San Francisco Personal Injury Law Blog

Thousands of bicycle accidents occur each year in California, resulting in serious injuries and even death. To help avoid dangerous crashes, bicyclists should be familiar with and follow California's bicycle laws, just as drivers should be aware of bicyclists and their rights. Several provisions of the California Vehicle Code govern bicycle operation and equipment in the state, including these key rules:

• Bicyclists have the same rights and obligations as drivers; all laws that apply to motor-vehicle drivers also apply to bicyclists, and drivers must share the road.
• Bicyclists may not ride on a street or highway under the influence of alcohol or drugs. Bicycling while impaired can result in a fine of up to $250.
• All bicycles must be equipped with brakes and not have frame adjustments that prevent the rider from supporting the bike in an upright position with one foot on the ground when stopped.
• When riding a bicycle in the dark, the bike must have a white front headlight (or a similar headlight attached to the bicyclist), a red reflector on the back of the bicycle and white or yellow reflectors on each pedal.
• Bicyclists must ride as close as possible to the right-side curb or edge of the road unless they are riding at the normal speed of traffic and except when passing another biker or driver moving in the same direction, when preparing for a left turn, when riding on a one-way street with more than one lane or when reasonably necessary to avoid hazardous conditions.
• It is illegal to "hitch a ride" or for a biker to attach him or herself to a streetcar or motor vehicle.
• Every person riding a bicycle must have a permanent and regular attached seat.
• Every bicyclist under 18 years old is required to wear a helmet.
• Bicyclists may not wear headphones, ear buds, headsets or earplugs while riding.

Cyclists who ride at night need to have lights on their bicycles in order to be safe.  Lights are essentially divided into two categories: "to see" and "be seen."  Of course "to see" lights are those that provide a steady beam to light up the road or trail in front of you, the cyclist.  The "be seen" lights are the issue here.

Many people use blinking lights in order to be seen by traffic at night.  However, there is this interesting phenomena called the "Moth Effect" which suggests that these blinkies could be unsafe.

What is the "Moth Effect"?  It suggests that blinking red lights on the back of bicycles might be more dangerous than steady red lights.  On several occasions, when drunk drivers have hit cyclists from behind, it has been argued that the red blinkie lights actually attracted the drunk.

Have you ever watched moths outside in the dark attracted to a lighted room?  Similar thing. Taillights on "blinking mode" cause these unalert drivers--especially drunk ones--to fixate on the lights and potentially steer right towards them and hit the bicycle!

Sounds crazy but it makes some sense if you think about it. You might try this theory out at night yourself.  I am not suggesting that you go out with a blinking red light on the back of your bike and sit outside the local bar. Try going out in the dark by foot and finding such a light.  Feel how you are drawn to the target and how distance becomes irrelevant?

This effect can also be measured analyzing how, when faced with oncoming traffic, drivers begin steering away from the oncoming vehicle but that 2 seconds before the meeting drivers will deflect the steering wheel in the direction toward the approaching vehicle.  This suggests that drivers might even steer off the road in the direction of their fixation.

The moth effect seems to have two enabling conditions:

1. The first is minimal optic flow information, as when a driver is on a dark road at night or perhaps traveling in bad weather.  The driver is forced to rely on a sense of egocentric direction relative to a landmark--the fixated object
2. The second is an intense attentional fixation on a roadside target.  The more attention focused on one task, the less available to others. 

The study suggests that a steady light allows motorists to judge distance better and make safer passes. 

What do you think of this theory? Are cyclists actually increasing the danger of riding at night when they use blinking lights? If you or anyone you know has been injured by this deceiving effect, or has any questions about how cyclists may be in danger while on the roads, please feel free to contact me.

About the author:  Claude Wyle is an aggressive advocate for Bay Area bicyclists. Claude has decades of experience representing those harmed by the wrongful conduct of other, and, as a Marin County bicyclist accident attorney, has fought to protect the rights of injured cyclists throughout his legal career. Claude is also an avid cyclist himself and member of the Marin County Bicycle Coalition, San Francisco Bicycle Coalition and Silicon Valley Bicycle Coalition and is a sponsor of Safe Routes to School.

Over a year later, a trial has finally been ordered for the hit-and-run rampage by David Mark Clark of Albany who said he heard voices inside his head who seduced him into mowing down four bicyclists, almost killing at least one, my client Rolando Casajeros.  The attacks began on Harrison Street near 23rd Street. Throughout the mile-long rampage, Clark's SUV swerved several times to intentionally hit the cyclists before he crashed into a light post and fled on foot.

Clark said,

"I was forced psychologically to drive around. And I couldn't stop."

It was a long six minutes for the survivors who were pursued and hit, suffering serious injuries on the night of June 2, 2010 some with broken legs, bruised organs, lost teeth and a broken jaw and other facial fractures.

I am disgusted to say that the most seriously injured of the four cyclists, whom I am representing as a San Francisco Bicyclist Lawyer, was injured by Clark, who claims to be a crystal healer by trade.  Going on an insane rampage isn't exactly how I imagine a true healer should act, to say the least. I am glad that Mr. Clark will be held accountable for his crimes. I wish he could be held civilly accountable as he had a small insurance policy and no assets to speak of. While Clark may go to prison or to a mental facility for his actions, my client is left with a life altered for the worse, and a lot of financial hardship. My best hope is that the City of San Francisco waive its lien for the medical bills which are very high, and that Rolando be allowed to go on with his life without crippling debt on top of his injuries.

In a cyclist vs. automobile collision, the bicyclist is going to suffer injuries, incur the medical bills, lose time from work and possibly be left with a permanent disability.  When the wrongful conduct of a person causes you or someone you love severe injury, great pain, high expenses, and disability, it can be a confusing and challenging time. Please feel free to call me if you or a loved suffered an injury from a bicycle accident and I'll be happy to speak with you free of charge and to explain your options to you.

About the author:  Claude Wyle is an aggressive advocate for San Francisco Bay Area bicyclists. Claude has decades of experience representing those harmed by the wrongful conduct of other, and, as a Marin County bicycle accident attorney, has fought to protect the rights of injured cyclists throughout his legal career. Claude is also an avid cyclist himself and member of the Marin County Bicycle Coalition, the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition, the Silicon Valley Bicycle Coalition and a contributor and supporter of Safe Routes to School.

Recently, the National Transportation Safety Board held a two-day forum to discuss commercial trucking and busing safety among federal regulators, industry representatives and safety advocates. The Associated Press reports that the focus of the forum was prevention of deadly accidents and understanding why past safety recommendations have not been enacted or implemented yet.

The number of fatal commercial-trucking accidents has decreased in recent years. In 2005 there were more than 5,200 fatalities from semi-truck accidents, while in 2009 there were about 3,200, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation. Although this represents some progress in improving commercial-truck safety, NTSB member Robert Sumwalt said there is still much more work to be done.

In fact, the NTSB has made about 100 safety recommendations that have not been adopted by regulators or busing and trucking industries. For example, the NTSB recommended that buses have seat belts installed for all passengers way back in 1968. Yet, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration only proposed a rule requiring seat belts on new buses in 2010. The rule is not final, though, and it would not apply to buses already in service.