Updated: Collision in Gresham sends man to the hospital; no car involved

[Updated, 4:25pm]

Here’s a sad (but interesting) case you just don’t come across very often.

I had to re-read the title of a press release sent out a few minutes ago by the Captain of the Gresham Police Department. It reads:

“Bicyclist Injured After Hitting Pedestrian”

Apparently, at about 1:30 this afternoon, a 69 year-old man was riding his bike in the bike lane going west on Powell Blvd. when he collided with someone who was walking across the street at SW Walters.

According to the press release, the pedestrian had the “WALK” signal and the cyclist ran into him, then crashed, struck his head on the pavement (he was not wearing a helmet), sustained “serious head injuries” and was transported to OHSU.

Captain David Lerwick says investigators don’t know how fast the man on the bike was traveling at the time of the collision. He’s also asking anyone who might have witnessed the collision to call the Gresham Police Department at (503) 618-2341.

With more folks biking and walking these days, do you think non-motorized collisions will become more common? It brings to mind this story I published back in June: Realities of bike traffic: The bike-on-bike collision.

UPDATE:
I just got off the phone with Captain Lerwick. He says the pedestrian was uninjured (except for a bike tire mark on his leg). He also added that the man on the bike was 69 years old (which I’ve added to the story above).

Most interestingly however, is the type of intersection and why the collision actually occurred (I think it is a great lesson for all of us).

Lerwick says this was a “T” intersection, meaning the man on the bike ran the red light because he assumed — since there was no cross motor-vehicle traffic — that he didn’t need to stop. There was also a telephone pole between the man on the bike and the pedestrian.

I have often thought about how bikes treat “T” intersections. Traffic lights and signs are more commonly ignored in this situation (like when that guy flipped me off) because there a sense that you’re not crossing any car traffic, so why wait? I think this collision offers a good reminder that folks should take caution and compliance at T-intersections.

Jonathan Maus (Publisher/Editor)

Jonathan Maus (Publisher/Editor)

Founder of BikePortland (in 2005). Father of three. North Portlander. Basketball lover. Car owner and driver. If you have questions or feedback about this site or my work, feel free to contact me at @jonathan_maus on Twitter, via email at maus.jonathan@gmail.com, or phone/text at 503-706-8804. Also, if you read and appreciate this site, please become a supporter.

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matt picio
15 years ago

Get ready for more of these incidents. With more and more cyclists on the road (many of them inexperienced) and greater numbers of pedestrians and transit users, we\’re likely to see this become much more common.

steve
steve
15 years ago

This one outta be a good test of everyones new found manners.

miguelaron
15 years ago

please start wearing helmets

Forseti
Forseti
15 years ago

This is a textbook example of how helmets can prevent or mitigate head injuries.

BubbaX
BubbaX
15 years ago

So you think wearing a helmet is going to help the pedestrian who was hit? NOT!!!

It\’s an unfortunate reality that many cyclists go with the \”my fellow cyclist can do no wrong\” and are unwilling to wise up to the fact that many of their brethren are just as culpable in these kinds of situations as they claim other vehicles and pedestrians are.

No – I don\’t have a solution. Seems like it\’s either totalitarian rule or anarchy when this subject comes around…

jeff
jeff
15 years ago

It\’s also a textbook example of how being inattentive and not respectful is not good.

Steve
Steve
15 years ago

One, ran over pedestrian while in cross walk with \”walk\” sign.
Two, not wearing helmet.
As with many automobile accidents, sounds like this could have been avoided with following the law and a little good sense (helmet).

nuovorecord
nuovorecord
15 years ago

The cyclist doesn\’t need a helmet in this instance if he simply stops for the light. I hope he recovers, but it was totally avoidable.

Whyat
Whyat
15 years ago

It\’s a good example of how a fall off of a bicycle can be more detrimental to one\’s head than a fall from a fast moving motorcycle due to the distance of the head to the ground. Seriously people (especially parents who have kids to take care of)… wear a helmet.

DD
DD
15 years ago

And he definetely wouldn\’t need a helmet if he didn\’t hit or fall, regardless of stopping or not for the light.

Aka
Aka
15 years ago

This is very sad. I hope the pedestrian didn\’t get hurt in the process and that the biker will recover quickly. Hopefully, this event will not create a \”car vs bike vs pedestrian\” article …

Le-oh!
Le-oh!
15 years ago

So a bicyclist attempted to blow a red light- with a pedestrian in the crosswalk no less!- and got injured because he wasn\’t wearing a helmet when he hit the pavement.

I feel for him and all, but I hope he learns his lesson, that was really irresponsible. In any other situation, it would be the pedestrian that could\’ve been severely injured. Who was the guy the cyclist hit, the freakin\’ Hulk or something?

KWW
KWW
15 years ago

ANSI, CE, DOT and Snell helmet requirements are built around a fall from a moving vehicle (horizontal velocity) and from head height to the distance of the head to the ground.

A $30 helmet would of saved this guy thousands….

Helmets are not designed for inter-vehicle accident protection though.

Forseti
Forseti
15 years ago

But cyclists won\’t always do everything perfectly on the roadway. Mistakes are *unavoidable* – everyone makes them. And that\’s why they make helmets. And why this poor fellow should have been wearing one.

steve
steve
15 years ago

Took three posts to blame it on a helmet(or lack thereof).

Hows about, Stop at stoplights and don\’t run into stuff?

I am curious, was he wearing kneepads? Did the pedestrian remember to wrap himself in his Nerf suit?

Forseti
Forseti
15 years ago

\”Took three posts to blame it on a helmet…\”

What do you mean by \”it,\” here? I don\’t think anybody is blaming the collision on the lack of a helmet, but citing the likelihood that the extent of the head injury was exacerbated by not wearing a helmet. You think this injury would have been just as severe with a helmet?

\”Hows about, Stop at stoplights and don\’t run into stuff?\”

So, just never make a mistake? Brilliant! Wish I\’d thought of that! Problem solved!

[Hope you don\’t consider the above to be \”bad manners,\” Steve. It\’s intended as a serious critique of the substance of your post – done with more than a hint of sarcasm – and not a personal attack. I don\’t find you particularly thin-skinned, but just for the sake of clarity and of honoring Jonathan\’s recent request, I thought I\’d add this here.]

E
E
15 years ago

I witnessed an incident like this when I was brand new in Portland. I\’m on the bus; the bus is stopped at a bus stop; people are getting on. A man on a bike zips full speed between bus and sidewalk (yes there\’s a bike lane) and collides with a woman getting on the bus. He was really moving; there are arms and legs everywhere, and we\’re sure someone is dead. However, the woman is entirely unharmed; helmet-wearing bicyclist is bruised, scraped, and shaken up but generally ok; light-weight racing bike is trashed, front wheel bent at almost a right angle. He could barely get it into the bus bike rack (horrified driver gave him a free ride). I had never heard of anyone getting hit by a bicycle; it was kind of a new experience.

It seems that in collisions between bikes and peds, the bikes still lose.

miguelaron
15 years ago

i think some commenters need to read the previous post about the negativity.

Donald
Donald
15 years ago

Tell you what, man. I\’m not a firm believer in helmets.

But today, coming back from a lunch-hour couple of innings at PGE Park, I stopped for a red light downtown on the Max line.

Instead of de-clipping, I grabbed a couple of those green poles they use to keep traffic off the tracks.

When I got my green, I pushed off all ski jumper like and the damn things were loose as a 7-year-old\’s teeth!

Front wheel went 90 degrees and I did the most ungraceful 1.5mph faceplant in history. I was astounded at the force when my helmet hit the sidewalk. And once I got to work was suprised to see that I had indeed totaled my foam. (oh and cover your barends, folks: this thigh bruise would have been a nasty hole without them).

So, I\’m keen on helmets again. Just don\’t tell me to wear one. That totally ticks me off…

FredLf
FredLf
15 years ago

I nearly hit a pedestrian a few weeks ago. A car had stopped in the middle of the block to let a woman cross the road. I couldn\’t see her because she was standing behind a telephone pole. She stepped into the road and then stood stock still in the gutter without once looking to her left. There was absolutely no way I could stop in time and, since she was paying no attention whatsoever to the near lane of traffic, she had no idea I was coming. I was able to squeeze between her and the curb by putting my right-side pedal up at 12 o\’clock to avoid scraping the curb, but it was really, really close. Now I know that if there had been a collision, it would have been technically \”my\” fault for failing to yield to a ped in the roadway. But the real cause of the near miss was (a) the motorist trying to be \”polite\” by stopping in the middle of block for a pedestrian and (b) the fact that the pedestrian paid no attention at all to oncoming traffic (i.e. didn\’t look both ways when crossing!). I guess the lesson is two-fold. For cyclists, eternal vigilance and defensive riding are imperative; always anticipate that other users will do the dumbest possible thing. For drivers, being \”polite\” and ceding the right-of-way is usually more dangerous and confusing than following the standard rules (in this case, only treating intersections like crosswalks).

Cameron
Cameron
15 years ago

I was hit once by a bicyclist riding down the wrong side of the street.

It was a neighborhood street, just a two way stop. I guess he had the right of way, but he was hugging the curb- maybe half a foot from his wheels and I didn\’t see him. I stepped into the street and he yelled, I had just enough time to get my knee up to protect myself. He went down to the ground, uninjured but for my knee to his groin. Looking back it\’s actually kind of funny. If someone had a camera, it would\’ve been a front-runner for America\’s Funniest Home Videos. He got up and walked away, cursing me.

This incident is part of the reason that I don\’t ride down the wrong side of the street-

I hope the bicyclist is OK and the pedestrian too, really this could happen to anybody.

B.C.
B.C.
15 years ago

This type of \”T\” intersection is very common along Naito Parkway. When I am riding home, I ride down Oak St until it hits Naito. When the light at Oak turns green, I turn left onto Naito. The lights are timed in a way that all the lights on Naito will turn red as well, making we wait at the next street to the North for about 10 seconds. Multiple times people will wizz by me and go through the red light, nearly missing pedestrians as they are trying to get across Naito from Waterfront Park.

Its a tricky situation!

Adams Carroll (News Intern)
15 years ago

\”This type of \”T\” intersection is very common along Naito Parkway.\”

definitely.

my compromise on Naito is, if the light is read, I\’ll roll up onto the sidewalk on one side of the intersection and then re-enter the roadway on the other side.

I think this is legal and I find it much less egregious than just blowing through the light (even though you can tell if there is no ped. traffic).

Pete
Pete
15 years ago

\”With more folks biking and walking these days, do you think non-motorized collisions will become more common?\”

Not only will they become more common, but they\’ll be publicized more, and we\’ll start to see just how many riders are out there on sidewalks, riding the wrong way in bike lanes, and blowing through stop signs and red lights. I don\’t think they\’re uncommon now, just not publicized. But now that local media has a known attention-getting topic for slow news days, we\’ll get to hear about it in the lunchroom from our non-cycling coworkers. And yes, the thousands of miles we log without incident will continue to go unnoticed. Sigh.

Pete
Pete
15 years ago

My spin class instructor asked on Monday night: \”why stop for a red light at a T intersection?\”. Nobody knew the answer he had in mind – pedestrians crossing. (I answered it\’s because it\’s the law and was somewhat ashamed for his answer not popping into mind). He had seen this happen while out riding, and the pedestrian (an older woman) was badly injured (broken bones).

Anonymous
Anonymous
15 years ago

Here\’s what I\’m hearing…
If he wouldn\’t have run the light, he wouldn\’t have hit the guy; end of story.
But if he would have been wearing a helmet, he could have run the light, hit the guy, and got away with it. Is that right? Is that what some of you are saying?

bahueh
bahueh
15 years ago

anonymous..NO, that\’s no what anyone is saying.

helmets save brains. period. do they work effectively to protect every rider from car collisions? hardly, but collisions with vehicles are only one form of contact a rider can experience..
wish people would get that through their skulls (which so many appear to think are much thicker than they are).

riders often get the worst of it when stationary objects are involved…whether its a pedestrian or otherwise..a lot of folks don\’t seem to realize that either…

everyone needs to start asking themselves a question and realizing the answer…would you drive in the manner that you operate a bike? no seat belt, running stop signs and lights, riding the wrong way down the road? why on this earth would you operate a bike that way? just don\’t understand. a 69 year old guy should know better. maybe he just learned his lesson.

RonC
RonC
15 years ago

Jonathan asked \”With more folks biking and walking these days, do you think non-motorized collisions will become more common?\”

While initially we might see more of this type of event, I would postulate that at some point the frequency of these occurrences would level off, due to a greater awareness of potential pitfalls by both cyclists and pedestrians alike. (Kudos to Jonathan for bringing this to our attention.)

Some have also pointed out that Darwin\’s theory of natural selection might also weed out those who refuse to acknowledge the probability of unexpected events. In this case, I sincerely hope Darwin is proven wrong, and that the rider (helmet or no helmet) pulls through this OK.

Forseti
Forseti
15 years ago

\”But if he would have been wearing a helmet, he could have run the light, hit the guy, and got away with it. Is that right? Is that what some of you are saying?\”

I really don\’t see how you could have reached that conclusion. Can you point to some language in some post(s) that suggests this conclusion to you? Regardless, that is not what *I* am saying.

I was saying that if he had been wearing a helmet and he ran the light and hit the guy at least he wouldn\’t have such a serious head injury.

I\’m not justifying his behavior. It seems pretty obvious, based on the article above, that it was entirely his fault. He\’s lucky the guy wasn\’t hurt – then he might have to pay a second set of medical bills.

Maybe he was going to go through the intersection against the light because he\’s the stereotypical scofflaw cyclist, or maybe he just wasn\’t paying close enough attention. I don\’t know. And it doesn\’t really matter, because either way it\’s a traffic code violation and probably negligence.

But, to the/my point: As someone said above, $30 (or less) could have saved this guy literally $$ thousands, not to mention any lasting disability from the injury.

I just think this is a really obvious example of how helmets do save pain, suffering, injury, and money. And if this guy is one of the 45 million Americans who don\’t have health insurance, us taxpayers will be picking up this tab.

Cruizer
15 years ago

#26 Where are you getting \”he could have got away with it?\” No one is suggesting tips for hitting pedestrians and \”getting away with it.\” People are discussing the likelihood that the cyclist\’s head injuries would have been less if he\’d been wearing a helmet. That\’s all. But first and foremost everyone is in agreement that lack of awareness led to the undesirable result of hitting the pedestrian who, thankfully, remains uninjured.

KT
KT
15 years ago

Anonymous, I think what people are saying that if he would have been wearing a helmet, he probably wouldn\’t be in the hospital right now.

Not that he could have hit the ped and gotten away with it; I think in this particular case, even if he had been wearing a helmet he wouldn\’t have been able to whiz away on his bike!

What I\’m hearing is, use some common sense about both your equipment and traffic control devices.

djasonpenney
15 years ago

OMG please, everyone, stop the helmet wars already. We all know that helmets reduce fatalities by 85% in one certain type of accident; whether or not this was one of those is a moot subject.

No one seems to have pointed out that even if there was no light, the cyclist would still have been in the wrong. So, everyone stop the traffic signal wars, too, OK?

The real takeaway for me is how the public really needs education. Too many people think that knowing how to brake, steer, and pedal a bicycle means that they know how to operate one safely.

Nor is experience driving a car directly applicable to riding a bike. Think about the visibility issues that played into this accident: both a cyclist and a pedestrian are much harder to see than a motor vehicle. The cyclist clearly wasn\’t riding defensively.

I am relieved that the pedestrian was not seriously injured, and I\’m saddened that this cyclist will have to take so much time off of the road as part of his lesson in this experience.

Racer X
Racer X
15 years ago

And depending on the striping of the bike lane (I do not know this intersection)…the top of the \’Tee\’ can operate similarly to that of a car slip lane…you keep riding in the lane since turning car traffic does not cross into your lane.

But having said that…a pedestrian would have the right of way, especially with a walk signal…bikelane or slip lane.

Jim F
Jim F
15 years ago

Darwin at work.

Steven M.
Steven M.
15 years ago

Poor bastard.

Donna
Donna
15 years ago

my compromise on Naito is, if the light is read, I\’ll roll up onto the sidewalk on one side of the intersection and then re-enter the roadway on the other side.

I think this is legal and I find it much less egregious than just blowing through the light (even though you can tell if there is no ped. traffic).

IMO, these kinds of intersections would be ideal for a pilot of bike-specific stoplights. It could be green for bikes when it\’s red for cars so long as a pedestrian hasn\’t pushed the crosswalk button.

SkidMark
SkidMark
15 years ago

My mom taught me to look both ways before I cross the street…just sayin\’

cyclist
cyclist
15 years ago

Nobody ever gets hurt when cyclists run stop signs and stop lights, I wish people would stop going on and on about it like it\’s a big deal.

Icarus Falling
Icarus Falling
15 years ago

\”If he wouldn\’t have run the light, he wouldn\’t have hit the guy; end of story.
But if he would have been wearing a helmet, he could have run the light, hit the guy, and got away with it. Is that right? Is that what some of you are saying?\”

That is exactly what people are saying, or pointing out, and they do not even realize they are doing it, sadly. And, when and if they do realize that is what the are saying, they would never admit to it.

It appears to be difficult to jump down off of your pedestal once you have climbed all the way up there.

Keep your helmet ideals off of my head.

Illegitimus Non-carborundem.

Chris
Chris
15 years ago

Anonymous, Icarus

At 69, any sort of head injury is very bad. We can probably assume this was a low speed crash since the pedestrian was uninjured, and yet the rider is in the hospital.

Yes, the rider screwed up, we can all see that, but it is potentially life altering to the rider. Screwing up should not cost someone their brain. Perhaps they could have both walked away if he had a helmet. I think we should all hope everyone walks away from a crash, even one that is self inflicted.

Icarus Falling
Icarus Falling
15 years ago

of course we hope everyone should walk away from any crash. I hope this man is doing fine.

But, once again, the self righteous are using another injury to preach the good word about helmets.

A word that has been abused so much, it might as well be considered blasphemy.

Eileen
Eileen
15 years ago

yes, skidmark and Icarus, wearing a helmet absolves you of all wrongdoing. I think the pope just released that statement.

the pope
the pope
15 years ago

\”helmet\” is only blasphemy when used in vain.

steve
steve
15 years ago

You are a beacon of civility, Eileen

Do you have any opinions involving cycling that don\’t revolve around helmets or fear?

KWW
KWW
15 years ago

People are not assigning blame, just realizing that when you wear a helmet you are preparing for a worst case scenario.

jimbo
jimbo
15 years ago

You should have a talk sometime with a trauma nurse. Ask about the guy that hits his head on the ground and is now a vegetable being spoon fed and dosn\’t even know it, hes the lucky one cause the other guy that hit his head on the ground and is spoon fed but is still aware of his suroundings and hates his life. It only takes a split second to change your life forever. If you don\’t want to wear a helmet I think you should have that right. We don\’t need a Marxist govt to tell us everything we need to do. If you want to act foolishly that makes me sad but it is your choice to make.

Morrow
Morrow
15 years ago

I think one thing that needs to be mentioned. Accidents do not always happen because you made a mistake. Say a pedestrian walks in front of you without looking or a car opens its door into a bike lane right in front of you. Then you are seriously hurt or killed because you were not wearing a helmet. OK fine you decided not to wear a helmet thats your fault if you die/get seriously hurt, but what about the person that made the mistake and having to deal with the thought of killing/seriously hurting someone; and who deals with the your hospital bills if you are uninsured; and the fire and rescue time?

Steven J
Steven J
15 years ago

I too am against helmet laws,….but I wear em.
I Recently completed the trans-am west -east, helluva ride..but back on point.
was in Ozarks being chased by non less than 3 dogs…think it\’s a law in Kentucky..you can\’t have one or four..3 required.
Anyway..traveling about 12mph with one particularly aggressive lab on my heels, I looked down for a second and when looked up, I was heading off the shoulder & 10ft embankment.
Bike tires bogged down in soft shoulder made up of cantaloupe sized rocks, and clay. Bike went down fast with 45lbs of extra gear on it. front panniers snagged a rock and threw me to ground.
My head skipped like a stone on water for at least 5 feet.

Moral of story: helmet had multiple dents that would have been in my head.

It happens that fast folks.. better to have it and not need it, than need it and be without.

Moo
Moo
15 years ago

Red means stop…what\’s so hard to understand here? I laughed at the dude who blew the Williams light northbound just past the Rose Qtr..\’cause a cop nailed him for $242 biguns.

Scrumhalf
Scrumhalf
15 years ago

I am not very familiar with that part of town but this piqued my curiosity – I Googled the intersection in question.

The street level view shows a wide intersection with clear views – in fact I can\’t imagine a more benign setting considering Powell is a major street. The hard part for me was figuring out how this happened – even if the cyclist was running a red light, it isn\’t like he couldn\’t have seen the imminent collision well in advance.