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L.A. Mayor Leads Bicycling Effort after Bike Crash
Los Angeles, the second largest and debatably most auto-centric city in the United States, is reaching out towards cyclists and making an effort to transform the city to make room for bikes. To reaffirm this point, L.A. hosted a bicycle safety summit this morning, August 16. This step towards bicycle-friendliness comes after Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa was hit by a car while on his bike. The accident crash resulted in a shattered elbow and a new push to increase safety for bicyclists.
The Mayor made a formal announcement on You Tube that included his personal crash, the need for improvement in L.A.’s bicycle infrastructure, and his intention to focus on this subject — starting with this morning’s bike safety summit. He also wrote that, “Eventually we plan to build a network of 1,663 miles of bikeways. I encourage everyone to take a look at the plan and give input.” Villaraigosa envisions Los Angeles’ climate and landscape as an ideal place for cyclists. The Mayor hopes that today’s discussion and upcoming bicycle plan updates will maximize what the city has going for it.
Carly Sieff
League Bicycle Friendly America Program Assistant
Sieff joined the League in April 2010 with a Bachelors in Urban Studies and Science & Society from Brown University.
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August 18th, 2010 at 4:47 pm
Please stop referring to this incident as an “accident.” This was a no-contact crash that resulted from a careless taxi cab operator who broke the law by failing to yield before moving laterally. In this case, the taxi cut off the path of the cyclist traveling in a bike lane.
VC 22107. No person shall turn a vehicle from a direct course or move right or left upon a roadway until such movement can be made with reasonable safety and then only after the giving of an appropriate signal in the manner provided in this chapter in the event any other vehicle may be affected by the movement.
Just because the Mayor doesn’t want to press charges doesn’t mean a violation did not occur. By characterizing it as an accident the driver is set free to terrorize more people with his careless driving habits.
August 19th, 2010 at 3:14 pm
Thanks for the reminder, and you are right of course. We updated the post.