AUBURN, Maine — An Auburn girl was taken to an area hospital with injuries not considered life-threatening Sunday afternoon after she ran her bike into a truck on Spring Street.
Auburn police Lt. Anthony Harrington said a 9-year-old girl was unable to stop the bike she was riding on Spring Street and hit the rear passenger side of a 1998 Dodge pickup driven by Tianna Audet, 21, of Auburn.
The girl was taken to the hospital with possible injuries to her face after the 2:43 p.m. accident.
Distributed by MCT Information Services
9-year-old Auburn girl on bike runs into truck
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Here we go again. I believe that bikes ought to be ridden on paths, trails, or special bike roads such as the one down south near Portland, anywhere but in close proximity to motorized traffic. However, should they be allowed on the same roads they ought to be regulated the same as motorized vehicles, i.e. a minimum age requirement, licensed, registered, insured, inspected, and wearing the appropriate protective gear for the inevitable crash. I think it is a serious breach of good sense parenting to allow a child on the same venue as a multi-ton vehicles which are traveling at 50 mph or more.
Several studies have shown that as the number of bicycles on the roads increases, the roads become safer, for both drivers and bicyclists. The reason is simple: when bicycles are common, drivers learn to always be aware that a bicyclist could be around the next curve or over the next hill, and slow down accordingly. What’s needed is not regulation of bicycles, but a change in attitude on the part of entitled drivers who believe that the roads are solely for them.
I don’t know what study y0u are citing but that conclusion is utterly ridiculous! Must have been paid for by the “Bicycles for Maine” coalition.
Here’s the link, from Science News, an unbiased source:
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/09/080903112034.htm
So I suppose now you think I’m going to waste 2 hours researching other sources which substantiate my position. Let me just ask you this, 1) if riding on our roads is so safe why do bicycle riders continually complain about how drivers of motorized vehicles don’t pay enough attention to them, 2) if it is so safe why, as in this story, are so many bike riders hurt when they fail to follow the rules of the road and literally run into cars?
And here’s the most germane paragraph from the Science News article:
“It appears that motorists adjust their behaviour in the presence of increasing numbers of people bicycling because they expect or experience more people cycling. Also, rising cycling rates mean motorists are more likely to be cyclists, and therefore be more conscious of, and sympathetic towards, cyclists.”
Whether or not motorists WANT to adjust their behavior is a separate question.
Education for both cyclists and motorists would be much more beneficial.
She had a physics lesson about a little thing called inertia. I’m glad that she’s ok and can use that education in the future.
I hope so too. Far too many cyclists and motorists follow other vehicles too closely.
I tend to agree…The narrow roads and lack of ANY shoulder work has made the situation even worse…Around here there is a 2 or 3 inch drop off from the pavement to the non existant shoulder…You can’t even pull your car over safely to make a call or change you tire anymore…In places the trees and vegetation are right up to the road…Fixing that would help ALOT…But the tree huggers have a fit if the trees are trimmed even a little…
Bicyclists don’t need a paved shoulder to ride on. Per state law, they are allowed to use the entire lane of travel.
State law should be changed to reflect the points that Picklewalker makes above.
Feel free to petition your lawmaker, but I’m going to bet it won’t go anywhere.
Cyclists were on the roads long before motorists were and should be treated as equals.