Bike Accidents

Bike as a second means of transportation

Commuting with a bike is an advocacy highly encouraged in the previous year. People have now begun to normalize bikes as means of transportation within cities, which reduces carbon dioxide emission and other pollutants. In recent years bicycles are becoming more popular than ever before due to their ability to reduce pollution levels while also providing ample exercise benefits for those who commute on them regularly. The world has seen increased interest among commuters in getting around mainly by bicycle because it can help lower the number of cars that must be manufactured every year; this would drastically cut down air pollution from car emissions. As the numbers of bikes emerging on main roads and second streets, we can deem bikes as an addition to factors and inclusion of any road accidents. 

Factors of Bike accidents occurence 

According to a recent study, many bikers that use bike as their mean of commute are highly susceptible in accidents involving other vehicles. It is these crashes where the majority of bikers fall victim and often end up being severely injured or killed on impact with large moving objects along the road such as cars. The reason why it's so shocking for most cyclists when they first start riding is how little time you have to react if something goes wrong.

For People Powered Movement, there are numerous observed causes of Bike accidents along the road involving cars, here are some of them:

• Distracted driving and biking -  According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), 30 percent of cyclists are hitted by cars and studies states that inattentive drivers and bikers has high tendencies on colliding with other road user.
• Yielding of Road Rights - Both bikers and drivers oftentimes forget their roles and positioning along the road where results in light crashes.
• Unbearable and dangerous road and weather conditions - Even four wheel vehicles are unable to manage to balance and control speed in bad weather condition, let alone bicycles where brakes and wheels are unreliable in bad road and weather conditions. Night time driving also impedes biker's vision that causes to trip over potholes and signs. 

Bike Accidents in Numbers 

It would be long and boring to write cases of reported and unreported bike accidents in words, representation in numbers would be best; 

• 45,000 of decreased cases of police reported bicycle accidents in year 2015 as 2014 has 50,000 cases reported in comparison.
• Unfortunately, fatal occurences were increased by 12% in the same year as well. 
• According to NHTSA, there were 846 bicyclists deaths in traffic collision in year 2019. 
• 75% of bicyclists death occured in urban areas whereas rural areas contributes 25% of the total number in 2017 and most numbers comprises of male victims rather than woman as there was alcohol involved in 37% of the total number. 
• Albuquerque, NM were deemed as a dangerous city for bikers as cases of incidents reflect so. While, Oklahoma City is considered to possess the safest streets for bikers to ride unto as there were a decline in numbers of accidents in the recent years.

How can a biker avoid the tendency to be involved in a road accident or mitigate its effects on a biker as a victim

As a first defense, many would recommend to cover one's self such as;

•  Wearing of helmet and driving limb pads
• Sufficient road norms to safely and smoothly hover around 
• Making sure that self is able and can manage to ride a bicycle with ease to start with

Then, oftentimes bicycle can determine an occurence of an accident. Mechanical errors and insufficiency of tools for vision and control can lead to bad consequences. 

• Installing tail lights
• Installing horn
• Acquiring better grip and control through installing good hydraulic brakes and shifters

What should a victim biker do when involved in an accident?

Injured cyclists have a lot to gain by working with an expert bicycle accident injury attorney. The lawyer has the experience and resources necessary for investigating accidents in detail, which will help you get compensated for any damages that may come as a result of your crash. The cyclist who was injured during his or her collision should work closely with their legal representation so they can be well-informed about what steps need to be taken next. A skilled bike accident injury lawyer is able not only investigate crashes thoroughly but also reconstruct them accurately based on all available information so they are able find out exactly why the crash occurred and how it could've been prevented first time round.

Ryan, LLP is a personal injury law firm that dedicates themselves to representing individuals and small businesses against corporate giants. Ryan's team of attorneys have built their reputation by winning cases involving wrongful death, catastrophic injuries, insurance bad faith and more; all while keeping fees low for clients as possible.

The attorneys at Ryan LLP are the ultimate underdog fighters ready to take on any large corporation with your best interests in mind! We're committed to providing you with the highest quality legal representation available when it comes time for battle so contact us today