BICYCLE RIDERSHIP ON THE UPSWING IN PHILADELPHIA AND SO ARE INJURIES AND FATALITIES - A PHILADELPHIA PERSONAL INJURY ATTORNEY SHARES HIS THOUGHTS
This writer has been an active bicyclist for the last 40 years. In the last two weeks, I have been the victim of two separate serious bike accidents causing significant injuries.
As the price of fuel continues to rise, more and more Philadelphians are turning towards bicycles as a viable mode of transportation. The City of Philadelphia recently announced a city-wide network of “bike friendly” streets to serve bicyclists as part of a comprehensive program fully recognizing the bicycle as a means of transportation. Philadelphia has committed itself to the promotion of bicycle use in the City with the establishment of the Mayor’s task force on bicycle safety in 1993 through to the annual City Employees Bike to Work Day. The City of Philadelphia has made improvements to the Schuylkill River bike paths and links to the Valley Forge Bikeway and established the bicycle network plan, adding a new dimension to Philadelphia’s transportation system. Unfortunately, as more Philadelphians use their cycles for pleasure or a viable means of transportation, more injuries or fatalities will occur.
As recently as August 3, 2008, a bicyclist was struck and killed along Roosevelt Boulevard in Philadelphia, near 6th Street, in Feltonville. According to a press release issued by the Bicycle Coalition of Greater Philadelphia, a bicyclist crossing Roosevelt Boulevard at 7th Street in Hunting Park was killed by a driver who was operating a motor vehicle under the influence of alcohol. The driver was charged with homicide by vehicle.
The Philadelphia bicycle accident and personal injury law firm of Reiff and Bily has successfully been representing injured bikers since 1979.
On June 13, 2008, Stanley Wang, the former General Counsel of Philadelphia based Comcast Corporation, was killed while bicycling in his hometown of Moorestown, New Jersey according to the Moorestown Police Department. According to sources, Wang, 67, was bicycling east on East Main Street at 12:20 p.m. when he started to pass a parked pickup truck when the driver of the truck opened his door. Mr. Wang hit the door and was knocked from his bike into the street when he was struck by an eastbound car that was also passing the truck and was pronounced dead at Kennedy Memorial Hospital in Cherry Hill, New Jersey. (Burlington County Times Article)
As I sit writing this blog, my body is bruised, lacerated in multiple locations, my wrist sprained, my thumb taped in a cast and my bicycle damaged beyond repair due to the fact that another individual not paying attention struck me while I was riding my bicycle. I am really one of the lucky victims of a bicycle accident.
On May 14, 2008, Sandy Bauers reported to the Philadelphia Inquirer that if you pit a bike, a car and a SEPTA bus against one another in a commuter race to center city during rush hour, a bicycle will usually win. Commuting by bicycle is excellent for your health, cheaper than putting gas in your car and great for the city roads in that it relieves city traffic congestion and pollution. It seems however, that the streets are becoming a more dangerous place for bicyclists. According to the Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission, more than 17,000 Philadelphians pedal to work every day on average.
More than 47,000 bicycle fatalities have occurred in the United States since 1992. According to statistics, there are currently 85 million bicycle riders in the U.S. 1 in 8 of the cyclists who have been injured have sustained a brain injury. According to the Brain Injury Association of American approximately 540,000 bicyclists visit emergency rooms with injuries every year, of which 67,000 sustain a traumatic brain injury and 27,000 sustain injuries serious enough to require hospitalization. Many bicycle accident injuries are under reported and the summer and fall months have the highest percentage of bicycle related deaths. Not so surprisingly, most bicycle accidents are most likely to occur within 5 blocks of your home.
When I was struck on my bicycle last week and this past weekend, I was initially in shock and then became outraged and started to think pretty hard about the combined pleasures and dangers of riding a bicycle. My accident happened on a dead straight, zero obstruction of the roadway, in daylight with no distraction, other than a driver who was not paying attention. After 40 years of riding a bicycle without any major incident, I had two collisions in a two week period and consider myself lucky. So I have to buy a new bike and I’m hurt and my wounds will heal but many people are not as lucky as me and die and/or are catastrophically injured.
Each year pedestrian fatalities, including bike fatalities, comprise approximately 11% of all traffic fatalities. I have been an avid cyclist since I was 13 years old and have probably traveled in excess of 50,000 miles on my bike and know what it is like to have to deal with careless drivers. I have worked hard for the past 30 years to help injured cyclists and often times, I find that motorists are not paying attention and try to blame the cyclist just because they are on a bike. Most bike accident cases are fairly severe, if not fatal. As more and more individuals turn to bikes as a viable means of transportation, as well as to relieve stress in our increasingly complicated society, bike accidents will no doubt be continuously on the rise.
The Philadelphia bicycle accident and personal injury firm of Reiff and Bily has extensive experience working with bicycle accident cases and can assist you in assessing and protecting your legal rights. If you or a loved one is involved in a bicycle accident and need advise on your legal rights and you were not at fault, please contact one of the experienced lawyers at the Pennsylvania bicycle accident and personal injury law firm of Reiff and Bily. We will evaluate liability, fault, legal compensation for pain and suffering, medical compensation and make sure that you are fully compensated for your injuries. In the United States, a bicyclist is fatally injured every 6 hours. Just as the case is with motorcycles, injuries sustained to bicyclists are often fatal due to the lack of protection provided by the bicycle. Negligent drivers are often the major factor causing bicycle accidents. For example, a driver may make a turn, pull out of a driveway, or open a door without paying attention to the bicyclist. Bicycles share the same laws as a motor vehicle and motor vehicle operators owe a duty to be attentive to bicycle riders.
If you are in need of legal advice or services or wish to speak to an experienced bicycle accident attorney, please contact one of the experienced lawyers at the Philadelphia bicycle accident and personal injury firm of Reiff and Bily for a no cost, no obligation case evaluation and pre-litigation consultation. If we decide to accept your case, there will be no fee unless there is a recovery. If we decide to accept your case, we will charge you a small percentage of the total recovery. Our record of success speaks for itself. Please contact us at 1-800-421-9595 or www.reiffanbily.com.
