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Timestamp: Wed Aug 17 2016 07:50:57 GMT-0700 (PDT)
Intersection: 47.6175049,-122.3208376
Direction: South
Was your tire caught?: My tire got stuck in the flangeway gap
Date: Thu Feb 25 2016 00:00:00 GMT-0800 (PST)
Time: Sat Dec 30 1899 19:10:00 GMT-0800 (PST)
Name: Michael Diederich
Contact: 425-246-5812
Description: What I sent SDOT
Hello SDOT,
Last night I was biking home south on broadway. The road is marked with sharrows about .1 miles before the spot when the trolly tracks crossed the road at a very slight angle. My front wheel became caught in the track and caused me to flip over my handle bars at ~15-20 mph because it was downhill. I’m still assessing my injuries, but of the five people that saw me crash two of them said they’d done the same thing.
Seattle DOT needs to fix this. When is Seattle DOT going to make streets safe for bicyclists? You CANNOT put a sharrow on the road and then lead the bicyclist straight into a life threatening situation. I could have easily been flipped right in front of a moving car or bus and been killed. Which ever city planner/designer came up with the design and execution really needs to revisit their decision and plan for bikes to be encouraged on Broadway.
Here is the spot where the incident occurred.
https://www.google.com/maps/@47.6174535,-122.3208357,3a,90y,345.98h,56.16t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sGIVhHf0VO0WTq1Arx_2AeA!2e0!7i13312!8i6656!6m1!1e1?hl=en-US
And yes, I’m cc’ing two Seattle Bike advocacy groups because I know bikers in Seattle have complained about these situations in the past and yet they are still prevalent in the city in several spots. Sadly and frustratingly I’m wondering if someone does need to die before Seattle takes action – though I’m grateful it wasn’t me last night. My bike is also trashed – and will probably need $500 to fix it (thanks SDOT).
Any of you on this e-mail are free to contact me if you have any questions – I definitely want to see the situation fixed.
Thanks,
Michael Diederich
Michaeld@intentionalfutures.com
425-246-5812
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Timestamp: Wed Aug 17 2016 10:41:40 GMT-0700 (PDT)
Intersection: 40.73240740000001,-73.9880977
Direction: South
Was your tire caught?:
Date: Wed Aug 17 2016 00:00:00 GMT-0700 (PDT)
Time: Sat Dec 30 1899 10:59:00 GMT-0800 (PST)
Name: Anthony
Contact:
Description: just like anything else, bicycling takes practice and awareness. There are many options to avoid the dangers that rail tracks represent. you can get off your bike, take a different street, change the angle you cross the tracks, use wider tires...
Rail tracks are not the only obstacle in the street facing bicycle riders. Man hole covers, pot holes, cars, construction zones, and any other number of dangers exist. It seems irresponsible of the Seattle Times to focus on this one issue.
In the past two month, I personally know of three people who have crashed their bike crossing a steel plate in a construction area along Alaskan Way. If you are going to cover the topic of dangers for cyclists, please do so holistically.
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Timestamp: Wed Aug 17 2016 09:26:17 GMT-0700 (PDT)
Intersection: 47.62573099999999,-122.3386038
Direction: South
Was your tire caught?: My tire slipped on the metal surface
Date: Tue Jul 01 2014 00:00:00 GMT-0700 (PDT)
Time: Sat Dec 30 1899 07:30:00 GMT-0800 (PST)
Name: Dylan Parry
Contact: email: dparry2012@gmail.com
Description: Right after they'd lined the Valley Street bike lanes (not sure of the exact date), I followed the new path which curves sharply to meet the tracks at a direct 90 degrees as you cross Westlake. Once I hit the tracks at 90 degrees, the bike flew out from under me and I fell hard. this left me with bruising to my knee, ankle, hip, and shoulder, and I cracked two ribs on my left side. Hardly my worst crash, but it left me hurting... After the crash I learned that the tracks were damp due to the previous night's rain (even though the street had been dry), and that if the crossing is taken with ANY speed, following the lined curve leaves you in a slight lean as you cross the tracks and the momentum of the rider pushes into the curve rather than straight ahead. I was probably only going 5-10 MPH as I crossed. I still ride this route almost daily, even in the rain, and now never follow the bike lane as it curves to meet the track.
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Timestamp: Wed Aug 17 2016 09:36:36 GMT-0700 (PDT)
Intersection: 47.6175615,-122.3208402
Direction: South
Was your tire caught?: My tire got stuck in the flangeway gap
Date: Tue Nov 11 2014 00:00:00 GMT-0800 (PST)
Time: Sat Dec 30 1899 21:00:00 GMT-0800 (PST)
Name: Joe Manning
Contact: 206.696.8538
Description: Riding south on Broadway for the first time in a long time for me so wasn't used to the new bike lanes. Cyclists have sharrows on Broadway going southbound, but then the sharrows abruptly stop at E Howell. The new two way bike lane begins on the east side of Broadway, south of the intersection.
So there is a basically a break in the chain of bike safety, and no warning signs about the new streetcar track that curves out at the perfect angle to snag one's tire. No indication that one needs to get off the street and walk one's bike to the next cross walk, then use the new two-way bike lane. I continued riding straight south on Broadway and directly into the curving track.
I remember seeing the track and comprehending briefly the coming slam. I went down fast, probably riding 15-20 mph, over my handlebars and onto my shoulder and knee and helmet. A pedestrian across the street yelled to see if I was ok, but the adrenaline from the slam was enough to jolt me into quickly picking up my bike and moving across the street to the new bike lane. I rode home to Beacon Hill, bleeding and in pain, on a misaligned front wheel, and ended up having to get new handlebars and a new front wheel, as the bars had bent to nearly the point of breaking, and my front wheel had bent as well.
I know this must be an very common place to crash and is incredibly dangerous, I'm surprised we haven't had any fatalities here. It would be easy for someone to break their neck, bash their head on the track or the curb, or be riding in moderate traffic and crash and be run over by a car traveling south behind the cyclist.
Thank you Seattle Times for the opportunity to pinpoint this dangerous track.
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Timestamp: Sun Sep 04 2016 00:23:33 GMT-0700 (PDT)
Intersection: 47.5991997,-122.3224651
Direction: West
Was your tire caught?: My tire slipped on the metal surface
Date: Thu Aug 20 2015 00:00:00 GMT-0700 (PDT)
Time: Sat Dec 30 1899 10:45:00 GMT-0800 (PST)
Name: Ana Candela
Contact: 2062280905
Description: I was on my route on Jackson toward Pioneer Square. I saw that the bus going in front of me was going to make a stop at the designated bus stop on the corner of 8th, just below I-5.
So, as I usually did in this situation, I proceeded to do my passing maneuver by slowing down, checking behind me to make sure it was clear, and cross to the left lane over the street tracks. I don't remember anything else after this, and I'm not sure if my front tire got inside the track, or slid, or a combination of both, because that's the point where another set of tracks coming from 8th join the ones on Jackson. The wheel of my bike got minor scuffs and slightly off true, but not bent. The bike shop guy could not deliberate for sure what could've happened.
As for me, my helmet hit the ground and got a small crack. With the impact, the helmet hit my sunglasses which in turn scuffed my right cheekbone. But unfortunately that was minor in comparison to the concussion it caused, which lasted about 6-7 hours or a bit more (not sure when a concussion officially stops being one), but I was a good day or two resting and sleeping a lot, and I took almost two weeks off work.
I've never had a concussion before, and it is a scary thing, not only for the physical injury but because to this day there are many events around the accident that I don't remember at all, even though I was supposedly conscious in parts of it. Apparently, I actually walked from the accident to the sidewalk to call my brother to come help me. He came to pick me up and saw something was amiss so he took me to the hospital. He left me in the reception area while he looked for parking, and apparently I also checked myself in and gave all my personal info to the receptionist. Next thing my brother comes to meet me and I'm already in a gurney unconscious. They ran some tests and CT scans, and I was let go within a couple hours since there was no brain damage and I had no insurance.
I do remember repeating stuff over a few times, but my brother tells me that it might be by the time I was regaining consciousness because he says I repeated stuff over and over and over incessantly. He was seriously scared for me, but the people in the hospital told him it was very normal in this kind of injury. I also remember feeling my brain bouncing around inside my skull for a few weeks at least, like a bucket of water. It was quite the shock.
I've always been a careful cycler over tracks, as I know a few people who've had accidents in them before, no concussions for them fortunately but really badly scraped and bodily injured. But now after my own accident, I'm even more careful and even go out of my way to avoid tracks if I can. Unfortunately, Yesler has been on and off construction for over a year now, and there's no other alternate route that connects east-west except for Jackson.
And unfortunately, also, Jackson has proved to be a poorly executed project, and which is in urgent need of a revision: buses have stops on the right but the street car stops are on the left. Also lanes appear and disappear, and the widths are not consistent, so everyone is all over the place trying to manage a way through. For bikes sometimes there's a sharrow and sometimes a dedicated lane. It's well known that bicycles and tracks don't go well together (hence the title of this article and the request for the input from cyclists), but even car drivers hate tracks because they frequently pass very close to you since they want to avoid the street tracks, too! And they're zigzagging in and out to avoid the stopped buses on the right and the street car on the left.
I really don't know how this project got approved. It does not improve anyone's choice of transportation, not even pedestrians. And I don't even want to get started on the Westlake tracks... I wasn't a fan of street cars before, and after my accident, I'm now a fervent opponent. Maybe not street cars per se, but their wheel technology that needs tracks. Pneumatics were invented over a hundred years ago! There's no romanticism in the nostalgia of street cars at the expense of unnecessary accidents, injuries, and loss of lives.
I hope this recount, ramble, and rant helps with the information you're seeking.
Cheers!
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Timestamp: Thu Aug 18 2016 12:03:54 GMT-0700 (PDT)
Intersection: 47.6140896,-122.3207916
Direction: South
Was your tire caught?: My tire slipped on the metal surface
Date: Wed Jul 15 2015 00:00:00 GMT-0700 (PDT)
Time: Sat Dec 30 1899 07:45:00 GMT-0800 (PST)
Name: Kyle
Contact:
Description: July 15, 2015 was a bad bike day for me. I hadn't ridden my bike in Seattle very often, but I decided to bike to my client's office in downtown Seattle that morning. I was coming from the U-District. I made it to Capital Hill fine. Somewhere along Broadway the bike lane on the right side of the road switches to the left side when you're heading south. I didn't notice this. When I slightly changed the trajectory of my front tire, it slipped into the metal surface of the bus tracks. This changed the trajectory of my body, which catapulted over the steering wheels. I was fine, although a little rattled. Pedestrians laughed. I'm thankful the driver 5 feet behind me wasn't too busy laughing to hit the brakes of his car.
Later that day, after work, I walked to the park near my client's office where I locked my bike. It wasn't there. Somebody stole it. Yes, I was pretty disappointed, but I figured at least I wouldn't have to bike home and potentially crash and burn again that day.
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Timestamp: Wed Aug 17 2016 16:02:16 GMT-0700 (PDT)
Intersection: 47.6017002,-122.3179124
Direction: West
Was your tire caught?:
Date: Fri Nov 14 2014 00:00:00 GMT-0800 (PST)
Time: Sat Dec 30 1899 11:00:00 GMT-0800 (PST)
Name: Darrell
Contact: 2065885623
Description: This was on my motorcycle (still technically a "bike"). I was heading west on E Yesler Way going downhill. It was raining and the lower stretch of that hill has a 10%-15% grade (according to google maps). It's not the steepest hill in Seattle but the grade matters a lot when a wet track is involved. I have been riding a motorcycle since I was 16. I pride myself on being a confident, safe, and experienced rider. This was literally the first time I'd ever gone down.
When crossing tracks on a bike (motorcycle or bicycle), the current literature says to aim for at least a 45 degree "attack angle" when crossing tracks (90 degrees being ideal). The intention is to make your momentum vector as close to being perpendicular to the tracks as possible so that if a tire catches or slips, your momentum will keep you going across the track quickly enough to recover.
This 45 degree attack angle is impossible on this, and many, streetcar roads. Making things worse is the fact that it is on a hill and is fairly wet most of the year. In my case, I was trying to get to the other side of the track when my tire got caught in the groove for just a fraction of a second. This means my momentum was at some angle to the track when my front wheel was forced to move parallel to the track. When the wheel came out of the groove, I was off balance. Then the front wheel continued to slip along the track while I was trying to recover. The wheel just seem to go right out from under me and the bike and I went down. The funny thing was this was at an incredibly low speed as the light at Boren was red. I was very lucky because it could have been much worse but I did hurt my knee pretty badly. I landed knee first and then my foot was pinned while the weight of the bike pushed my body away from my leg. It definitely hurt and my leg was like jello but I was in shock enough to get right up without feeling the damage. I still managed to lift the bike and ride home but my knee has never been the same. I have a complete ACL tear that will require surgery to correct.
If this can happen on the larger tires of a motorcycle, bicycles would be even more vulnerable.
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Timestamp: Thu Aug 18 2016 22:01:15 GMT-0700 (PDT)
Intersection: 47.6177761,-122.3383472
Direction: North
Was your tire caught?: My tire got stuck in the flangeway gap
Date: Tue Apr 15 2014 00:00:00 GMT-0700 (PDT)
Time: Sat Dec 30 1899 07:30:00 GMT-0800 (PST)
Name: Danica Michaels
Contact: 425-876-1894
Description: My usual route home from a graveyard shift required riding during rush hour on a busy arterial with only a sharrow to reach Eastlake Ave E. So I decided to try a different route, going down Blanchard to Westlake to South Lake Union. If I remember right, at the time Westlake was marked on Google Maps as a sharrow street. I don't think I would have tried it otherwise. I was unaware of the streetcar tracks, and the warning sign for cyclists at the intersection (which I found while investigating the intersection later) was at the top of a pole several feet above my head and out of my field of view. I saw the tracks ahead as I came through the intersection, but with a car on my left, I had no escape route and had to try to cross them. My front tire dropped into the tracks, and I went over the handle bars. I fractured my cheekbone and chin, busted the knuckles on both my hands so badly my hands were swollen for days, and had road burn across most of the right side of my face, on my right arm, and my right leg. My knees, right hip, right side of my rib cage, and both my hands were black and blue. There was a split second of pain when I landed face-first, and then the whole right side of my head immediately went numb, as if that half of my head had disappeared. It was so disorienting, people had to come out into the street and half carry me to the sidewalk because I couldn't tell what direction was up. A bystander called 911, but I (probably stupidly) insisted I didn't need the paramedics, because I didn't have health insurance and was afraid of ambulance or emergency room charges. (I was working full time, but we were in the middle of prolonged union negotiations, and benefits had been delayed by several months.) The operator asked the bystander to ask me if I had lost consciousness, and when I answered I didn't think so, the operator seemed to agree paramedics weren't necessary and no one was sent to check me. Even more stupidly, I waited a half hour till I stopped shaking, went into Whole Foods and asked for a first aid kit, dug the gravel out of my cheek in the bathroom, and got back on my bike and rode the 6 miles home. I realize now I probably had a concussion, but because I'm low income, I was more afraid that if I didn't get back on my bike right then, I never would, and biking was too essential to my budget and the graveyard hours I worked. Because I didn't have health insurance, I didn't seek out medical attention, so I'm not sure precisely how severe the fracture in my cheek and chin were, but I had bumps where the bone was knitting for six months. After hearing other stories about broken bones, injuries requiring multiple surgeries, and fatalities, I feel like I got away light. And it still took months to heal.
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