Trucks have huge blind spots. Truck drivers cannot see little things in their huge blind spots. Large vehicles off-track when turning, so they will appear to be going straight and often swing wide before making a right turn.
Cyclists hit by turning trucks is a repeating news story which highlights the most serious deficiency in our system — education of cyclists. Sometimes these crashes are caused by the truck driver passing a cyclist prior to turning right, but very often they are caused by the cyclist passing the truck on the right. In both cases, the cyclist has the power to avoid the crash.
Here’s how YOU can keep this from happening to you:
- Do not stop at an intersection on the right side of a truck. If you have already stopped in a bike lane and a big rig pulls up next to you, don’t assume the driver has seen you. Get off your bike and move it to safety (your life is worth the inconvenience). It’s better to stop in the middle of the general traffic lane if you arrive first. (In many cases it’s safer to stop in the line of traffic than to pass the queue.)
- Do not linger next to a truck on any side, in any lane. If you are riding near the same speed, slow until you are behind the truck. (This is taught to motorcyclists, it applies to all vehicle drivers, even car drivers!)
- If a truck passes you, slow down and let it get ahead of you ASAP. If you are approaching an intersection, merge to the left and ride near the center line to avoid the moving blind spot (see Left Cross in the Blind Spot).
- If you are in a bike lane and passing stopped traffic, do not pass a truck unless you can be clear of it before approaching any intersections or driveways and before traffic begins moving again. (This is a case where bike lanes offer a false sense of security that can get a cyclist killed.)
- Or, just don’t pass a truck on the right at all. And be cautious when passing on the left, too.
Trucks make wide turns. They cannot physically make a right turn from the right curb, so they will often leave a large, inviting opening on their right prior to a turn. They will also move straight into the intersection before starting to turn. When a truck turns right across your path, it is almost impossible to escape its rear wheels. So don’t get caught in a spot where this can happen! Be aware of what kind of situation can lead to a potential crash and avoid it.
Here’s an example of how blind-spot awareness saved my life last year.
A plan view of all blind spots (the rear no-zone is expanded for highway-speed following distance). From AAA Driving Survival.
I was riding North on Magnolia through downtown. I was in the bike lane. Approaching Concord, I saw a slow-moving truck in the right traffic lane. I slowed and hung back. We continued to Colonial, where the light was red. The bike lane is properly-striped to the left of the right-turn-only lane, so it would be correct for me to ride in it to the intersection. But the truck was in the right thru-lane and I don’t ride next to trucks. I decided to pull into the thru-lane behind it. Just as the truck reached the Colonial intersection, the light turned green. The truck driver turned on his right turn signal and turned right — across the bike lane and the right-turn-only lane. Yes, he made an illegal turn. He probably checked his mirror for cars in the turn lane, but he would not have seen me. He never did see me, I nonchalantly passed him on the left and went on my way. But it was not lost on me what would have happened had I made a different decision. And I wondered how many other cyclists would have made the same decision.
Acute awareness of vehicle blind spots was taught to me in motorcycle safety school. Perhaps if bicycle advocates and the bike industry put as much emphasis on education as the motorcycle industry does, I wouldn’t keep seeing articles like the following:
Here are 2 crashes from this month. Both of these cyclists were very fortunate to survive.
11/25/08 Elderly bicyclist injured in crash with big rig
[The cyclist] and the big rig were both stopped in the street waiting for a train to pass prior to the crash. Once the train passed, the big rig made a right turn from Lemon Avenue onto a side street, striking the still stationary bicyclist.
Note: the satellite view shows what appears to be a wide curb lane. Wide curb lanes allow cyclists to ride on the right of traffic, but cyclists should still be cautious about passing stopped traffic. If you suddenly find yourself in a situation where traffic is stopped and you are next to a big rig. Get off your bike and get off the road.
11/18/08 Cyclist Down: Fillmore and Fulton
The cyclist’s description: “I was cruising down Fulton eastbound and saw the truck ahead of me. I sped up a bit so I’d stay within range of his rearview mirrors. If I were too far back, the box part of the truck would block me. We approached the intersection and I was keeping an eye on his turn signal because I was passing the cars. I was going about 20 and there was no turn signal. As I came towards the intersection, I saw he was turning and hit the brakes. I skidded into the side of the truck and he kept turning, which pulled me under.”
Note: Fulton street has downhill bike lanes which are dangerous because cyclists can travel at motoring speeds. Any time you are traveling at downhill speed, you should be in the traffic lane. You need way more room to maneuver than a bike lane provides. If you are traveling faster than traffic, it is safer to pull into the traffic lane and slow to the speed of that traffic than to fly past it on the right. This allows you to easily pass right-turning vehicles on the left, instead of being hit by them as they cross your path.
Here are 4 more that have happened in the last 14 months. These cyclists were not so lucky. (All of these crashes involved cyclists in bike lanes.)
Cyclist, 22, Dies After Being Hit by Truck Near Dupont Circle
Cyclist killed in crash well known in Portland
Full cement truck drives over and kills cyclist ‘in an instant’
Bicyclist killed in dump truck crash identified
John Allen lists a bunch more in this article about mindless passing on the right (and how bad bike facilities encourage it while we educators are trying to discourage it).
When you know how to be safe around trucks, it won’t happen to you!
UPDATE:
Here is a video for cyclists by the Portland Water Bureau.
I also found this video from the trucking industry. This is aimed at motorists and highway driving, but it has some good blind spot images in it.
One thing that’s frightening to consider is that too many cyclists feel (or state in messages on cycling related groups) that they are entitled to move ahead of stopped traffic. I have been chastised for saying that I remain in the traffic line, even though there may be an open bike lane or shoulder available for me to pull to the front “as is my right” which I find preposterous.
Another rider/poster commented that he refuses to follow traffic laws as it infringes on his right as an individual to do as he pleases on his bicycle. He touts being fifty-five years old and rides against traffic, two feet from the curb. I suppose he won’t get “trucked” by riding up the bike lane, doing that!
Sheesh.
Cyclists have the same mindless passing behaviors for stopped traffic that motorists have for passing cyclists… no matter what, they must pass… it doesn’t matter if the traffic is moving slowly through a stop sign, it doesn’t matter if the cars have turn signals on, it doesn’t matter if there are only 2 cars in the queue or if they will have to pass the cyclist again in a narrow lane, it doesn’t matter if there are large blind spots they must cross… cyclists must pass slower traffic… cyclists must pass slower traffic… cyclists must pass slower traffic… and sometimes the insistence on doing it gets them maimed or killed.
Much as we think our s_ doesn’t stink, thoughtless driving is a human failing not limited to motorists.
Great article, Keri. I like how you relate these techniques to motorcycle safety, makes it more interesting to read. I’ve slowly learned some of these techniques from experience and close calls, but it wasn’t until the October fatalities here that I really started to think carefully about the dangers of coming up on the turning-side of a long truck. Hang back or shoot ahead (or change lanes on multi-lane one-ways).
Maybe bicycle safety education will have the appeal of motorcycle safety education someday. Maybe even integrate the two under a single organization. Probably easier to teach MSE, since you don’t have to teach things like “ok, here is when you must disobey the motorcycle lane stripe.”
-R
Keri,
As always, an excellent post with great illustrations as to why “passing on the right” is dangerous, and yet it is something that far too many cyclists believe is one of the advantages of the bicycle as a vehicle… the “vehicle of opportunity” excuse.
Great site re-design, btw.
I am truly sorry that I am going to disagree publicly with PM Summer, whom I admire and greatly respect.
The illustration of the turning truck is not right. As drawn, the trucks rear tires will encroach 2 or more feet onto the sidewalk!
The phenomena happens with all vehicles: when turning, the rear wheels will “track” closer to the inside of the turn. On a bicycle it is very small, and in cars it is measured in inches. But with a tractor-trailer combination vehicle (Where the rear dual wheels can be as much as 48 feet from the king-pin!) the off-tracking can be more than three feet.
Ironically, the artist is depicting what many people expect a turning truck to look like.
To fix the illustration, the cab of the truck would have to continue straight until it was well past the beginning of the cross lane before starting his turn. Otherwise the rear wheels would mount the curb.
It would not be unusual for a cyclist to think the truck were going straight through the intersection at first. Suppose the truck is stopped at a signal while a cyclist is approaching the intersection. The cyclist proceeds to pass the truck as the light turns green. The truck will move out into the intersection with every appearance of proceeding through it, while the cyclist moves into the “killing zone”. Or as Keri put it so well, “they will often leave a large, inviting opening on their right prior to a turn.”
Once the truck begins his turn, there will be no way for him to perceive your distress. All he can see is the forward part of the trailer in his mirror. He will not even hear you scream. I would recommend avoiding finding yourself in that position.
Good article, good comments. I may be picking at nits.
Merry Christmas everyone! ChipSeal
ChipSeal was right about the drawing. I worked on it some more and replaced it.
Excellent Keri! Well done! The addition of the trailer tire tracks makes the dire situation very clear. Perhaps even the P&P folks could understand it. Tailwinds!
I viewed the Portland Water Dept. video, and all I could think, as I saw those cyclists riding in the bike lane, was “Don’t ride there! Don’t ride to the right of traffic which might turn right!!” It’s very simple, cyclists–just don’t do it! Don’t depend on the poor driver to see you–stay out of the danger zone–which is anywhere on his right side!! Don’t ride in the bike lane!!!
The voice-over urges us to “Be visible”–well, riding in the bike lane makes us LESS visible! I admit, I have not ridden my bike in Portland, but I hope to do that this fall. And I’m damned if I’ll ride in a doorzone bike lane. I will NOT ride where it’s dangerous!
When you ride in a bike lane, you have to be vigilant, always looking out for things you must avoid, obstacles, debris, potential conflicts with crossing and turning motorists, etc. When you ride visibly in a traffic lane, you can relax just go along your way like any other driver. Bike lanes INCREASE work load! Go figure.
If cyclists could get over the fear of “being in someone’s way” they’d never, ever advocate for such marginalization.
Riding around trucks scares me to death. That is why I take control of the lane, especially at intersections.
I recall the latest deaths by truck in the Portland area and the driver “did not see” the cyclist in one of them. If the cyclist had not been in the bike lane, had taken control of the lane of travel at the intersection, and made her position and intentions obvious to the truck driver, the outcome could have been different.
Confidence and education play a large part in reaching our destination safely.
Keri mentioned about “not over glorifying hi-vis clothing” in another post. Unless I am on a MUP, you will find me riding the streets in my lime green reflective vest. Personal choice, not necessary to operate a bicycle safely.
If you have met some of the “outstanding motorists” here in Orlando, or in your locale, it is understood WHY I don’t want to give any margin of error with regards to my safety.
We will ride with our fallen cyclists again someday. Until then, ride safe and ride BIG!
Are bike lanes in essence more dangerous to the cyclist than having none? Do they present feeling of safety? Might they overlook a truck to the left of them with a turn signal on? What is the turn is made by a truck mid block into an establishment or parking lot rather than an intersection? What can be done to avert these tragedies? Are there mirrors that prevent blind spots?
My nephew was run over by a cement truck while he was in a designated bike lane as the truck turned left mid block into the company parking lot. I wonder if the outcome would have been different if he were behind the truck. He was conscious of safety. He ride motor cycles. As a firefighter, ambulance runs were a daily occurrence. He was alert by nature and aware by experience, yet he was killed.
What can we do t make bike lanes safer?
Mary Ann,
I’m so sorry you have lost your nephew. Stories like this break my heart.
Unfortunately, bicycling safety is not as intuitive as it should be. One reason is the stigma our society has attached to it — the belief is that bicyclists must stay out of the way as their primary objective. Another is the idea that cyclists should take advantage of their narrow profile and pass stopped traffic (perhaps to make up for being slow and shoved out of the way).
The problem with bike lanes is they reinforce both of those things. They discourage a cyclist from riding in a position that would prevent a truck from passing immediately before making a turn, and they encourage a cyclist to ride past a stopped truck. There really isn’t any way to make bike lanes safer in the face of these human factors.
There are mirrors that can help a truck driver see into his blind spots, but it is still a human-factors challenge. The driver may need to focus on what’s ahead or around the turn. Or he may just be distracted. Not putting the cyclist there in the first place is by far the best solution.
I began my journey as an advocate trying to find a way to make bike lanes safer (because of conflicts I kept having in them). My research led me to the conclusion that the best solution is to get rid of them—at least in an urban environment where there are lots of driveways and intersections.
The best solution for cycling safety is to promote cycling education. It may seem counter-intuitive, but because cyclists are nimble, relatively slow and have 360° awareness of their surroundings, they are at a tremendous advantage to prevent crashes. They just need some knowledge of traffic dynamics and where the dangers are. Door zones and turning trucks are two killers that we really need to teach people to avoid because most just aren’t aware. But education is made much harder by paint that contradicts it.