Bicycle Seriously Injured By Semi On Near Northside

A semi tractor trailer struck and seriously injured a female bicyclist near Chicago Avenue and LaSalle Street on Friday afternoon, November 4th.  The women was reportedly taken to Northwestern Memorial Hospital following the collision.  The incident occurred at around 1:45 p.m.  No information is presently available regarding the cause of the crash or how the victim fared over the weekend.

Cab Driver's Failure To Use Caution Dropping Off Passenger Causes Cyclist's Injury

Chicago taxicab drivers must exercise caution when dropping off passengers.  Passengers should be permitted to disembark only where it is reasonably safe to do so.  That usually means pulling to the curb. Stopping so as to give a passenger the option of either exiting the cab into moving motor vehicle traffic, or into a busy bicycle lane is negligence on the part of the driver.  Once again a cab driver's poor decision as to where to drop off a passenger has resulted in injury to a bicyclist.  Our law firm is representing the cyclist.  On Halloween evening at around 7:30 p.m. a 35 year old female cyclist was injured when a southbound taxi cab on Wells Street, about a half a block south of North Avenue, dropped off his passenger into a dedicated bicycle lane.  In this instance, the right wheels of the taxi encroached into the bike lane, an ordinance violation.  When the passenger opened the right rear door it struck the left hand of the bicyclist causing severe finger tendon laceration requiring eight stitches.  It is not yet clear whether surgery will be necessary to restore full function to the finger and hand.

The bicyclist would have been easily visible.  Her bike was equipped with operating lights and she was wearing light colored clothing at the time of the incident.  She was wearing a helmet and did not sustain a head injury.

Wells Street at the location of this incident has one southbound and one northbound lane.  Cab drivers on this and similar roadways simply cannot provide their passengers with two unsafe options of exiting and simply hope nothing bad happens.  In such instances, the passenger is offered the option of either exiting on the left of the cab and into moving motorized traffic, or on the right into a busy bicycle lane.  This is negligence plain and simple.  Cab drivers must drop off passengers in a reasonably safe place so as to avoid putting either the passenger or other roadway users at risk.

Trek Announces Recall Over Seat Clamp Bolt Failure

A seat clamp bolt that may be prone to break has lead Trek Bicycles and the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission to announce the recall of some 27,000 Trek bikes.  The recall pertains to 2012 models which have exhibited hydrogen embrittlement in the bolt that secures the seat to the seat post and which has caused the bolt to break in some incidents.  In at least one incident, the failure of the bolt has led to a broken tooth and lip injury.  If you own one of these bikes contact an authorized Trek dealer for a free replacement bolt.

Bicyclist Presumed Dead After Incident At Western Avenue & Logan Boulevard

A bicyclist is presumed dead after a serious incident occurring at the intersection of Western Avenue and Logan Boulevard on Chicago's north side Saturday morning.  Witnesses on the Chainlink forum have described seeing a mangled bicycle at the scene and a motionless body laying in the road covered by a coat or blanket.  Two cars at the scene appeared to have rear-ended each other.  It is not clear how the incident occurred.  There has been no coverage of this event by media outlets.

It is worth noting that the intersection involved is heavily trafficked by bikes and motor vehicles and is well-known to be exceptionally dangerous.  A ghost bike memorializing the death of Tyler Fabeck is located at the intersection.

Republicans and Democrats Agree, Bikes Are Cool

Ever wonder why some members of Congress wear little bicycle pins on their lapels?  Yeah, me neither.  But it turns out that many do because they are members of something called the Congressional Bike Caucus.  Launched by Representative Earl Blumenauer of Oregon (surprise, surprise) after first being elected to Congress in 1996, the Caucus now includes more than 160 members from both political parties, representing all parts of the nation.  Initially the Caucus started as an informal group meant to provide an outlet for members of Congress and their staffs who were into cycling to get together and ride.  Since then, however, it has come to provide, "Congressional leadership" in efforts to promote "policies that aim to integrate bicycling as an attractive transportation and recreational alternative."  Their are ten members of the Caucus from Illinois:  Jerry Costello (D), Danny K. Davis (D), Luis V. Gutierrez (D), Jesse Jackson, Jr. (D), Timothy V. Johnson (R), Daniel Lipinski (D), Don Manzullo (R), Peter Roskam (R), Janice Schakowsky (D) and John Shimkus (R).  Senator Richard Durbin (D) is a member of the Senate Bike Caucus.

During this prolonged period of political acrimony it is nice to know that there is something Republicans and Democrats can agree upon; bikes are cool and more people should be encouraged to ride.

Bicycle Texting Ban In Place, But What About Enforcement?

Two weeks ago the Chicago City Council approved without dissent a ban on texting and talking on the phone while bicycling.  Penalties for doing so increase with the number of offenses.  As I told the Washington Times recently, it would be hard for any sane person to be against such an obvious no-no.  That point noted, I hope that the ordinance will not be used by police to harass bicyclists on Chicago roads.  Here's hoping also that the CPD is just as aggressive citing motor vehicle drivers for using their cell phones as they are citing cyclists.  Fingers crossed.

Female Bicyclist Suffers Ruptured Spleen Following Crash With Van On Milwaukee Avenue

A female bicyclist suffered a ruptured spleen after being struck by a 2005 Ford Econoline van at the intersection of North Milwaukee Avenue and North Ogden Avenue in Chicago on August 22nd.  The crash occurred at around 8:00 a.m. as the 24 year old cyclist was on her way to work.  The bicyclist was riding southbound in the bike lane on Milwaukee when she was suddenly "t-boned" by the left turning van.  Both vehicles had a green light, but under Illinois law the straight-ahead cyclist had the right of way at the time of the crash.  Immediately following the crash she was taken to Rush University Medical Center via ambulance.  She remains in treatment.  Our law firm is representing the bicyclist.