As spring brings warmer temperatures and longer days, many people will be out on Ohio’s roadways riding their bicycles. In turn, the number of interactions between people operating motor vehicles and people riding bicycles increase as does the potential for collisions.
While there have been positive changes in the law and great advocacy over the past few years, statistics from the Ohio Department of Public Safety suggest the number of crashes with injuries remains consistent:
Bicycle Crashes on Ohio's Roadways
The most troubling factor is the number of fatal bicycle crashes remains high. Three of the last five years – 2015 (25 fatalities), 2019 (23 fatalities) and 2018 (22 fatalities) – have the highest reported fatalities in over the last two decades in Ohio:
Bicycle Fatalities on Ohio's Roadways
Sadly, this isn’t an “Ohio issue” as the U.S. Department of Transportation reported that cycling fatalities have increased by 25% since 2010 and are projected to increase by 10% from 2018. If you Google “why are cyclists being killed” you’ll find articles from Bicycling, Outside, Vice and other media outlets which set highlight recurring themes:
People are driving bigger vehicles (more and more SUVs)
People cannot seem to put down their smartphones (when they drive their bigger vehicles)
People are driving more miles each year (in their bigger vehicles while looking at their smartphones)
More people are taking up bicycling as a hobby
More cities are striving to be “bike-friendly” and promoting bicycling within their cities
Local infrastructure is not designed for the safety of people riding bicycles
But there is one factor that isn’t addressed in any of those articles because it is unpopular to say as an avid cyclist: the person riding a bicycle failed to yield causing the collision. This isn’t victim-blaming either. According to the National Transportation Safety Board’s Bicyclist Safety on US Roadways: Crash Risks and Countermeasures from 2014 to 2016, there were 2,401 fatalities involving bicycles of which 467 (19%) were due to failing to yield while riding a bicycle. The #1 area where this occurred: intersections where 335 people lost their lives. Please, please, please stop at “Stop” signs and red lights; it may very well save your life not to mention the law in Ohio - R.C. § 4511.55(A).
So what about the other 81% of cyclist fatalities? That can fairly be attributed to bigger cars, distracted driving, and poor infrastructure. Why do I say so? According to the NTSB, 25% of all cyclist fatalities occurred when a person driving a vehicle attempted to overtake a person riding a bicycle midblock (i.e. not at an intersection). Of all causes — including speed, motorists losing control of their vehicles, failing to yield to cyclists, or driving the wrong way — this one tops the list: people in cars do not pass people on bikes safely.
In Ohio, there are two laws designed to help address this problem:
Three feet or greater is considered a safe passing distance when overtaking a person riding a bicycle - R.C. § 4511.27(A)
People riding bicycles may use the full lane when riding to the right is unreasonable or unsafe this including, but not limited to “if the lane is too narrow for the bicycle or electric bicycle and an overtaking vehicle to travel safely side by side within the lane.“ - R.C. § 4511.55(C)
Finally, I could not end without addressing a statistic that I find deplorable: hit-skips. In 2019, there were a total of 1,229 crashes that involved a person riding a bicycle in Ohio. Of those, 301 people made a conscious decision to leave another person on the side of the ride after striking them with their vehicle. Let this sink in for a second: 24.5% of all bicycle crashes the motorist left the scene:
Ohio's Hit Skip Problem
Sure we can look into harshing sentencing for hit-skips but Ohio already has mandatory license suspensions for these offenses and I am not convinced imposing mandatory jail sentences is an answer either. When you factor in the number of plea negotiations in criminal matters, offenders will likely avoid those consequences anyway.
For the people who ride bicycles reading this, what can you do proactively to help yourself? Outside of taking up golf, you should take a look at your own automobile insurance policy and make sure you have the following:
An uninsured/underinsured (UM/UIM) policy, and
Adequate limits.
A UM/UIM policy will cover you in the event of a hit-skip, if the motorist doesn’t have any insurance or if the motorist does not have enough insurance to cover the damages caused. Considering Ohio has a state minimum insurance requirement of $25,000, it would be wise to protect yourself by purchasing a UM/UIM policy with a minimum $100,000 limit.
If you have sustained an injury in a bicycle accident, please contact Scott for a no cost, no obligation consultation and case evaluation.