The white bicycle memorial to recent Reed College graduate Mark Angeles, 22, was wrecked late Monday or early Tuesday, apparently by the wheel of a motor vehicle.
The collision tore through the flower bouquets that had been piled on the bicycle at the corner of Southeast Gladstone Street and Cesar Chavez Boulevard, leaving piles of stems and pedals behind.
Photos after the collision were shared by Josh Chernoff on his Twitter feed Tuesday morning. Chernoff said he lives next door.
“It would’ve been somebody going south on 39th and turning east on the Gladstone crossing over oncoming traffic,” Chernoff wrote in response to our questions. “I hate to say but it looks intentional. … It’s kind of hard to tell.”
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(Photo: Reed College)
According to the City of Portland’s online map of traffic injuries, that intersection saw 30 reported traffic injuries between 2004 and 2013: 19 of people driving, including one serious injury; five of people biking, including one serious injury; and six of people walking, including one serious injury.
The death of Angeles was one in a string of bike-related collisions that have led Mayor Charlie Hales and Transportation Commissioner Steve Novick to organize a meeting and press conference on the subject this afternoon.
In February the city transportation department announced a plan, known as Vision Zero, to set a date for the elimination of traffic deaths and major injuries.
That action has been driven by Transportation Director Leah Treat and signed off on by her elected supervisors, but neither Hales or Novick has announced any coordinated effort that would include other city bureaus.
Update 7:40 p.m.: In the comments below, Chernoff adds:
I talked to the worker at Plaid Pantry and he told me it was a truck turning off of gladstone on to 39th. He does not think it was intentional.
Sorry for the assumption. It was difficult to assess because of the direction the wheel and handle bars bent would have implied it was coming from the opposite direction. Regardless its still carelessness and its coming at the cost of our communities. Even more that was my bike and so I am a bit emotionally attached and its hard not to be angry.
Apparently it’s not enough to kill someone and mangle their bike. People feel the need to mangle their ghost bike and destroy their memorial as well 🙁
If this could be construed at all as a dessecretion of a grave, perhaps the person(s) could get up to 5 years in prison
I’m all for militant acts against people who use their cars as weapons but this is clearly not a grave.
It’s a memorial, though. Does that count?
Maybe the person who drove over this memorial couldn’t see it because the sun was in her eyes.
Call it a lack of empathy or call it an act of hostility or just plain stupidity, how ever you decide to reflect on this event know that this highlights just how disconnected our community is becoming.
This cant be called progress.
I’m amazed at how many motorists cars and the road like toys. These things are weapons people. Others don’t like how you play.
hmmm… I really wish I could edit after posting…
I’m amazed at how many motorists treat cars and the road like toys. These things are weapons people. Others don’t like how you play.
“It would’ve been somebody going south on 39th and turning east on the Gladstone crossing over oncoming traffic,” – Chernoff
The ghost bike was on the northeast corner, no? Seems to me the most likely way to do a side-swipe like that is by turning from westbound Gladstone onto northbound Chavez. If it was hit as Chernoff describes, it would have to be intentional. Or am I not envisioning it right?
Reprehensible. Even in a “best case” scenario where someone did it unintentionally, say by dragging a trailer too close on the inside of the turn, it’s the same general negligence in driving that kills people.
West turning north seems most likely as an accident, yes. I’m guessing Josh arrived at the other conclusion based on the direction the flowers were strewn?? Which then suggests it’d likely have been intentional.
Imagine the outrage there would be if someone intentionally drove over one of those crosses people put up alongside the roads everywhere.
People would be calling for heads on pikes.
Do they have cameras at this intersection? Cause if they don’t, they should.
totally disrespectful. 🙁
Over the last few weeks, it appear motorists have lost the ability to care.
Last night, going home on N Williams during rush hour, I witnessed almost three car/bike accidents within a three-block span of N Russell to N Morris, all at the fault of the driver.
Openings on the N Williams “through traffic” vehicle lane during rush hour can sometimes be few and far between. I’m noticing more cars blowing stop signs if it means getting a spot in the line of cars; cars blowing red lights as they follow closely on the heels of other cars; cars making turns from the wrong lanes, even cutting other cars off; etc.
Last night, a lady blew the stop sign at Morris and Williams and almost ran me over. we slammed our brakes at the same time, putting me high up on my front wheel. No actual collision, but you couldn’t have slid a piece of paper between her bumper and my left leg. The best part was, she started yelling at me for not letting her in…she received more than a few choice words from me.
Unfortunately, and I only get this feeling during the evening commute, it’s really starting to feel like those car commercials, where it’s car vs. bike, and that is an environment that no one wants or anyone benefits from.
Too many motorists are in too much of a hurry to get home and it feels like a majority of them are not thinking clearly when they get into the frustrating situation of driving in rush hour traffic. it’s as though everything we’re taught as a student driver gets thrown out the window…most notably courtesy and respect for others we share the road with. I sure hope this changes…and soon.
You really think that this has only occurred within the last few weeks??
Hmmmm… personally, my perspective is that this has been going on for a lot longer than this.
Otherwise, I can completely empathize with you.
Yeah, this has been going on for a lot longer than a few weeks. It *does* seem to have ramped up at an increasing rate in the past several months though.
I have an approximately 2.4 mile commute each way to work every weekday during the morning and afternoon rush hours. Three years ago I had exactly the same commute, and would have a close call with a distracted driver perhaps once or twice a week at most. Now it’s consistently daily and sometimes multiple times during my morning and evening commutes, and there’s quite a bit more incidents of drivers actually behaving maliciously towards me. It’s gotten a lot worse.
I created a new website where you can report these close calls. I’m sending a weekly summary of all the reports to PBOT, PPB, ODOT, and city hall. We already have almost 100 responses. Every report helps drive home the point that willful illegal behavior by drivers puts us at risk every day.
https://nearlykilled.me/
The ramping up is due to the 15% to 20% of traffic that is new to the area, just arrived from CO, UT, AZ and CA, renting in “hip” areas like Williams, not knowing how to deal with all those bikes. More people brings more traffic which brings more aggressive driving. : ( Sadly i don’t think we’re going back to the way things were. Portland is growing up. I am in mourning for my city.
Except for one thing. I’m noticing good behavior and then when I check the state on the plate it has consistently been California. Maybe I’m biased, maybe that’s just in SE, but it’s odd and catching my eye because it’s a change from what I was noticing a few months ago.
Your city’s been steadily invaded by Californians since I lived there over ten years ago. I imagine I’m one of the very few that’s actually moved in the other direction! Like I’ve said before… nationwide driving standards…
Many (many, many) times I’ve driven between Portland and San Francisco. I never cease to notice that traffic speeds increase radically when I turn from 505-S to I80-W. I don’t think Californians easily give up their bad habits when they move (which makes them infamous). When I lived in Oregon I was rear-ended twice by impatient Californians while driving. Now that I live here, I simply drive as little as possible.
Not to overly generalize but the worst aggressive drivers I come across are usually WA plates.
About two weeks ago, a co-worker of mine was struck (on his bicycle) at Chavez an Powell.
Hit and run. Washington plates. Black Honda 2dr.
He sustained minor injuries missing 4 days work
He rides bicycles, but doesn’t consider himself a cyclist.
He also chose no medical help, and did not report the incident to the police.
This happened in the time frame of all the other crap in the area. People at work implored him to report it, yet he chose not to.
I almost replied to a similar post recently about things seeming to get weird (on the roads) lately. I did a long ride last Friday afternoon and motorists seemed radically more aggressive (towards each other) than the usual bay area Friday afternoon rush hour – and that’s saying a lot. On Saturday night I noticed it was very bright outside – turns out the full moon is tonight(?). They say the full moon has a big impact several days before and after, and my wife will attest that the ER gets (literally) crazy when the full moon comes around. I’m honestly not superstitious, but several significant (and negative) incidents have happened to me under full moons, including being jumped and beaten into unconsciousness in Boston in `91, and riding home from work on Murray in the Beav one night being confronted after yelling at a guy who right-hooked me and then chased me with his truck and tried to attack me. I literally try to pay enough attention to it now to be more cautious than usual. FWIW.
The full moon “effect” does not exist. It has been studied and published. Lunar cycle does not correlate with injuries or trauma or violence, in the USA. Sorry.
Studied is fine – I’ve got a scientific mind too and prefer to see data. People close to me who work in emergency services unanimously disagree with these studies, and I can usually tell when it comes around without even looking. As I mentioned, the weirdest crap that’s ever happened to me has happened under full moons, so data-backed or not I just tend to be extra cautious and aware of what’s around me when I’m out and about under full moons. No harm in that.
Ah, Portland, the platinum city where citizens desecrate memorials with their cars.
Also, wouldn’t there be significant damage to the front of that car?
Could have been struck by side / rear wheel area, vehicle or trailer.
As could any person standing on a corner just like that one. On a street like Gladstone where there is a bike lane already providing extra turning radius for trucks, this seems negligent at best. This person should not be driving a vehicle in the city.
there would have to be damage to some part of that vehicle. I doubt it was intentional…probably a large truck and/or trailer turning right off Gladstone..
maybe a bus?
maybe a tow truck
Not Maybe. Probably. I have always had issues with tow truck drivers on my bike. They are under the misconception they own the road and bikes are supposed to be on sidewalks with no cutouts at curbs.
Me too! I had a tow truck cut me off by running a stop sign to cross the Clinton greenway. I shouted “stop sign.” The driver stopped on the other side of and yelled ‘I did stop! You don’t have any lights on your bike!” This was at 8:30 AM on a sunny spring day.
Haters gonna hate
Cut the conspiracy theories, people. You’re not making us look like rational people.
I almost guarantee it was a truck or bus who cut the corner with the rear wheel set. I often see trucks who are turning right onto or from a narrow street cut up onto the curb, particularly if there is traffic sitting in the opposite left turn lane.
This happens to me when I am on the bus. I often feel the back axle of the bus jumping the curb.
What Bob said.
This is, as WWeek put it, going from the tragic to the ridiculous. But I think commenters are overreacting to assume this was an intentional act of damage.
Isn’t it much more likely that this happened because someone misjudged a right turn ran too close to (or slightly over) the curb? Or was a longer vehicle (bus, truck, someone pulling a trailer)?
And yes, I realize that there is a bike lane there. Drivers will often enter the bike lane to take a right turn. I also realize that they are not supposed to do this but this happens all the time.
That does not make it right. But it does not make it an intentional act
Beer truck, I betcha.
It actually looks like a stronger statement now.
I should edit my first sentence to unfortunately read “It appears drivers have become more malicious over the past few weeks.”
I wish someone had the magical solution to overcome this type of an environment.
Like putting a moratorium on private motor vehicle use until a comprehensive solution can be put in place? It wouldn’t be a cure all but it would be a start.
One word: GoPro
Just more justification for the need for cameras at all higher risk intersections. We should not need to speculate, but instead have actual video of these incidents.
cars and humans: not a good fit.
does the Plaid or the gas station on the corner have surveillance that reaches that far?
I think you meant stems and “petals”.
Probably a context-sensitive autocorrect. BikePortland is all about vehicles with pedals for power and hardly ever does anything about flowers… 🙂
Awful. Just awful.
It’s a hit and run. Intentionally or not.
I talked to the worker at Plad Pantry and he told me it was a truck turning off of gladstone on to 39th. He does not think it was intentional.
Sorry for the assumption. It was difficult to assess because of the direction the wheel and handle bars bent would have implied it was coming from the opposite direction. Regardless its still carelessness and its coming at the cost of our communities. Even more that was my bike and so I am a bit emotionally attached and its hard not to be angry.
“Even more that was my bike and so I am a bit emotionally attached and its hard not to be angry.”
I’m sorry, Josh.
It’s crummy no matter the circumstances. The sidewalk is no place for truck tires.
Nice “reporting”, how many times does a story get reported here without the proper facts only to have the corrections made at a later time? Yeah it sucks that the memorial was ruined but to imply that someone did it on purpose wasn’t very responsible. But I guess it gets peoples blood boiling and keeps the comments coming.
Your logic is equal to saying it does not matter that Make died but instead what the motive of the diver before she hit him. A person with such morals should not be complaining about anything.
how often is a witness quoted and they’re wrong? seems to happens quite a bit… happened with the latest Powell/26th crash…
don’t hate on the reporter for giving us the news, they weren’t the ones that made the statements… and there wasn’t a lot of other people chiming in with their version…
more often I’m annoyed that BP doesn’t post a story before they have all the info, because I just want a little something to hold me over until the rest of the info comes in…
I really hope someone tracks down this truck driver and tickets him. This exact kind of negligence is what lead to the death of Kirke Johnson in Cedar Mill last November.
There is no excuse for it. These people are “professional” drivers. Ones who think it’s ok to do things like this should have their CDLs revoked and get sent back to driver’s ed since clearly they have no clue how to control their vehicles properly.
I’m asking WWeek to take down my image they are using without my permission or that they can turn off their comments. The people who comment on the news channels are hurtful to our community. I’m here asking your support to request they do the same.
http://www.wweek.com/portland/blog-33281-ghost_bike_memorial_to_portland_cyclist_struck_by_car_also_apaprently_struck_by_car.html
I still curious to learn whether the Plaid Pantry’s security video has been reviewed.
Do we still have the death penalty in Oregon? This is one of those times where it seems appropriate.
when I encounter a rude/reckless driver , instinctively look at their plates, the majority of the time they are WASHINGTON. Not to say that Oregon doesn’t do that too, but my THEORY is that out of stater’s think they somehow get a “free pass” here ?
“Not to overly generalize but [INSERT LARGE OVERGENERALIZATION HERE]”.
A big thank you to Alli Sayre for getting a new bike
Fixed and replaced.
https://twitter.com/JoshChernoff/status/606900263375400960