Well-known Portland activist Bonnie Tinker died after colliding with a dump truck on the campus of Virginia Tech last month. From initial reports, it seemed she was victim of a right-hook, but according a story published today by The Roanoke Times, Tinker lost control of her bike prior to the right turn.
Here’s an excerpt from the story:
Police have determined that the driver of a dump truck that collided with a bicyclist on Virginia Tech’s campus last month was not at fault…
According to Tech police Chief Wendell Flinchum, based on evidence and witness statements, the bike and the truck were both headed north on West Campus Drive. The truck was in the correct driving lane, and the bike was next to it in a bike lane. The bike began to wobble and “became entangled” in the truck’s rear wheels before the truck made a right turn onto Drillfield Drive…”
Read the full article here.
It obviously doesn’t apply in the case above, but it’s interesting to note that in Oregon, ORS 811.065 states that when someone in a car traveling at a speed above 35 mph passes someone on a bike, they must do so at a “distance sufficient to prevent contact if the bicyclist fell toward the driver’s path.”
Tinker was in Virginia Tech for a conference. A Portland resident, she was known for her protests and activism in support of peace and gay rights.
“The bike began to wobble and became entangled in the truck’s rear wheels”? Still trying to figure out what the heck that means. Not pointing fingers or anything. Just trying to figure out that lame description of what the witnesses saw.
Sounds fishy to me.
Perhaps the truck got too close to her, and she tried to avoid the truck, maybe overcorrecting? This would explain the “wobble”, perhaps? Hard to say for certain. I know I’ve been startled by how close a vehicle gets to me and my body reacts.
Seems to me this is yet another example of our nation’s justice system favoring motor vehicle drivers — bicyclists rarely get the benefit of the doubt in truck v. bike or car v. bike incidents.
Not really convinced on this. Most bike activists are able to be as successful as Bonnie because of their real world experiences, meaning 1000’s of hours in the saddle in the city. Suddenly losing control while in a bike lane on a campus seems convenient when trying to avoid a sticky issue and situation. Then again I’m just reading the story.
Ah, the ‘cyclist swerved’ defense, with the primary witness being the surviving motorist. got it!
We don’t know:
1. The speed of the truck
2. The width of the bike lane
3. Road conditions (gravel, grates, etc)
There are certainly examples of the justice system favoring drivers, but none of us here in Portland have all the facts, and probably none of us have ridden that road. Everything is speculation on our part.
It seems unlikely that a cyclist as experienced as Ms. Tinker would suddenly “wobble” without cause, but without knowing the rest of the facts, it’s pretty useless to speculate.
My thoughts go out to her family and friends, and I hope that they find comfort and healing.
The linked article is brief, and doesn’t offer much to explain how this could have happened. It would be helpful to be able to read the eyewitness testimony the police used to come to their conclusion.
“…The truck was in the correct driving lane…”. Was this what the witnesses observed while the truck was moving? Was the truck in the correct driving lane the entire time the bike was next to it?
Did the contact occur while the truck was in its correct driving lane?
I wonder whether or not the truck itself did a little veering or wobbling before being observed in the correct driving lane.
http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=virginia+tech&sll=38.169114,-78.398437&sspn=20.783532,45.834961&ie=UTF8&ll=37.224759,-80.424793&spn=0,359.97762&t=h&z=16&layer=c&cbll=37.224842,-80.424851&panoid=_VXPY9gssw1xS1Kbgpiz1Q&cbp=12,350.09,,0,1.38
She would have a block ahead of the camera going away, the was going in the same direction and made a right turn.
FWIW
Interesting Oregon law that, I realize doesn’t apply here, but worth noting in case it someday applies to lower speeds:
“Passing at speeds above 35 mph requires distance sufficient to prevent contact if the bicyclist fell toward the driver’s path.” — ORS 811.065
@6
Matt you are pretty much the only voice of reason so far.
It’s interesting that all of the speculation has to do with what the driver was doing, as compared to the cyclist. It seems like there are some pretty biased viewpoints here.
Sounds like she freaked and paid the ultimate, unfortunate, price.
Interesting, I once was passed by a truck on Greeley so closely that the displaced wind caused my wheel to wobble. It scared the crap out of me. I wonder if this applies to Bonnie’s case.
J #9 – I’ve yelled about this statute a lot. If you’ll notice it used to apply to all speeds, was repealed, rewritten in ’05. By basically the same group of people running the show right now.
Where is it stated she was a bicycle advocate? I thought she was a feminist activist. Hmm. I was under the impression she’d just started riding. Which would explain a lot about losing control in close proximity to Class A rig.
This is a horrible tragedy that may well have been her fault. Just because she was on a bicycle does not mean she’s instantly innocent. Not to mention, they don’t just hand out Class A credentials like the do Driver Licenses. This was a professional.
Truth is as much a part of preventing this kind of thing, as taking positive action. The idea is to solve a problem, not issue blame.
#12 – Really? One time? Trust me when I say you are in for a lot more of that after your through your first week of riding that fixie.
What Matt said (#6).
+1 to #6.
the Oregon statute does not require a safe passing distance if the cyclist is in a striped bike lane. repeal 814.420.
This was the same bunch that said a ex-navy Seal was at fault for not having enough lights and reflectors when he was hit from behind this spring, well same state, Virginia Beach VA. Also the law in VA requires cyclists to be within 2 feet of the curb. Yeah, I couldn’t believe it either…
“The truck was in the correct driving lane, and the bike was next to it in a bike lane.”
811.065:
“This paragraph does not apply to a driver operating a motor vehicle: (A) In a lane that is separate from and adjacent to a designated bicycle lane;”
And we don’t need to repeal 814.420, it has so many exceptions that you can leave the bike lane for just about any reason:
814.420:
“A person is not required to comply with this section unless the state or local authority with jurisdiction over the roadway finds, after public hearing, that the bicycle lane or bicycle path is suitable for safe bicycle use at reasonable rates of speed.
(3) A person is not in violation of the offense under this section if the person is able to safely move out of the bicycle lane or path for the purpose of:
(a) Overtaking and passing another bicycle, a vehicle or a pedestrian that is in the bicycle lane or path and passage cannot safely be made in the lane or path.
(b) Preparing to execute a left turn at an intersection or into a private road or driveway.
(c) Avoiding debris or other hazardous conditions.
(d) Preparing to execute a right turn where a right turn is authorized.
(e) Continuing straight at an intersection where the bicycle lane or path is to the right of a lane from which a motor vehicle must turn right.”
I don’t know- I want to be compassionate towards the situation and I can appreciate what #6 is saying but… a lot of us have seen the dreaded right hook. I’ve seen it a couple times- fortunately without tragedy. This wasn’t in Portland folks, lets think about what this ‘witness’ saw. Being as experienced as she was on the bike, she saw what was coming for about 2 seconds before it happened. If I were in that situation, I would have wobbled. Any of you would wobble. And shockingly, she wobbled. I believe this was probably not given the same attention it might have here. Sounds to me like the classic right hook, and that its likely this truck driver was at fault.
Back east you need a license to kill deer and ducks but noy cyclists.
Portland has much room for improvement but realize this: we have it easy here. Even the bicycle haters in their F-350’s think twice before swerving at us or throwing a bottle. This sort of behavior is considered acceptable back east – South AND North.
Stories such as the Roanoke Times has done in regards to the sad misfortune of Bonnie Tinker are almost a dis-service to the public. The newspaper has provided some news about the incident, but by either not having, or withholding further known details, or failing to clarify that further details about the incident are not available to them, it leaves the public…the papers readership without critically needed information.
The way the latest story is written, by implication (unintended…I would hope), it effectively exonerates the motor vehicle driver and incriminates the rider of the bike without providing much to justify such an implication. If the paper feels obliged to report that the rider was observed to have ‘wobbled’, it seems they might also feel obliged to make inquiries and try to discover some explanation as to why she wobbled.
I think there’s many more questions about the incident that Roanoke should have attempted to answer. Perhaps, like other towns and cities, they lack the resources to do a proper follow-up.
love how some of you are quoting Oregon law as it should apply in Virginia…
large trucks create wind turbulence if moving even 30-35mph…the vaccum created along the side of those trucks often catches riders off guard (myself included)and induces a similar ‘wobble’. Extra control of a bike is necessary in that instance…I could easily see how she might have not been prepared for it. Its very sad, but please everyone learn from these events…
comment 23. the reference to oregon law was in the story, jonathan was making a comparison. i was pointing out that the safe passing distance law in oregon does not apply where the cyclist is in a striped lane.
comment 19. which of the quoted exceptions in 814.420 allows me to take the lane behind the dump truck so as not to be inside the right hook. which of the exceptions allows me to take the lane to prevent him passing me to begin with. thanks for playing.
I think she wobbled (or tried to escape her situtation) because the truck was squeezing her in the bike lane. Witnesses probably had no clue she was actually in a life or death situation. The fact that the truck driver had no idea ANYTHING had happened is proof he did not check the bike lane before, during or after his turn.
Just another example of nonriders not understanding bicycling scenarios and drivers getting away with vehicular homicide.
As a friend of Bonnie’s I want drivr to be held accountable for her death. Alas the justice I desire wont be served up so easily.
Instead I will try to remember the ideals she fought for.
* Peace (not the easy, “don’t do anything rude” kinda peace, but the “I will sit down in front of a tank” kind.)
http://www.pdxpeace.org/video/2007/seriously-pissed-grannies-stop-tank-rose-parade
* Equality (love takes a back seat as long as some are allowed to marry while others are forbidden)
http://www.lmfamily.org/index.php?n=Main.About
Thanks for being so pissed-off Bonnie!
I was a witness to Bonnies death. The reports are confusing and I would like to tell folks what I saw. I was crossing the intersection and looking my left to see when trafic cleared. I saw the truck and Bonnie side by side travelling north below a hill. My first thought was ” that bike is going fast”. Then it began to wobble, for second or two, then regained control and then began to wobble again this time toward the crub. Then the bike fell away from the curb and pitched her into the street and under the back wheels of the truck.
The best expaination of what I saw was that Bonnie was moving faster than the truck and passing on the truck’s right side. She assumed the truck was going straight, but when she realized that it was going to turn she had to break harder than the bike could stay stable. She fell under the truck before it went into the turn.
As to the lanes there was a clear bike lane with a painted line. The truck was not in that lane, nor was Bonnie in over the line until the bike fell.
I am still shaking as I write this. It was a terrible accident, but I don’t think that the driver was at fault.