(Photo: Facebook profile)
Tomorrow night the community will gather at the corner of SW 3rd and Madison in downtown Portland to remember Kathyrn Rickson. Kathryn is the 28-year-old Southeast Portland resident who died late last night from injuries sustained in a collision with a truck while bicycling through that intersection.
Every time someone dies while riding a bike, it hits all of us very hard. When it happens on a section of bike lane that many of us here in Portland have ridden on hundreds of times, we feel it even more deeply.
Let’s come together as a community tomorrow night and remember this tragedy. Let’s show Portland that there are many people who care deeply about traffic safety and that every life lost on our roads is one too many.
The BTA and Swanson Thomas, Coon & Newton will host sign-making from 3:00 to 5:00 at their offices on SW 2nd (820 SW 2nd Ave, just a few blocks away). We will assemble between 5:15 and 5:30 pm at 3rd and Madison. Please consider being there. Thank you.
UPDATE: Mayor Sam Adams says he plans to attend this event.
NOTE: I have closed comments on this post because I didn’t like the back-and-forth that was happening. This is a sensitive time and a sensitive post. Thanks for understanding. — JM
Thanks for reading.
BikePortland has served this community with independent community journalism since 2005. We rely on subscriptions from readers like you to survive. Your financial support is vital in keeping this valuable resource alive and well.
Please subscribe today to strengthen and expand our work.
Rest in Peace
So full of rage now. This happened because society allowed it to happen, because certain media outlets choose to target the bicycle community as an “entitled special interest” (ahem, Oregonian), because we call these things “accidents” and “inevitable” and because we keep blaming the victim.
Rise up, people, or we will lose our streets.
I firmly believe that large, solemn memorials for fallen cyclists are a very powerful way to honor their memory and send a clear message that there much work left to make streets safe for all. I encourage everyone to make the time to attend.
Like the days in SF when so many lives taken. one saying will always
be with me. ” PEACE ON THE STREETS ” with a bike photo! RIP Kathryn Rickson
This should just be a reminder that even if the law is on your side, large, unmeneuverable vehicles loaded with blindspots should be given a wide berth.