Bicyclist Run Over in Greenpoint
The North Brooklyn bicycle lane wars took a tragic turn this weekend. Just hours before biking activists staged their mock wake for the painted-over lane in South Williamsburg on Sunday, a popular DJ was run over by a truck on what newspapers are describing as a crowded stretch of Nassau Avenue (though it doesn’t look…
The North Brooklyn bicycle lane wars took a tragic turn this weekend. Just hours before biking activists staged their mock wake for the painted-over lane in South Williamsburg on Sunday, a popular DJ was run over by a truck on what newspapers are describing as a crowded stretch of Nassau Avenue (though it doesn’t look that crowded in this older image from Google Maps) that lacked a protected lane for cyclists. According to newspaper reports, 33-year-old Solange Raulston, who was known as DJ Reverend Soul, was riding west on Nassau Avenue near McGuinness Boulevard at around noon on Sunday when she was struck by a truck; she was taken to Bellevue Hospital where she died. The Post reported that the driver was not charged in the incident.
Soulful DJ Solange Raulston Killed After Being Struck [NY Daily News]
DJ killed on bike in Brooklyn [NY Post]
Cyclist killed by trucker in Greenpoint! [Brooklyn Paper]
DJ Killed In Greenpoint After Struck On Bike [Gothamist]
First, this accident has nothing to do with the “bike lane wars”. It was a horrible accident at a very busy intersection (which has also been the site of at least one pedestrian death within the past year).
Second, there are absolutely no details that would indicate fault either way. Both the rider and the driver could have been operating legally. In other words, it might have been an accident. Or not.
As for the finger pointing, pretty much everyone is at fault. Drivers don’t pay attention to bicyclists (although they are more likely to if there is a painted bike lane) and routinely break traffic laws, and bicyclists aren’t (properly) aware of drivers and routinely break traffic laws.
As a motorcyclist, I was trained to be aware of my surroundings, to anticipate trouble before it happens, to be prepared for defensive/evasive action and to be able to take the necessary action to avoid an accident (SIPDE for you MSF folks). NYC hones that training to a pretty fine edge. As a motorcyclist in NYC, that training has kept me safe for a long time. And it has made me a lot more aware as a bicyclist and a driver (on four wheels).
So yeah, as a driver (on four wheels), it is my responsibility to know where my blind spots are and do a head check. BUT, as a rider (motorized or not), I am very aware of whose blind spot I AM IN and to get out of it as quickly and safely as possible (or better yet, not get in it in the first place). I sure as hell am not going to rely on the person in the 5,000 pound vehicle being aware of me.
I wish I was brave enough to ride a bike in Brooklyn. Then I’d ride in the MIDDLE of the street and let all you fucking asshole drivers suck my exhaust all the way down the block, of every block, since I will also be stopping at red lights. Eat it drivers. And that comes from a driver.
So Northie is saying it is okay for bicyclists to run red lights and it’s not their fault if they get hit but it’s not okay for pedestrians to jaywalk and it’s totally their fault if they get hit. This idiotic lack of logic in bicycle advocacy is just as responsible for this girl’s death as the truck driver.
Posted by: traditionalmod at December 15, 2009 12:17 PM
I did NOT say that. Everyone, to include but not be limited to drivers, pedestrians, cyclists, parents thrusting their children in strollers into the crosswalks, should obey the rules. It’s really not that hard to do.
That said, if you are irresponsible/dumb/daring/aggressive (pick a word that makes you happy) enough to run red lights….whatever happens happens. Survival of the fittest.
1) you tell me a (non convertible) car that doesn’t have a blind spot? Its not a design flaw, its called optical physics. Light travels in straight lines.
2) “It’s *not* the other persons’ responsibility to stay out of the blind spot. Talk about blaming the victim.”
None of us said that of course, but thats irrelevant because its your extremist position to paint it that way. Just like when you say death as a punishment instead of a consequence.
As BSD has pointed out, you’re missing the point entirely.
3) I presume when you’re crossing the road on a walk sign you don’t need to look out either – after all its the light-jumping cyclist’s or driver’s responsibility only, you can carry on in la la land right?
“What you (and others) can’t seem to accept is that just because the other person is doing something stupid does not excuse your bad driving when you hit ’em.”
What you (and others) can’t seem to accept is that we are not interested in justifying our own bad driving but accepting the very very real fact that there are bad drivers out there every day on every street of the borough and that encouraging more and more people to jump on bikes and start riding next to those bad drivers is incredibly irresponsible.
Sometimes I think what bike advocates really want is many many more bicycle deaths to give them the political clout they need to get the city to agree to their plans (which won’t work nearly as well as they think, but that’s another issue).
If anyone I cared about told me they were going to take up biking to work as it would be good for their health and the environment and fun exercise, I would do everything I could to convince them not to do it and join a gym instead.
Why?
Because biking is the single most dangerous way to travel around NYC.
cmu you sound like a douche and you missed the point really.
im a cyclist, motorcyclist, and car driver, and yes there are tons of a.holes in cars too. but despite the huge number of cars i deal with every day versus cyclists, there’s a greater per-capita idiocy rate among cyclists given how many ive had to swerve/brake to avoid.
its a scientific fact proven by me. there. conclusion reached. 🙂
dittoburg, there *IS* not necessarily a blind spot, if you think it’s a God-ensured flaw, I don’t know what to say. *Some* cars have a large blind spot, some have a small one and some *none*. It depends on the mirror and the window and its position, etc.
Iae it’s the *driver’s* responsibility to ensure that he drives in a safe way, which is to be aware of his blind spots and compensate, among other things. That should be obvious.
It’s *not* the other persons’ responsibility to stay out of the blind spot. Talk about blaming the victim.
What you (and others) can’t seem to accept is that just because the other person is doing something stupid does not excuse your bad driving when you hit ’em.
Without commenting on the tragedy described above, I do want to note that there are many cyclists who are ignorant of the rules. Just last week, I witnessed a biker nearly colliding with an older gentleman who walked out into the bike lane on Clinton Street. He walked out because he saw nobody coming from the direction traffic was going. What he wasn’t expecting was a biker going against traffic. After she gave the old man a dirty look, I decided to remind her that she was going the wrong way and that she needs to ride with traffic. She called me a bitch for not being on her side and continued to berate me as she started riding her bike in the middle of the street and not watching where she was going (because it was much more important for her to call me a bitch than watch out for steel on wheels hurtling toward her). I’ve had even worse experiences while venturing out during those organized bike rides. Some, not all, have no respect for their own safety, let alone other’s. That goes for drivers, pedestrians and bikers.
I think, though, that things have improved in NYC, at least from a pedestrian POV. I’ve had fewer run-ins and near misses with cars and bikes. Newark, on the other hand, is a different story… Drivers there don’t think that a pedestrian ever has the right to be in a cross walk.
DH, I agree, I used to use hand signals when cycling to evening school from my job in midtown. I’d say about 25% of drivers let me across.