florida, deadliest state for cyclists!

[Biciclista]

And people wonder why FL is the deadliest state in the US to walk or ride a bicycle? I just needed something more for a state that has 8% of the total bike fatalities in the entire country within just 3 counties, with 16% of the US total in that single state.)

http://opusthepoet.wordpress.com/201...e-small-feeds/

yikes!

[Tri Girl]

egads, man!

[Grog]

My mom rides there all winter long. This worries me more than a bit...

[OakLeaf]

The nephew of the Dalai Lama was just run over and killed while on a peace walk near Flagler Beach this week. The reports were that he was "in the area of the white line," implying that he was just too close to the road and shouldn't have been there (which, one purpose of the walk was to display signs to passing traffic).

The driver is not being charged.

At least the driver stopped. There seems to be a hit-skip about every other day. As morally egregious as it is to take off after killing someone, it's probably the sensible thing to do. The cops don't care and will never try to find the perp. Heck, a traffic cop was hit in Daytona Beach a few years ago (broke a bone or two), and the driver wasn't cited.

[jessmarimba]

I know here the consequences for a hit-and-run are less than for hitting someone while drunk. So if a drunk person hits someone, it's better to go hide until they're sober. Pretty scary.

[Mr. Bloom]

The nephew of the Dalai Lama was just run over and killed while on a peace walk near Flagler Beach this week. The reports were that he was "in the area of the white line," implying that he was just too close to the road and shouldn't have been there (which, one purpose of the walk was to display signs to passing traffic).

The driver is not being charged.

What happened to Jigme is unfortunate (he's from Bloomington), but, it's also reported that he was wearing a black hoody with the hood up walking with his back to oncoming traffic in the dark. Knowing him as I do, he was simply doing the wrong thing at the wrong time in the wrong place in the wrong way...IMHO

However, having just spent the last week riding in Florida in a community making sincere (but inadequate) efforts to accommodate cyclists, these statistics don't surprise me...the geography is totally flat and the roads are very straight...a formula for very fast moving cars and lots of risk to everyone. While drivers were generally couteous and there were many accommodations, the traffic was way too fast in close proximity to the bike lanes.

ETA: I could not find a source for the statistic presented in the blog...but if it's this study, I personally would find the fatalities per million as more meaningful... And that tells a different story...look at DC with all the accommodations it provides.

In addition, in Florida, I saw some absolutely terrible cycling habits displayed by riders wearing no helmets (riding the wrong way, crossing five lanes of traffic in unpredictable paths, etc). Even the Brit I rode with yesterday was helmetless...he simply forgot it. Yes, I chastised him as we rode.

[OakLeaf]

Oh, I absolutely agree that everyone is ultimately responsible for her own safety. I posted as much with regard to my own crash.

The question of whether someone should be held legally responsible is different. Take it to the extreme - if an automobile driver were drunk and texting and speeding and driving on a suspended license, would it still be okay for them to run over someone on the shoulder who was just a little too close to the road and not very visible?

When I first read your response, I was going to sputter, "But - but - but - what about assured clear distance?" Then I actually read the Florida statute, and it's very instructive - a perfect illustration of what's wrong here.

316.183 Unlawful speed.

—
(1) .... In every event, speed shall be controlled as may be necessary to avoid colliding with any person, vehicle, or other conveyance or object on or entering the highway in compliance with legal requirements and the duty of all persons to use due care.

Contrast that with the corresponding Ohio statute:

4511.21 Speed limits - assured clear distance.

(A) No person shall ... drive any motor vehicle, trackless trolley, or streetcar in and upon any street or highway at a greater speed than will permit the person to bring it to a stop within the assured clear distance ahead.

IOW, in Ohio - and AFAIK in most states - whether or not you actually get a ticket, you're guilty of ACDA any time you rear end something or someone, whether it's another motor vehicle in traffic, a bicyclist, or a refrigerator that fell out of someone's truck. In Florida, it's completely a judgment call on the part of all involved, and if "due care" means not paying attention to the shoulders, slow moving traffic, or anything that isn't a motor vehicle (as it plainly does here, v. the case with the cop directing traffic) then no one is legally responsible.

(But I completely disagree that there are more unsafe cyclists in Florida than anywhere else. I see the same behaviors here as I do wherever I ride. Scary, yes - responsible for automobile drivers being more aggressive and/or negligent, no.)

[indysteel]

What happened to Jigme is unfortunate (he's from Bloomington), but, it's also reported that he was wearing a black hoody with the hood up walking with his back to oncoming traffic in the dark. Knowing him as I do, he was simply doing the wrong thing at the wrong time in the wrong place in the wrong way...IMHO

However, having just spent the last week riding in Florida in a community making sincere (but inadequate) efforts to accommodate cyclists, these statistics don't surprise me...the geography is totally flat and the roads are very straight...a formula for very fast moving cars and lots of risk to everyone. While drivers were generally couteous and there were many accommodations, the traffic was way too fast in close proximity to the bike lanes.

ETA: I could not find a source for the statistic presented in the blog...but if it's this study, I personally would find the fatalities per million as more meaningful... And that tells a different story...look at DC with all the accommodations it provides.

In addition, in Florida, I saw some absolutely terrible cycling habits displayed by riders wearing no helmets (riding the wrong way, crossing five lanes of traffic in unpredictable paths, etc). Even the Brit I rode with yesterday was helmetless...he simply forgot it. Yes, I chastised him as we rode.

Out of curiosity, Mr. B, where did you get those details about Jigme's death? He's in a Chapter 11 before my boss, and we were all wondering exactly what happened. It's very sad.

[Mr. Bloom]

Indy: since I knew him, I reacted immediately after hearing on Good Morning America, and searched all the online reports. The most detailed reports were obviously from the Bloomington Herald Times

Oakleaf: thanks very much for including the links to the statutes. While I think we would find considerable agreement in our perspectives, I struggle to believe that "assured clear distance" includes every contingency including the presence of irresponsible people not readily visible to a properly functioning driver; otherwise, everyone in Ohio would be unreasonably expected to drive at 20mph... I concede your point on unsafe cyclists...I was simply overwhelmed by behaviors I observed in the last week by "people riding bikes"