayed on my heads up display. I never have to take my eyes off the road to operate those items.

My phone integrates via car play but Facebook is not an app that works.

The answer is simple. Tech. A car can easily discern who is a driver and who is a passenger - heck it knows if someone is sitting in a seat and if they don't have their belt on it gives an alarm. Auto cruise control and lane assist are awesome. Again, the car knows. My wife and I are on progressive - we are each using the snapshot app - we are both A+ plus rated drivers and the app knows when I am driving and when she is a passenger and that with zero integration into the car.

The answer is tech and it's fairly simple.

[Ozz]

Originally Posted by oldpotatoe

...You are probably too young to remember when seat belts came to cars. NOBODY used them. Then ignition interlocks or obnoxious buzzers unless you hooked them..Still nada, until big, fat fines for not wearing a seatbelt..viola!!
....

Funny....I was just talking with my wife last night about the early '70's Ad Council advertisements for wearing seatbelt I saw as a kid.

I thought they were pretty effective.....I still remembered them that is for sure....

Maybe cars need ignition interlocks and buzzers when they detect phones that have not been put in "airplane mode"?

There are lots of ways to address the problem, it just take the will to do it.

[tuscanyswe]

Originally Posted by b33

This not my experience. My GPs, my media, my incoming calls, my speed, the speed limit are all displayed on my heads up display. I never have to take my eyes off the road to operate those items.

My phone integrates via car play but Facebook is not an app that works.

The answer is simple. Tech. A car can easily discern who is a driver and who is a passenger - heck it knows if someone is sitting in a seat and if they don't have their belt on it gives an alarm. Auto cruise control and lane assist are awesome. Again, the car knows. My wife and I are on progressive - we are each using the snapshot app - we are both A+ plus rated drivers and the app knows when I am driving and when she is a passenger and that with zero integration into the car.

The answer is tech and it's fairly simple.

Sure on new cars. But that will still take a v long time untill everyone have a new car.. meanwhile they all have more app on their phones for every passing week.

[J.Higgins]

Are the major bike and components manufacturers lobbying for safety? I haven't done a search to check, but it would be an obviously good move on their part.

[J.Higgins]

Originally Posted by oldpotatoe

People are inherently dumb and lazy. Unless you FORCE them to do something, like NOT drive distracted, they will continue to do that and continue to have accidents.

True statement. It's not just phones, either. My mother was killed in a crash caused by a guy behind the wheel of a lumber truck. He was leaned over, trying to read a map that was laying on the passenger seat.

The trouble is, nobody thinks that it can happen to them, so they continue to do do stupid stuff. Nobody thinks it can happen to them. I repeat that quite a lot because I truly believe its the root cause of all of this. Its kind of like the jackass who refused to wear a mask (must be thousands of them), caught covid-19 and died. No way it could ever happen to him!

Until we start teaching to all of our children the value of good choices versus consequences, then this sort of behavior will continue. Its all up to us, and we have no one to blame but ourselves.

[Clean39T]

Originally Posted by Tandem Rider

Dude!!! I don't know where you're riding at or at what time of day, but I've been averaging about 1 or 2 "buzzes" per year. In fact the last time they had an AZ plate, and a Deschutes Co Sherriff was right behind us, he pulled up nodded, and pulled them over. After living and riding/racing all over the country, this is the most cycling friendly place I've been. If there's a better one, please share it!!! I'll pay in beers!!

Just the usual routes N/NW/NE and E of town - close in, and up to Sisters, Terrebonne, Redmond, etc. Maybe I'm unlucky? Like I said, it isn't everyone - just enough select someones that pretty much every ride has some form of aggravating or unnerving close call. N/NW of town has gotten worse over the last few months because of construction and all the work Knife River, et al., is doing - just way more huge trucks (heavy commercial trucks and brodozers) on the road that seem to be in a god-awful hurry.

I'm hoping to ride a car-free McKenzie this weekend - and heard portions of the Cascade Lakes HWY is closed to cars but open to bikes right now? Driving to ride is general against my instinct but it seems I have to start making some exceptions.

I can't give up and give in to Zwifting. I didn't move to the sunny side of the state to spend my time indoors. I'd rather run, hike, or MTB - and have been dabbling in all three. I also spend a couple/few rides a week doing hill repeats and up n' backs on safe roads close to home (around Awbrey and up Skyliners, around Tetherow and Tree Farm, etc.). I find that heaps more enjoyable than plugging in to the matrix - but to each their own.