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Boston south end, fatality

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Old 04-22-20, 03:13 PM
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rumrunn6
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Boston south end, fatality

light on the details

The crash occurred at the intersection of Massachusetts and Harrison avenues, near the Boston Medical Center

https://www.nbcboston.com/news/local...ailer/2111966/
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Old 04-22-20, 03:37 PM
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Jim from Boston
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Boston south end, fatality
Originally Posted by rumrunn6
light on the details

The crash occurred at the intersection of Massachusetts and Harrison avenues, near the Boston Medical Center

https://www.nbcboston.com/news/local...ailer/2111966/
Thanks for that update @rumrunn6.I recall at least two other local fatalities you reported on, in Porter Square, and near the Landmark Center, so close to my neighborhood in Kenmore Square. I do occasionally also traverse the South End.

Many recent threads challenge bike riding during this time (one BF subscriber has called it “The Great Pause"), because of the added strain on hospitals to treat bike accidents. Personally, I am riding even more carefully than I have posted previously (link), and gladly I have more time to ride.

Last edited by Jim from Boston; 04-22-20 at 04:12 PM.
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Old 04-22-20, 05:58 PM
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I often ride through this stretch.

Oddly, some folks think this was a right hook, which would mean that the CDL operator turned right off Harrison onto Mass Ave. Some folks think EVERYTHING is a right hook. Like a broken clock, they could be correct, but....

There are also unconfirmed reports of a second driver who fled the scene. Sometimes people see things in fog that are there, and sometimes they think they see things that aren’t there. (To be clear, there was no fog.)

Some CDL operators close pass on Mass Ave, from the Harvard Bridge all the way to Columbia Road. No matter if you are in the bike lane or taking the lane. But that doesn’t mean that this CDL operator....

That won’t stop people, with no information at all, shouting that they know exactly what happened based on a single grainy photo. Why let actual facts get in the way?

What I can tell you for sure is that we can’t come together and mourn. May we find a way to come apart and mourn.

-mr. bill

Last edited by mr_bill; 04-22-20 at 06:32 PM.
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Old 04-23-20, 07:22 AM
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Sad to hear about this.
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Old 04-24-20, 02:55 PM
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Sigh. All preliminary information, subject to change....

The deceased was homeless, so the delay in releasing their name is contacting family.

The crash is on multiple videos.

Preliminary (sources say) info is the person on the bike ran a red light crossing Mass Ave.

Strong caveat. Preliminary (sources say) have been wrong in the past, but past performance....

-mr. bill
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Old 04-24-20, 03:42 PM
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oh gosh how terrible
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Old 05-11-20, 10:29 AM
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Tommy Anderson.

Remembering a bicyclist.

-mr. bill
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Old 05-11-20, 10:58 AM
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I wouldn't comment on what happened since I did not see but I understand why people jump to a right hook, since I have been hit that way twice and almost hit that way about a hundred times. There's many other things that can happen but they often mean you were riding unsafely.
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Old 05-11-20, 11:58 AM
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Originally Posted by Oneder
I wouldn't comment on what happened since I did not see but I understand why people jump to a right hook, since I have been hit that way twice and almost hit that way about a hundred times. There's many other things that can happen but they often mean you were riding unsafely.
There are many things that can happen but they often mean someone was driving dangerously.

Next time stop at “I wouldn’t comment....”

-mr. bill
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Old 05-11-20, 12:19 PM
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A person on a bicycle was hit and killed by a person driving a tractor-trailer.
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Old 05-11-20, 12:22 PM
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Originally Posted by Jim from Boston
Boston south end, fatality
...

Many recent threads challenge bike riding during this time (one BF subscriber has called it “The Great Pause"), because of the added strain on hospitals to treat bike accidents. Personally, I am riding even more carefully than I have posted previously (link), and gladly I have more time to ride.
It's not a matter of how much more carefully you are riding. It's a matter of bad drivers being just as careless as before. Some drivers are even driving worse since there are so much fewer cars and people on the road.

Will there be another white bike memorial soon?
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Old 05-11-20, 12:35 PM
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I doubt there's more bicycle accidents overall anyway, if anything there's way fewer cars out there. Of course depending on the situation that can make it more dangerous in areas where it us usually gridlocked but I doubt it's more lethal nationwide even if it may be locally. Personally haven't heard of a serious bicycle hit and run on the radio for some time and it usually happens here every week.
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Old 05-11-20, 01:44 PM
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Back on 4-22, I posted:
Originally Posted by Jim from Boston
Boston south end, fatality
Thanks for that update @rumrunn6.I recall at least two other local fatalities you reported on, in Porter Square, and near the Landmark Center, so close to my neighborhood in Kenmore Square. I do occasionally also traverse the South End.

Many recent threads challenge bike riding during this time (one BF subscriber has called it “The Great Pause"), because of the added strain on hospitals to treat bike accidents. Personally, I am riding even more carefully than I have posted previously (link), and gladly I have more time to ride.
Originally Posted by Daniel4
It's not a matter of how much more carefully you are riding. It's a matter of bad drivers being just as careless as before. Some drivers are even driving worse since there are so much fewer cars and people on the road.

Will there be another white bike memorial soon?
Funny you should ask @Daniel4, because just yesterday I noted a ghost bike at the above-mentioned Landmark Center.


More notably,I have perenially posted about my approach to situational awareness,:
Originally Posted by flangehead
."We Can Have More Control Over Road Safety"

Roadside memorials, like crosses and ghost bikes, are a reminder of the importance of road safety by all users.

In many things, there are limits to what we control. We can all lose family and friends at any time...

Roadside memorials sadden me because we (all of us) could have so much more control over that cause of death, over 30,000 per year in the United States, with the much bigger tragedy being the seriously injured and permanently maimed.

Many will comment that "it's the other guy". That doesn't go far enough for me. Obviously, I shouldn't be "the other guy" (impaired, drowsy, too fast for conditions). There have been times when I have been and I was lucky and I know I will be tempted in the future. The roadside memorials help me resist temptation...

Look at that next roadside memorial with a bit of humility. It could be you, a family member or friend in the future. Seek out a "booster shot" to give you more control over your safety and that of the road users around you.
Originally Posted by alo
We normally have little influence on what other's do. But we can do a lot to maximize our own safety when cycling, partly depending on where you are..
Originally Posted by oldgeezerjeff
I, for one am so tired of all the cyclists (and I see them all the time) demanding respect on the road and then blatantly ignoring the rules everyone else has to follow just because they are too lazy to unclip...or they don't want to "hurt" their Strava averages by slowing down.
Originally Posted by Digger Goreman
"Safety gear for your commute"

As others mentioned: heightened vigilance and expect every possible person and thing to do "the stupid"....Clothing, lighting, reflectors, horn, and maintenance... all important.
Originally Posted by FBinNY
In all fairness, I don't think there's anyone who's been riding for a long time, who hasn't at some time (or many times) ridden in that zone where the only thing separating us from disaster is favorable alignment of the stars. (Note the "us" rather than "him")

We all take chances and make mistakes, but fortunately life is"organized" with plenty of forgiveness. In my experience the difference between disaster and "whew, that was close" is millimeters and microseconds, and not anything we can take credit for...
Originally Posted by Jim from Boston
I try to keep safe with certain aphorisms in my head that come to mind to alert me when I encounter a situation where unseen dangers may lurk..

I was hit from behind by a “distracted” (? inebriated) hit and run driver on an otherwise seemingly safe and peaceful route. By good fortune, I’m alive and relatively unimpaired.

Over the past few months I have come to realize that my safety aphorisms (link), collected over the years by personal or vicarious experience, are my way of actively aligning the stars in my favor, to anticipate those unseen and otherwise unanticipated dangers.
↓↓↓↓

Last edited by Jim from Boston; 05-11-20 at 01:54 PM.
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Old 05-11-20, 01:45 PM
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ɅɅɅɅ

Over the past two days I have posted on the current thread "Listening to Music via Headphones?" to this spin-off discussion about the major safety concern for rearward traffic:
Originally Posted by adlai
I do it all the time[listen to music]. Often that is really helpful for getting through a miserable ride.

Fact is that if a car is coming up behind you unsafely, there is nothing you can do. With headphones you still can see what is in front of you and that is safe enough.
Originally Posted by Jim from Boston
FWIW, see my preceding post (link) on this thread in reply to this question:
Originally Posted by MattTheHat
Can someone...anyone...explain how knowing a car is behind you makes any difference whatsoever? Please?

I've asked this in other threads and never gotten a response. In other words, what do you do with the information? What do you do differently? Are you pulling off the road or something?

It seems to me that if you do anything differently based on whether or not a car is behind you is just a recipe for disaster, because you're going to eventually get it wrong.:
Originally Posted by CAT7RDR
To the OP: Have you ever been hit by a vehicle? There is usually a couple of seconds once you hear the vehicle to move over closer to the roadside if one is available.

I use those few seconds for that purpose.
Originally Posted by eja_ bottecchia
...I use the Garmin Varia radar unit. I like the warnings that I get and I like seeing the alerts on my Garmin head unit.

BUT, I still use an eyeglass mounted mirror.

When I get an alert, I quickly check my mirror to see what’s coming my way.

Cars now have a similar system, there is an audible alert when cars are nearby, then you check the mirrors to confirm the location of nearby vehicles.

I like the peace of mind
Originally Posted by Jim from Boston
Thanks for your reply @eja_ bottecchia. It appears you have an advanced system for monitoring traffic behind you. I wrote my series of posts, without reference to listening devices, to answer the earnest question of @MattTheHat,

I linked to this real-time video "Cyclist Rear Ended at 55mph"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QYMKp71vW-I
And asked the counter-questionAt what point do you realize that the upcoming car ain't gonna swerve out of your line of travel?”

Is it at your limit of detection of 153 meters, my suggestion of about 27 meters...when or if? I advocate for a mirror to decide,...

Not to be contrarian, @eja_ bottecchia, but rearward monitoring does not bring me peace of mind, but rather sets up a tension of monitoring behind and looking forward down the road to consider, perhaps subconsciously, a strategy to handle the imminent situation....

For me, peace of mind briefly sets in when I note there is no one behind me, and I can concentrate solely on the upcoming road and intersections.
I'm surprised when these seemingly definitive, and even fatalistic statements about upcoming cars on the road fail to mention the use of a rearview mirror, but to each his own.

Last edited by Jim from Boston; 05-18-20 at 08:58 AM.
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Old 05-11-20, 01:55 PM
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Originally Posted by mr_bill
There are many things that can happen but they often mean someone was driving dangerously.

Next time stop at “I wouldn’t comment....”

-mr. bill
Next time do us all a favor and don't post at all with such nonsense lol
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Old 05-12-20, 06:05 AM
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Originally Posted by Oneder
Next time do us all a favor and don't post at all with such nonsense lol
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Old 05-15-20, 09:07 AM
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Originally Posted by ridelikeaturtle
A person on a bicycle was hit and killed by a person driving a tractor-trailer.

Uh, no. The person on a bicycle was hit by a tractor-trailer driven by a person. Your version sounds like the person on the bicycle got punched or something.

Your version also glosses over the risk asymmetry between driver and rider. The driver's person really isn't at risk in such a crash.

Last edited by livedarklions; 05-15-20 at 09:10 AM.
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Old 05-15-20, 12:47 PM
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Originally Posted by livedarklions
Uh, no. The person on a bicycle was hit by a tractor-trailer driven by a person. Your version sounds like the person on the bicycle got punched or something.

Your version also glosses over the risk asymmetry between driver and rider. The driver's person really isn't at risk in such a crash.
How about

Bad driver using his tractor-trailer collided with and killed a person on a bicycle?
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Old 05-15-20, 01:58 PM
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Originally Posted by Daniel4
How about

Bad driver using his tractor-trailer collided with and killed a person on a bicycle?

Do we know that?
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Old 05-15-20, 02:12 PM
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Originally Posted by livedarklions
Uh, no. The person on a bicycle was hit by a tractor-trailer driven by a person. Your version sounds like the person on the bicycle got punched or something.

Your version also glosses over the risk asymmetry between driver and rider. The driver's person really isn't at risk in such a crash.
The original headline version, by ignoring the driver of the truck, absolves the driver of any responsibility for their action. Mine fixes that.

Cyclists wouldn't be at risk of death if infrastructure was appropriate, and if drivists weren't irresponsible and reckless.
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Old 05-15-20, 02:20 PM
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Originally Posted by ridelikeaturtle
The original headline version, by ignoring the driver of the truck, absolves the driver of any responsibility for their action. Mine fixes that.

Cyclists wouldn't be at risk of death if infrastructure was appropriate, and if drivists weren't irresponsible and reckless.
Yours is still bad writing, though.

If I have a choice between being hit by a driver or being hit by the truck he's driving, I'm picking the driver every time.

Your version misses what makes the driver dangerous--bad operation of an extremely lethal instrument.

"Truck driver kills person on bicycle" works better than what you wrote.
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Old 05-15-20, 02:30 PM
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Originally Posted by livedarklions
Yours is still bad writing, though.

If I have a choice between being hit by a driver or being hit by the truck he's driving, I'm picking the driver every time.

Your version misses what makes the driver dangerous--bad operation of an extremely lethal instrument.

"Truck driver kills person on bicycle" works better than what you wrote.
"You're like school in the summertime: no class." Do you like that better?

If you want Pulitzer-prize winning journalism, you're in the wrong place.
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Old 05-15-20, 02:49 PM
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Originally Posted by ridelikeaturtle
"You're like school in the summertime: no class." Do you like that better?

If you want Pulitzer-prize winning journalism, you're in the wrong place.
You're welcome.

Maybe next time, don't post a "correction" that's actually worse than the headline you're criticising.
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Old 05-15-20, 08:06 PM
  #24  
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Originally Posted by livedarklions
Do we know that?
Yes we do. The driver is dangerous--bad operation of an extremely lethal instrument.
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Old 05-15-20, 11:48 PM
  #25  
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People will argue about the stupidest crap on this forum lol
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