Response to cyclist's death in North Center, 9/26

**I live in North Center and commute downtown to work every day. I just finished crying in my office after hearing about this. I wrote this thing on Facebook that I thought was worth sharing because writing it felt slightly more productive than just sitting in my computer chair and fuming. But honestly guys, what are we going to do about this???**

I TAKE THIS ROUTE ALMOST EVERY DAY. This cyclist was killed on Damen and Addison. I live on Damen and Irving Park.

But this is not me, even though a lot of what I want to say is spurred on by my personal rage and devastation that this these deaths have become run-of-the-mill this in 2016. Why is this still happening? I said to a friend the other day that Bobby Cann, who was killed by a drunk driver in 2013, should have been the last cyclist death in our city. Cann's totally preventable death -- if the man who killed him had been locked away for his multiple PREVIOUS drunk driving offenses like he SHOULD HAVE been if only he wasn't white and privileged and equipped with good lawyers and enough money to get his record wiped clean, Cann would still be here today -- should have been enough to show our city and our mayor that building miles and miles of bike lanes is not enough to protect cyclists. Because this isn't just about bike lanes. Lisa Kuivinen was killed while she was biking in one of Chicago's supposedly safest bike lanes on Milwaukee Avenue and a truck driver veered into her lane without looking. This is not about bike lanes. This is about a culture, and a conversation we are not having about the relationship between drivers and cyclists in our city.

Chicago was just named the most bike-friendly city in the country and I know that for me personally, and a lot of other cyclists I know who use bikes as their main form of transportation of every day, that designation feels like a joke. Why?

Because today's death marks the is the SIXTH (I had to edit this after learning about the *****18-year-old****college student who was killed in a crash with a cement truck on Thursday night) CYCLIST DEATH in FOUR MONTHS caused by a COMMERCIAL VEHICLE in our city/around our city.

I am sick over this. I ride these roads every single day. I wear a helmet, I ring my bell when I'm riding in unprotected bike lanes adjacent to parked cars because I know a driver could open their door without looking at any second, I use hand signals, I wear bright colors, I yell when drivers start encroaching into the bike lane without looking, I wear lights at night, I communicate with other cyclists, I stop at red lights, but NONE OF THESE THINGS WILL KEEP ME ALIVE IF A CARELESS (AND MOST LIKELY, COMMERCIAL, GIVEN THE RECENT TREND) DRIVER MOVES INTO MY LANE AND HITS ME.

We also need to realize that even the cyclists who do NOT wear lights, who do not stop at stop signs, who do not wear helmets, STILL DESERVE TO BE PROTECTED AND RESPECTED ON THE ROADS AS HUMAN BEINGS. BECAUSE THEY ARE HUMAN BEINGS. OK, so some cyclists do not follow all the laws. Show me a driver who respects and follows every law every time they are behind the wheel. Human beings all have the ability to be careless and irresponsible, but somehow cyclists are the category of human beings that many of us have decided DESERVE to lose their lives as a result of carelessness.

The article about the 18-year-old college student mentioned that she was not wearing a helmet. This to me feels a little bit like victim blaming. I encourage everyone to know to wear helmets, but the fact is in many crashes a helmet is not going to save your life. We do not immediately ask if victims of car crashes were wearing a seatbelt and then feel vindicated when we find out they were not because that somehow means they deserved to die.

And the worst thing is knowing that if I were to be injured in a crash with a vehicle that hundreds of drivers and internet trolls would be waiting to comment on the news article about the things I should have been doing to prevent my own injury or death.

I'm sitting at my desk in my office looking at my green Surly crosscheck and thinking about how today I will probably take the Red Line home after work. I'd rather bike. It's my favorite way to get around this city. To be very honest, after spending most of 2016 in a deep depression that I'm just now climbing out of, I'm pretty sure that riding my bike - combined with a great therapist and the right antidepressant dosage - saved my life a little bit. But today I'm too sad thinking about how my favorite thing to do in the world could kill me someday. I'd rather have a day where I can get home safely without thinking overtime and looking around me, every second, wondering if the next car that cuts me off is going to be the last one.

(Anyone who comments on this post with any "helpful" comments about what this cyclist and the four other dead cyclists could have done to prevent being killed by careless vehicles will be immediately deleted.)

You can find an edited version that includes links posted to Medium here: https://medium.com/@erinvogel/most-bike-friendly-city-in-america-te...

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Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Erin Vogel on September 26, 2016 at 6:14am

I love, love, love this idea.

Permalink Reply by Josh L. on September 26, 2016 at 6:30am

This is a great idea...which advocacy groups could take this on?

Permalink Reply by Jim Reho on September 26, 2016 at 8:59am

I agree.  Also, there are plenty of relatively inexpensive camera systems that can eliminate the blind spots that truck drivers seemingly ignore when they make turns.  Stuff like this:  http://www.realworktrucks.com/blindspot-cameras.html .  These cameras should be mandatory for every commercial vehicle that's the size of a van or bigger.  Vehicles with huge blind spots shouldn't be driven on residential Chicago streets, period.  Don't put some dumbass sign on the back of your truck with a drawing of how I'll be killed if I go on your right side.  Find a way to see me when I'm on your right side.    

Permalink Reply by Elizabeth Blalack on September 27, 2016 at 8:42am

Camera or sensor systems yes. How many other truck drivers could be spared a bad day at work (hitting things other than people as well) if this were implemented.

Permalink Reply by Julie M. on September 26, 2016 at 6:06am

Thank you for sharing this Erin.  This is a normal commuting route for me as well.

Permalink Reply by Erin Vogel on September 26, 2016 at 6:15am

Thank you Julie! <3

Permalink Reply by Caiken on September 26, 2016 at 7:17am

I think translating empathy to people who might not understand separating a stranger riding by them with a real human being is always a heavy task--take care of you, lady.

and not to be a jerk, but I think Lisa used non-gendernormative pronouns, just in case you'd wanna make an edit. big hugs!

Permalink Reply by Shalini on September 26, 2016 at 6:19am

Thank you for sharing this. I've been feeling this way since Lisa was killed last month. That is the route I've taken for 10 years. Like you, I try to be a cautious cyclist, wear a bright colored helmet, light my bike up like I escaped from TRON, and beep my horn to alert cars who aren't paying attention. I do not expect cars to look out for me BUT there is a minimal expectation that they have to look out. Look out for pedestrians jaywalking, look out for potholes, look out for other vehicles. The majority of these deaths have been drivers who were most likely not paying attention. I'm ready to join a group and protest in front of the mayors office or whatever we come up with. I considered giving up riding after hearing about Friday's critically injured cyclist, but still rode today. Now this same scenario again. Looking to do more than just vent.

Tom A.K., I agree with the need for side guards, which has been mentioned a few times. Looks like a petition was started years ago. Here's what I found so far: 

http://annaleahmary.com/underride-guards/

http://www.iihs.org/iihs/sr/statusreport/article/49/7/2

Perhaps Active Trans and other groups should help join this cause.

Permalink Reply by Josh L. on September 26, 2016 at 6:33am

Given the rash of truck/bike accidents it's high time to think about a PR campaign that sensitizes both parties to what they can do to prevent any more deaths. Clearly there is something about flatbed/biker interaction that's causing these deaths.  I'm not knowledgeable about how to prevent such accidents but I'd be curious to hear from others about practical steps truckers and bikers could take to prevent such accidents.  I also like Tom's post below about sideguards for trucks but I suspect that's a longer range project.

Permalink Reply by Anne Alt on September 26, 2016 at 8:46am

These ideas won't prevent every potential crash, but they can help in avoiding at least some of them.

A few tools you can use to stay safer around trucks:

There's a general rule of thumb for safety in traffic around trucks, whether you are on a bike or in a motor vehicle. Look at the truck's side mirror - on the side you can see. If you can't see the driver's face, the driver CANNOT see you. Much of the area around a large truck is a blind spot. See diagram below. If you are in a blind spot (labeled as "no zone" on the diagram - link below), get out of it as quickly as possible. In many situations, the safest way to do this may be to stop and wait for the truck get far enough ahead of you so that you have plenty of warning of where the truck will go. 

https://www.myimprov.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/no-zone.png

Passing on the right can be extremely risky, as you may not have adequate warning if the truck is going to turn right. If the truck does not have enough room to swing wide and enter the lane after the turn, the driver may overrun the corner, knocking you down if you are right beside the truck. 

http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/environment/bicycle_pedestrian/publications...

If a truck is overtaking you, wave to get the driver's attention so he sees you in the traffic lane. If he doesn't move over or slow down to stay clear of you, get clear of the truck's path of travel fast. A mirror can be a lifesaver in this situation.

Permalink Reply by Josh L. on September 26, 2016 at 4:29pm
Thanks for these ideas. Hopefully a dialogue can get started around some solutions.
Permalink Reply by djm on September 27, 2016 at 3:31am

The British Safety Council published this video to illustrate trucks' blind zones — note that the situation is reversed for us in right-side driving countries.

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