The Vig

Driving home from work last night on NE Broadway, I witnessed a near-miss between a vehicle and cyclist.  If you’ve driven that route, you know there’s a bike lane on the north side of the street which extends from roughly NE24th all the way down to the Broadway Bridge.  During rush hour, there’s always a handful of cyclists out and about, so it helps to keep your head on a swivel.

I picked up the cyclist almost immediately and figured he would be part of my commute from 9th Ave all the way down to Williams, where I enter I-5.  It’s no big deal.  I always give a little extra room if I can and am more than happy to let a guy merge in if he has to.  Broadway is crowded at 5pm.  If we all just take a breath and pay attention, we’ll all get where we’re going.

The incident happened at6th Ave.  The cyclist was cruising along with traffic about halfway between 7th and 6th when a car in the right lane decided to turn right.  The driver signaled their turn and began to execute it.  But then they stopped, right in the middle of the bike lane.  There were no pedestrians clearing, there was no traffic coming out of 6th Ave.  There was nothing preventing the car from proceeding.  Did they suddenly see the cyclist in the lane and panic?  Did they wonder if they really wanted to go down 6th?  Were they looking for a parking spot?  Who knows?  I do know they cut off my guy.

He slammed on his brakes and fell off to the right side.  He caught himself, spun around clock-wise, shot the driver a look, mounted his bike again, and went around the car’s rear…in front of me.   I saw the collision coming and gave the guy a few feet of escape if he needed it.  He took it.

It’s really not that hard to make a right across a bike lane, people.  Check your mirrors, maybe check over your shoulder, signal, and make your move.  If the cyclist is close, let them clear.  If they’re a good distance away, make your move, but make it with purpose.  It’s the indecision that gets people hurt.

I lost touch with the guy around Williams.  He had merged into the traffic lane by then because the bike lane gets funky in that area, changing from the curb lane to between two lanes, one of which allows a right turn across the bike lane.  His route was much better and safer, even if he was in a traffic lane.  The guy obviously knew what he was doing.  I hope he made it home in one piece.