Articles Posted in Bicycle Accidents

Electric bicycles have become increasingly popular among people of all ages as a convenient way to get around Los Angeles. They are especially popular among pre-teens and young teenagers who aren’t yet old enough to drive because they don’t require driver’s licenses. However, e-bikes can also be dangerous. Many of these bicycles are sold as direct-to-consumer kits, and some of the companies that manufacture e-bicycles cut corners on designs and components to maximize their profits. While this might also make e-bikes more affordable to end users, cost-cutting on components and design elements can also make these bicycles even more dangerous to riders as illustrated by a currently pending lawsuit filed by the parents of a young girl who died in an e-bicycle accident.

Tragic Outcome From Young Girls’ E-Bicycle Accident

On Jan. 31, 2021, Molly Steinsapsir, age 12, and her friend and neighbor, Eme Green, age 11, were watching television together after Green spent the night at Steinsapsir’s home. The two girls were close friends who only lived a few houses apart from each other and were excited to be able to spend some time together after the lockdowns of the pandemic.

Bicycle Accident Statistics

Texas incident

History of CicLAvia

The first CicLAvia festival was held in October 2010. Organizers modeled the event on the regular car-free festivals that are held in Bogota, Colombia each Sunday. More than 100,000 people attended the first CicLAvia festival in 2010, far exceeding the nonprofit’s expectations. The first event featured open streets stretching from East Hollywood to Boyle Heights, drawing many people outdoors to enjoy the open, traffic-free spaces and fresh air.

In California, cities have immunity when people are injured while using paved or unpaved trails because of the design or location of the trail. The immunity does not apply when the injuries are caused by a dangerous condition that is unrelated to the trail, however. In Reed v. City of Los Angeles, Cal. Ct. App., Case No. B294531, the courts considered whether a badminton rope stretched across a bicycle trail was an unrelated dangerous condition or could have caused injuries to people regardless of whether they were using the trail.[1]

Factual and procedural background

On Sept. 12, 2015, Sells Reed III was riding his bicycle at 5:30 a.m. on a paved path that was adjacent to some sports fields in MacArthur Park in Los Angeles. Some people who were not connected to the City of Los Angeles had stretched a rope of a badminton net across the path. Reed did not see the rope and struck it, causing him to fall backward from his bicycle and to suffer multiple injuries. He filed a lawsuit against Los Angeles, alleging that the city had constructive notice of the existence of a dangerous condition on public property or that the city’s public employees were negligent in the performance of their jobs, resulting in his injuries.

Countries and cities around the world have started Vision Zero initiatives to eliminate all traffic fatalities. In 2015, Los Angeles mayor Eric Garcetti started the city’s Vision Zero initiative to work toward the elimination of all traffic deaths by 2025. Unfortunately, data demonstrates that traffic fatalities have continued to rise despite the initiative. There are several reasons why the traffic fatality rates show no signs of slowing, including poor infrastructure for bicyclists and pedestrians, distracted driving, and traffic congestion on the city’s streets and roadways.

Statistics

According to data released by Vision Zero and reported by the Los Angeles Times, 244 people died in traffic accidents in Los Angeles in 2019. While this represents a slight decrease of 0.8% from 2018, the statistics about pedestrian and cyclist deaths are more troubling. Since the start of Vision Zero in 2015 in the city, the total number of traffic fatalities has increased by 33%. Pedestrians represent a small percentage of accidents that occurred at 8%. However, they represent 44% of the fatalities that happened over the five years since the start of Vision Zero. In 2019, pedestrians represented 55% of the traffic fatalities that happened in Los Angeles.

Los Angeles should be one of the best cities to ride bicycles in the U.S. With its balmy weather, year-round warmth, sunshine, and spectacular views, bicyclists should be able to enjoy riding their bicycles for recreation and transportation. The streets are very congested, making bicycling a good option for getting to your destination faster than you might if you drove your car. While these factors should make Los Angeles ideal for bicycle riding, it is instead the most dangerous city in America for people to ride their bicycles. The dangers to cyclists in Los Angeles result from several different factors that the city needs to address.

Statistics

From 2014 to 2016, 180 bicyclists were killed in Los Angeles, and many others were seriously injured. The city had more bicycle fatalities than any other city in the U.S. It also surpassed the bicycle fatality rates of every state other than California, Florida, and New York.[1] The high number of fatalities results from several factors, including congestion, a lack of bicycle infrastructure, poor road maintenance, and failures to act by politicians.