5 Different Types of Auto/Bicycle Accidents TO LOOK OUT FOR ON THE ROAD
Fall in Birmingham means cooler, less humid days — the perfect time of year to ride your bike. However, if you’re planning on sharing the road with motorists quite a bit, recognizing where you might be more likely to get into an accident with an unsuspecting motorist can help you stay safe and enjoy your bike ride. Here are a few of the most common auto/bicycle accident scenarios.
and onto a road, cyclists should be wary about crossing in front of them. If the motorist isn’t paying attention, they might T-bone the cyclist or at least cause them to abruptly stop as they turn right.
GETTING ‘DOORED’
COMING ON YOUR LEFT
Even stationary cars can be dangerous for cyclists. When the bike lane is separated from the sidewalk by street parking, sometimes drivers open their door to exit the vehicle right as a cyclist is careening by, causing them to slam into the door at high speeds. In almost every accident between a motor vehicle and a bicycle, the cyclist will usually be worse for wear. If you’ve been the victim of a bicycle accident, contact our office immediately. We’ll make sure the driver is held accountable for their actions.
This accident happens when the cyclist is riding through an intersection and a vehicle coming from the opposite direction turns left at the intersection, colliding with the cyclist.
TURNING RIGHT ON A GREEN
One of the most common accidents between motorists and bicyclists occurs when a vehicle abruptly turns right at an intersection, causing the vehicle to collide with a cyclist riding alongside them, trying to go straight through the intersection.
GETTING ‘REAR-ENDED’ AS A CYCLIST
When cyclists and drivers share the road and a driver speeds up on a cyclist in front of them, they may accidentally collide with the cyclist. This is an accident that many cyclists rightly fear and should keep an eye out for on their rides.
TURNING RIGHT AFTER A STOP
When a motorist is turning right after stopping at an intersection, or pulling out of a parking lot
FACTOID STRANGE AROUND THE WORLD IN 80 DAYS: MORE THAN JUST FICTION
TAKE A BREAK
While circumnavigating the globe might only take a few expensive plane tickets today, back in the late 1800s, before the airplane was invented, it was quite an undertaking. The difficulty of this journey was the basis for the entire plot of Jules Verne’s 1873 bestseller, “Around the World in 80 Days.” However, this journey was more than just a book. On Nov. 14, 1889, American journalist Nellie Bly set out to put Verne’s
book to the test. With just a few small luggage items, Bly beat Verne’s characters’ record, starting in New York and making use of steamships, railroads, junks, and even camels, to make her way back to New York in just over 72 days. For this journey as well as other noteworthy journalistic projects, Bly was inducted into the National Women’s Hall of Fame in 1998 and honored with a postage stamp bearing her likeness in 2002.
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