[this will be a catch-all for issues relating to legal requirement to use bike lanes (BLs). This was moved from the article explaining When must I ride my bicycle on the shoulder?, because it was muddying that issue unnecessarily; after all BLs are not shoulders and shoulders are not BLs. For all the details about shoulders, see that article; the short answer is their use is almost never required, that conclusion stems from the fact that shoulders are not part of the roadway.] Continue reading “Arizona does NOT have a mandatory Bike Lane Law”
Police: Driver killed in Ahwatukee crash swerved into traffic
weird motorist crash fatality, Chandler Blvd, near Desert Foothills Parkway in Ahwautkee (Phoenix). Driver was driving erratically prior to crossing over and crashing head-on into another car. Continue reading “Police: Driver killed in Ahwatukee crash swerved into traffic”
Alleged red-light runner hits 3 bicyclists, 1 dead in Mesa
12/19/2014 ~ 11am. Elderly male driver of minivan apparently ran red light southbound Gilbert Road, killing bicyclist (not released) and injuring 2 others; as they passed through the intersection of Gilbert Road and 8th Ave (apparently 8th Ave is Pueblo Ave on the east side) in Mesa, AZ Continue reading “Alleged red-light runner hits 3 bicyclists, 1 dead in Mesa”
Semi driver charged in I-17 fatality
[Update: Sentencing here]
11/19/2014: 1 fatality (possibly a second, later) and several injuries when semi driver Brian Knoll drove into a line of stopped traffic on I-17 near Bell Road. He’s been charged with manslaughter, aggravated assault and endangerment; and entered a plea of not guilty to all charges on 12/3. Continue reading “Semi driver charged in I-17 fatality”
Man dies after crashing truck into Glendale barbershop
Check if this is a “traffic” fatality…. Crashes on private property “don’t count” as traffic crashes; however if the “unstabilized event” first occured on the public road, then it should.
Tuesday 12/2/2014 ~ 2:20am. Glendale Ave near 59th Ave, Glendale, AZ. Ford (appears to be an F-150) white pickup. Victim: Sean Brannen, male 47. Continue reading “Man dies after crashing truck into Glendale barbershop”
Was that an accident, or a crash?
The term “accident” should never be used in connection with a vehicle collision.
Here is the reasoning. The terminology switch at NHTSA occurred years ago… Continue reading “Was that an accident, or a crash?”
Door Zone Bike Lane removed after cyclist killed
I usually make a point of only noting incidents that happen in Arizona; but the DZBL thing is just ridiculous, plus at least the cyclist didn’t die in vain… (DZBL = Door Zone Bike Lane. That is: a bike lane placed next to parking where the parked car doors when open protrude into the bike lane) Continue reading “Door Zone Bike Lane removed after cyclist killed”
Take the Driver’s test
Below is re-printed from the Arizona Republic , the quiz accompanied their article on ADOT’s BSAP):
The Arizona Department of Transportation recommends strengthening state laws and adding more questions about bicycle safety in driver’s license tests. Many people don’t know the existing rules. How well do you?
(note these are suggested questions; not in actual use. Also note they do not follow the standard format of 3 answers)
Cyclist dead in Ahwatukee car wreck
[UPDATE; criminal case driver sentenced to 6.5 years prison, see below]
[There have been a couple recent items of interest documented at ourhtn.com, on Nov 29 there was a MV crash at intersection, and on Dec 1 a mobile speed trailer was set up] Continue reading “Cyclist dead in Ahwatukee car wreck”
Maricopa County Traffic Crash Map
This is a google fusion table, like the multi-year bike and ped crashmaps; but will include ALL types of crashes. Because of google limitation of 100,000 rows — yeah there are a lot of crashes! — this set will be limited to Maricopa County only for one year, 2013. There are almost 80,000 crashes per year in Maricopa County.
Crosswalk cyclist killed in crash w/ turning semi driver
Victim 23/M Brandon Rutledge; 11/6/2014, no time specified, video indicates it was daylight. 59th Avenue & Roosevelt, Phoenix; A semi tractor (video shows no trailer) was turning right from 59th Ave (direction was not specified) on to Roosevelt. The bicyclist had been riding on the sidewalk on 59th and continued through crosswalk, though the direction is not specified. “(phoenix police) did say the bicyclist appears to have broken some traffic laws” may be incorrect, Phoenix PD tends to fault bicyclists riding in crosswalks despite it not being illegal. I have attempted repeatedly to point this out to Phoenix PD; e.g. when an 82-year-old driver left-crossed and killed an 11-year-old girl , they determined the driver had done nothing wrong.
Continue reading “Crosswalk cyclist killed in crash w/ turning semi driver”
79 y.o. Bicyclist killed in gated-community car crash North of Tucson
[because of the obvious mis-codings (UNKNOWNS that are obviously known, in both asdm and FARS I’m tagging this missing hit and run, not because it was a hit and run, just to make it easier to find mis-coding ]
[ Update — as things turn out, this does appear in both asdm and FARS data for 2014, but i’m not sure why; since it was private roads? For comparison purposes, check out this one from Mesa 2013 that did not appear in the data]
11/7/2014 ~ morning time “(PCSO) said the man was riding eastbound on Hawks Wing Drive, when he was struck by a car heading southbound on Mooncrest Drive” Hawks Wing Dr, which has a stop sign, is on the stem of a T intersection with Mooncrest. [google maps]
The 79 y.o. male victim’s name is Richard Hayward Leon.
These are both residential streets; and the location is within a gated-community, which makes this highly unusual.
That it is on private streets probably means this is a “non-traffic” traffic fatality — that it won’t count towards traffic statistics, and will not be entered into ADOT traffic collision database, nor will it be reported to FARS when the time comes. This somehow seems wrong, so I want to make note of it and keep an eye out. Continue reading “79 y.o. Bicyclist killed in gated-community car crash North of Tucson”
Another MM decision; MM card is no defense to DUI
About two weeks after MEDICAL MARIJUANA NO DEFENSE TO DUI CHARGE, another Arizona Court of Appeals Div 1 decision came down that is related to and as expected consistent with their earlier opinion. Please visit that link for more info and scroll down to “Another Court of Appeals Case 11/4/2014”.
Bicyclist killed in Graham Co highway collision
Bicyclist Jesse A. Simon, 64 was killed Thursday 10/30/2014 ~ 1213pm on US 191 northbound ~ 3.5 miles north of US Highway 70; when he was clipped by the (right, i assume) mirror of a passing pickup (which may have been towing an RV trailer?) Continue reading “Bicyclist killed in Graham Co highway collision”
Triple motorist fatal caused by fleeing driver
lovely. Police say Valerie Cervantez, 26, and an unidentified man were fleeing 10/30/2014 ~9pm in a Camaro; when they crossed over and crashed head on into victim Sylvester Romero who was retuning home from work (limo driver, one might guess) driving a Lincoln town car. Continue reading “Triple motorist fatal caused by fleeing driver”