Bike Shop Ontario: Common crashes#9: Rear End

Our bike shop Ontario is posting tips from Bicyclesafe.com about avoiding the most common bike crashes.

Crash #9: The Rear End
 

You steer slightly to the left to go around a parked car or some other obstruction in the road, and you get hit by an approaching car from the rear.

How to avoid this crash:

1. Never move left without checking behind you first. Some motorists will pass cyclists with only a few inches, so moving even slightly to the left could put you directly in their path. Practice riding a straight line while looking over your shoulder until you can do it perfectly. Many new cyclists have a tendency to move left when they look behind them, which obviously can easily cause one of these.

2. Don't swerve in and out of the parking lane if it contains any parked cars. It may seem like a good idea to ride in the parking lane, dipping back into the traffic lane when you see a parked car. This puts you at risk for a rear end accident. Instead, ride in a steady, straight line in the traffic lane.

3. Use a mirror. If you don't have one, get one from a bike shop (like ours). There are models available that fit on handlebars, helmet, or glasses. You should still physically look back over your shoulder before moving left, but having a mirror will help you monitor traffic.

4. Use turn signals. Never move left without signaling. Just put your left arm straight out.

Bike shop Chino Hills: Common Crashes #8

Our bike shop Chino Hills is doing a blog series revealing the most common bike crash situations, from Bicyclesafe.com, with tips to help you stay safe.

#8 The Left Cross
An approaching car makes a left turn right in front of you, without giving you room to stop, or slams directly into you. 

How to avoid this wreck:

 1. Never ride on the sidewalk. 

 When you come off the sidewalk to cross the street, you're not visible to turning motorists. It is generally much safer to ride in the street.

2. Get a headlight. Front headlights are necessary for safe night time riding. Also, you can be ticketed most places for not having one. They can increase your visibility in the day too.

3. Wear bright colored clothing, even during the day. Ok, maybe you prefer neutrals...but bikes are small and easy to see through even during the day. Yellow or orange reflective vests make a big difference in visibility. Reflective leg bands are also easy and inexpensive.

4. Do not pass on the right. Do not try to overtake slow-moving vehicles on the right. Doing this makes you invisible to left-turning motorists at intersections. Passing on the right is dangerous for a number of reasons. (see other posts in the series or check out Bicyclesafe.com)

5. Slow down. Try to make eye contact with the driver. If you can't catch their eye, slow down enough to completely stop if necessary. It is a pain, but it beats getting hit.

Bike shop Upland: Common crashes #7: Right Hook 2

This post is part of our bike shop Upland's blog series exposing the top ten situations that cause bike wrecks, from Bicyclesafe.com. You are passing a slow-moving vehicle (or another bike) on the right, when it unexpectedly makes a right turn, entering a parking lot, driveway or side street, hitting you.

Common crash #7: Right Hook 2
How to avoid this wreck:

1. Do not pass on the right. This crash is very easy to avoid. Just do not pass any vehicle on the right. If a car ahead of you is going only 10 mph, then you slow down to 10 miles per hour behind it. Pass on the left when it is safe to.

When passing cyclists on the left, call out "On your left!" before you start passing. If they are riding too far to the left for you to left-pass safely, then call "On your right!" before passing on the right.

Be very cautious passing stopped cars at a light. They cannot see you approaching, and someone could throw open a door.

When tailing a slow-moving vehicle, ride behind it, never in their blindspot. Allow enough room to brake, in case a car in front of you turns right.

2. Look behind you before you turn right. This is how you avoid hitting cyclists who violate tip #1 above and try to pass you on the right.

Bike Shop Ontario: Common crashes #6: The Right Hook

Our bike shop Ontario is running a series on our blog exposing the top ten situations that cause bike wrecks, from Bicyclesafe.com.
#6 The Right HookIn this crash, a car passing you turns right turn directly in front of you, or right into you. The driver does not realize the speed you are traveling, and that they do not have time to pass. This crash is hard to avoid because you don't see it coming until the last second, and there is nowhere for you to go when you do see it.

How to avoid this crash:

1. Do not ride on the sidewalk. When you come off the sidewalk to cross the street you're invisible to motorists.

2. Ride to the left. Taking up the whole lane makes it harder for drivers to pass you to cut you off or turn into you. Don't feel bad about taking the lane: by doing so you are protecting your life. If the lane you're in isn't wide enough for cars to pass you safely, then you should be taking the whole lane anyway. 

3. Get a mirror, and use it when approaching an intersection. Be sure to look in your mirror well before you arrive at the intersection. When you get to the intersection, you need to look ahead of you.

Bike shop Upland: Common crashes #5: Red Light of Death

Our bike shop Upland is running a series on our blog exposing the top ten situations that cause bike wrecks, from Bicyclesafe.com.

Wreck #5: Red Light of Death

You stop on the right of a car at a red light or stop sign. They can not see you. When the light turns green, you advance, and then they turn right, slamming you.
This can happen with any size of vehicle, but this scenario is especially dangerous when it's a bus or other large vehicle that you're stopping next to. In 1994, an Austin cyclist was killed this way when he stopped to the right of a semi, and it turned right. He was crushed under its wheels.

 

How to avoid this wreck: Do not stop in a vehicle's blindspot.
Simply stop behind a vehicle, rather than to the right of it, as per the diagram below. In the diagram, you can see how visible this cyclist will be on all sides. The car behind them will see them directly in front.

Bike shop Chino Hills: common crashes #4: the Wrong Way Wreck

Our bike shop Ontario is running a series of posts exposing the top ten scenarios of bike wrecks. More about these collisions and other great info is available at Bicyclesafe.com.

#4 The Wrong Way Wreck
You are riding the wrong way, the left side, against traffic. A car makes a right turn from a side street, driveway, or parking lot, crashing into you. They didn't see you because they were looking for traffic only on their left, not on their right. They don't expect someone coming at them from the wrong direction.

In another variation of the Wrong Way Wreck, you could be hit by a car on the same road, coming at you from straight ahead of you. Riding towards cars gives them less response time, and causes a more serious wreck.

How to avoid this accident:

Don't ride against traffic. Ride with traffic, in the same direction.

Riding against traffic may seem like a good idea because you can see the cars that are passing you, but it's not. For more explanation about why, check out the Bicyclesafe.com website.

Bike shop Chino Hills: common crashes #3: The Crosswalk Slam

Our bike shop Chino Hills is running this series of posts about the most common bike accidents, from Bicyclesafe.com.
#3 The Crosswalk Slam
You're riding on the sidewalk. You enter a crosswalk, and a car makes a right turn, crashing into you.
Drivers will not expect bikes in the crosswalk, and it's hard for them to see you when turning from one street to another, so this is a very easy way for you to get hit.  One study showed that sidewalk-riding was twice as dangerous as road riding, and another study indicated even more so.

How to avoid this accident:

1. Get a headlight. If you're riding at night, a headlight is absolutely essential. It's required by law in most cities.

2. Slow down. Slow down enough that you're able to stop completely if you need to.

3. Don't ride on the sidewalks.  Crossing between sidewalks is a pretty dangerous move. If you do it on the left-hand side of the street, you risk getting slammed as pictured in the diagram. If you do it on the right-hand side of the street, you risk getting hit by a car behind you turning right.  Sidewalk riding also puts you in the path of cars pulling out of parking lots or driveways.