By Robson Fletcher - Castlegar News Published: September 10, 2010 3:00 PM A 74-year-old Castlegar man riding a motorized bicycle was clipped by a truck on Friday morning, suffering minor injuries and earning himself more than $200 in fines for riding on the wrong side of the road. The collision happened at 11:22 a.m. on Friday at the junction of Columbia Avenue and the west on-ramp to Highway 3. Cpl. Debbie Postnikoff of the Castlegar RCMP said the man was riding his motor-assisted bicycle north on Columbia Avenue in the southbound curb lane, against the flow of traffic. At the same time, a female driver of a pickup truck was attempting to turn left onto the on-ramp. "As the driver of the vehicle turned into the on-ramp, the male cyclist entered from her blind spot," Postnikoff said.
The cyclist ended up colliding with the truck and falling to the ground. He was later taken away by ambulance. He suffered "minor but undetermined injuries," Postnikoff said. There was also minor damage to the truck and the motorized bicycle. The cyclist was issued two tickets for the incident, Postnikoff said: one for failing to ride on the right side of the road and one for cycling without reasonable consideration. Each ticket carries a $109 fine. Postnikoff reminded area cyclists that the law requires them to ride with traffic on the road. "As a cyclist you are supposed to follow the same rules of the road as a motor vehicle," she said.
2 comments:
I do not like riding with traffic because I cannot see who is coming too close. Even on quiet country lanes some vehicles make no attempt to maintain a safe distance. If you happen to hit a rock or lose your balance you will be under their wheels.
I ride where I feel safest and the bicycle lanes in the middle of the road is not one of them.Unfortunately the driving habits of motorists lately have sharply curtailed my bicycling. If I get a fine for these violations then fine, at least I was feeling safer and probably was.
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