Automotive vehicles comes in all shapes and sizes. There are cars small enough to fit into a person’s bedroom and trucks whose tires are taller than standing adults. People who take to public streets and roadways come into contact with numerous vehicles of all sizes each and every day. But, as city streets become more crowded and citizens become more conscious of the ecological footprints their actions leave, more and more people are taking to navigating city streets using bicycles. While they have advantages, bicycles offer less protection than most other forms of travel.
The scene in front of Symphony Hall in Boston was a little more chaotic after a truck accident involving a bicyclist and lumber truck. Witnesses report the accident happened as the truck made a wide turn and its back wheel overtook the female cyclist and crushed her leg. Police who arrived at the scene received an ear full from construction workers at the site of the accident, and the woman’s boyfriend for the lack of a separate path for pedestrians to use around the construction zone. The driver of the truck was cooperating with police as the woman underwent surgery for her injuries.
The fault may lay solely with the truck driver, the bicyclist, or the police for not securing the construction zone, or some combination of all three. This accident may represent one of the occasions where an injury occurs and everyone involved shares some level of fault for the incident. Since Massachusetts follows a modified comparative negligence scheme, the injured party can recover as long as she is not found to be more than 50 percent responsible for her injuries.
Trucks and other large vehicles rule the due to their sheer size. Drivers, especially those in larger vehicles and trucks should always be on the lookout for those on two wheels.
Source: Boston Magazine, “Cyclist Hit By Truck On Mass. Ave.,” Steve Annear, July 8, 2014
