The Portland Police Bureau are reporting that a collision occurred last night on the Hawthorne Bridge.
32-year-old Mark Landers was operating a motorcycle (with passenger Jocelyn Shirley) and was headed westbound when he lost control and struck the curb just before the start of the bridge. His motorcycle then jumped the curb and skidded onto the bike path, striking 21-year-old Ian Trout who was riding his bike westbound.
Trout and the passenger on the motorcycle were transported to the hospital with non-life threatening injuries.
Landers has been charged with Driving Under the Influence of Intoxicants, two counts of Assault in the Third Degree (for his passenger and for Trout), Reckless Driving, and two counts of Reckless Endangerment. According to PPB Public Information Officer Robert King, the Assault charge is based on “recklessly causing serious physical injury to another person.”
I’ll have more details on this story once a full statement is released by the PPB.
Was it an e-bike?
Anyone besides me see the irony in the Biketoberfest ad located below an article on impaired operation of a two wheeled vehicle.
Once again, the problem isn’t drinking booze, the problem is motor vehicles.
Sigh. No the problem *is* alcohol abuse. Plenty of us operate bikes, motorcycles, cars, or trucks just fine without incident. Your statement is just plain wrong.
I see both sides on this… Hart is likely saying that if you take away the motor then this accident is a lot less serious, or wouldn’t have happened at all given the changed circumstances…
you’re likely saying that drunk people will run into things no matter what their mode…
I say that without the motor something was still likely to happen, but it wouldn’t have involved so many people and damage would have been less…
So A person abusing alcohol riding a bike is incapable of serious damage to a pedestrian, or themselves? I call BS. Motor vehicles don’t tend to kill people unless a person is involved. Get off your high horse.
A guy with a gun or a knife is just as dangerous when acting irresponsibly.
I’m kinda new here…and a lurker, but I’m just so sick and tired of the notion that because we are bicycles we are absolved of any and all responsibility. We can’t control what people do in other modes of transit, but we *can* be ambassadors of cycling every time we throw a leg over a frame.
The problem is that that ad is expired and Biketobeerfest was two Saturdays ago…and I missed it. Darn!
I have a friend who busted her nose drunk biking. Tell me how the motor vehicle was the problem there.
Your point that the accident would be have been less serious if a motorized vehicle hadn’t resulted in the accident occurring at higher velocity and with significantly more mass involved. Given double the speed and double the velocity, the energy of collision is increased by a factor of eight. Bottom line is that a drunk biking accident is less likely to seriously injure someone as a drunk motorcycling accident. This is why bikes should be exempted from licensing, registration and insurance requirements plus be free to use infrastructure paid for with fuel taxes.
On the other hand, the implicit suggestion that cars should be banned is ludicrous.
Everyone should insure their mode of transportation against liability. Everyone. If you run me over while i walk down the street, why shouldnt you pay my medical bills? Insurance makes sure you A.) are covered against your own financial disaster. B.) are capable of meeting the obligation of paying the huge medical costs.
Is it rare that cyclists cause major damage to others, yes, but its not unheard of by any means. But then i still have comprehensive auto insurance despite having never even maimed anyone.
The lack of this form of coverage is more an indication that insurance companies think its too risky to cover people on bikes, and not because they dont think they can make money on it. Think on that.
curious that so many charges are announced so early when I’d gotten the impression that with an automobile-pedestrian or automobile-bicyclist crash the PPB was generally reluctant to announce any but the most minor charges up front.
Well, the accused only has two wheels (even if motorized) – that means PBB can move ahead with pressing charges. 😉
Bummer that only the people not operating motorized machinery under the influence were injured. I suppose that’s the way that it usually goes with these sorts of things. Fast healing to the injured.
That tends to be the case for drunks in general, not necessarily when they’re operating a motor vehicle. Case in point, Tulsa Police arrested a man who was hit by an off-duty police officer on Memorial Drive last night. The man who was hit by the officer’s personal car was able to get up under his own power, uninjured save for road rash. The man who was hit by the car was booked for Drunk In Public and admitted to on-duty officers that he had consumed approximately 30 cans of beer and half a gallon of vodka over the course of the last day.
Drunk driving is very stupid. Drunk driving on a motorcycle is twice as stupid. Drunk driving on a motorcycle with a passenger is stupid to the nth degree. I hope the injured recover quickly and the motorcyclist learns his lesson.
Is drunk biking not stupid?
Incredibly stupid.
some would say that drunk anything is stupid…
“Hang on honey!”
or
How Not to Impress Your Date.
I hope the injured heal quickly. I’m really glad that it wasn’t worse.
I guess we don’t hear about motorcycle-on-bike crashes more often due to the smaller number of motorcycles out there… it also helps that they have a small footprint which may help in evasive maneuvers…
I would think that a drunk motorcycle rider would be more likely to drive than to take a cab since their vehicle is a lot easier to steal if left overnight… and it’s a lot harder to get a designated driver with a motorcycle endorsement on their license to drive you home on your motorcycle…
I never drink much if I’m out on my scooter… I’ll just take my bicycle if I’m going to make an evening of it…
…
of course, there’s always the option to just push it… by the time to get very far you may have sobered up… (:
It is neither drinking nor motoring that is the problem, rather the combination of the two…
Amazing how the Police can do a prompt, competent and honest investigation when they don’t have a vested interest in the outcome.
Metal Grating? Motorcycle? Anyone?
the accident was before the metal grating…
but yeah, it’s annoying to go over on a motorcycle… it’s also a bit annoying on a bicycle…
I’m curious in what situation a person could enjoy a cool bucket of suds without you accusing them of alcohol abuse.
this is pretty funny coming from the guy that condones vehicular (self powered of course,) operation under the influence.
I was wondering about this- Hawthorne is my least favorite motorcycle bridge. I have no idea why but it is squirrelier than any other grating I have ridden on.
I rode past this mess on my motorcycle on my way home from work. From the looks of the motorcycle both riders are probably lucky to be alive. If he was so drunk that he rode up onto the sidewalk, the steel grates would have got him a couple of hundred more feet down the road… I hate riding over them.