According to the National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration (NHTSA), over 51,000 bicyclists have died in traffic collisions dating back to 1932. Oklahoma, as well as the rest of the nation, experiences its fair share of accidents involving bicycle riders.
In 2006, NHTSA reported that 44,000 people were injured in bicycle accidents and 773 people died as a result of bicycle collisions with automobiles. While the state of Oklahoma has passed helmet laws to reduce the risk of bicycle fatalities and to reduce personal injury cases related to bike accidents, bicyclists should still take additional precautions to limit their risk of injuries when sharing the road with cars.
In addition to wearing bike helmets, bicyclists can make efforts to be more aware of a driver’s blind spot, which is located towards the middle of a vehicle rather than directly behind a vehicle. It is between this area and the area slightly behind a driver’s mirror, where bicycles are not always visible, which leaves a driver less time to react and avoid a potential collision.
Further, bicyclists can protect themselves from injury by following traffic laws as they ride in bike lanes, such as riding in the same direction as the traffic. When bicyclists ride against traffic, they are more likely to be hit by turning cars, because their bike is not the driver’s line of sight.
When riding during the night, bicyclists should make extra efforts to wear either reflectors or brightly colored clothing. Since road visibility greatly decreases at night, drivers experience more difficulty in avoiding accidents with bicyclists who are dressed in dark clothing without flashers.
Finally, bicyclists, like automobile drivers, should monitor their speed to help prevent Oklahoma bike accidents. Often, speeding bicyclists run through red lights nearly causing accidents along busy intersections, or these bicyclists collide with open doors to vehicles as well as vehicles turning in intersections.
Unfortunately, even by adhering to all reasonable safety precautions, reckless drivers can injure bicyclists with careless driving habits. Injured bicyclists may be entitled to compensation for their injuries. Bicyclists who have been injured by a vehicle require the legal skills and advocacy of the Oklahoma personal injury attorneys of Maples Law Firm. For your free legal consultation, contact our office today at (405) 705-5050.
