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I think it's a little irresponsible to mess with the word "accident" here. Accident doesn't imply no one is at fault or criminally responsible. It implies that however this tragedy came about, the outcome was not the intent of either party involved. I'm sure the truck driver is having the worst day of his life right now.

Garbage trucks are often victims of irresponsible driving as well. In a legal sense, I'm sure the truck driver is at fault, but I would place more of the blame on the city for failing to ensure the safety of cyclists.

I am not a regular cyclist and I will admit my inexperience with some of the laws that govern cyclists in DC, but this sort of traffic patterns seems doomed to wind up in accidents like this.

If there is a bike lane that crosses right turning traffic, why is the intersection engineered so that a huge truck can turn right fast enough to kill a cyclist presumably wearing a helmet and abiding by the law? I am not absolving the truck driver of all wrongdoing here, especially considering the irresponsible behavior that to which garbage trucks fall victim all too often, but this sounds like a much, much larger problem with the city failing to provide a safe environment for one of its most important commuting assets, the bicyclists.

by Dave Murphy on Jul 8, 2008 8:24 pm • link • report