I just heard from the Commander of the Traffic Division regarding their investigation into I-205 bridge bike path incident I reported on last week.
To refresh your memory…Cyclist Dustin Kent claimed that a full-sized pickup truck entered onto the bike path as he pedaled home after work on the I-205 bridge over the Columbia River. Kent said a truck drove up behind him, turned out its lights, and proceeded to drive over his bicycle, forcing Kent to hop a railing to avoid being hit. The truck then continued on, without stopping to see what happened.
Now the Traffic Division has completed their investigation of the incident. According to Commander Mark Kruger, the motorist claims to have, “made a wrong turn somewhere”:
“He encountered the bicyclist, had a conversation with him and asked him to move out of the way so he could pass. The bicyclist confirms this. When passing, the motorist apparently struck the bicycle tire but states he was not aware of this.”
Kruger says so far Kent has not decided how he will proceed and adds,
“We doubt this can be charged as a hit and run as there is no real proof that the motorist would have known he struck the bike tire based on the evidence that we have. If the bicyclist wants to press charges we will submit the case to the DA to determine if they believe sufficient evidence exists to prosecute.”
As for how the truck was able to get on the bike path in the first place?
“Regarding how the motorist actually came to be on the bike lane we cannot say other than to guess.”
When I talked with Kent last week, he said he intended to push the case. No word yet if that’s still his plan after the findings of this investigation.