Fatal crash of November 9, 2018 in Cambridge, Massachusetts

This morning’s fatal crash was reported by State Police as another in the string of tragic right-hook collisions which have become the largest cause of bicyclist fatalities in the Boston area. Once again, a bicyclist was crushed by a large truck which turned right.[ Update: the cyclist was Meng Jin, a male graduate student at MIT.]

The State Police report indicates that both were stopped, then both turned right. Whether the bicyclist intended to turn right, or turned right in an attempt to avoid the truck, is not clear and may not be knowable.

Who arrived first? The police report doesn’t say. If the bicyclist arrived first, that would clearly establish that the trucker is at fault. However, establishing fault can only assign compensation and penalize the driver. It does not bring the bicyclist back to life.

Bicyclists, want to avoid crashes? Keep reading. I call these crashes tragic because they are preventable. To avoid right-hook threats, don’t be in the no-escape zone where the truck’s rear wheels off-track to the right if it turns. If the truck is waiting when you arrive, wait behind it. If the truck pulls up next to you, don’t pass its rear wheels, or if necessary, move out of the way. Better, forestall the truck’s pulling up next to you by waiting centered in the lane.

There is a sign on the back of large trucks and buses: “If you can’t see my mirrors, I can’t see you.” To that I’d add: “if you can see my mirrors, I still might not see you.”  And don’t trust turn signals. Just stay out of the no-escape zone and it will be very, very unlikely that you’ll be run over. More detailed advice is here:

In social media, I have seen calls for better infrastructure and for education of motorists. Motorist education certainly is helpful, but it takes years to spread, as does infrastructure change — but much infrastructure installed in the name of preventing crashes is faulty: witness the installation at Massachusetts Avenue and Beacon Street in Boston which now forces all motorists to turn right from the left lane, like the trucker who killed Dr. Anita Kurmann at that intersection in September, 2015.

This type of infrastructure actually trains bicyclists that passing on the right is OK, not only here but everywhere, because the government officially sanctions it.

Bicyclists can prevent these crashes. Really! is this a taboo subject? Well, yes,  it is taboo with many bicycling advocates, because telling government officials that their infrastructure solutions don’t work alienates them, and it is taboo because it dashes the dream that change in infrastructure, stricter licensing and harsh penalties for motorists will make bicycling safe without bicyclists ourselves having to do anything about it.

You, bicyclist reading this, have by far the greatest ability to avoid crashes, here and now. I’m probably going to be accused of blaming the victim for saying that. But no, I’m not blaming the victim. I don’t want you to be one.

Indeed, several external measures also can reduce the risk, including intelligent infrastructure measures, requirements for safety equipment on trucks (an increasingly promising approach with the advent of conflict sensors), driver education and changes in the law. For more about the Kurmann crash including a description of such measures, see the lead article here.

For a thorough examination of how to be safe and confident on a bicycle in the real world, today, on streets and on paths too, go here.

A later post with more information about the same crash is here.

My credential? Among other things, riding in Boston and in cities all around the USA and Canada for 40 years without one single collision with a motor vehicle.

I am a CyclingSavvy instructor too and next spring, I’ll have a course where I can show you what I know and do.