Ride Scare: As more people jump on bikes, fatality rates spike

HARLINGEN — Many Americans are joining the battle against obesity, diabetes and other illnesses linked to a sedentary lifestyle by actively pursuing new exercise regimes like bicycling.

More than 103 million Americans 3 years of age and older, which is 34 percent of us, say they rode a bicycle at least once within the past year.

Yet all that newly unharnessed pedal power has its dark side, too.

Vehicle-bicyclist collisions and deaths are up dramatically. Since 2010, fatal accidents involving cyclists have risen from 621 to 818 in 2015, an increase of 12.2 percent, federal highway officials report.

In the Harlingen-San Benito Metropolitan Planning Organization’s district, there were 14 vehicle-bike accidents in 2017 with one fatality.

In the Hidalgo County MPO last year, 63 vehicle-bike accidents were reported, along with three fatalities.

“Some drivers are not aware bikes can be on the road,” said J. Joel Garza Jr., director of the Harlingen-San Benito MPO. “Under Texas law, someone on a bike is considered a vehicle.

“The example I always give is that it’s great for someone to start walking or riding your bike but if you do it in the early morning or late evening, don’t wear all black clothing,” he added. “Yes, the driver must obey all traffic laws but you should always assume the driver cannot see you. Remember, be visible, be safe.”

What are the causes?

More bike riders on the road may be one of the reasons for more vehicle-bike accidents, but many experts believe there are other reasons for such a trend, particularly distracted driving.

The Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS) of the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration has found that distracted driving was a factor in 3,477 roadway fatalities recorded in 2015, an 8.8 percent increase over the previous year.

Of those distracted driving-linked fatalities, 79 were cyclists.

Here in Texas, the numbers are even higher, with TxDOT officials saying one in five accidents have distracted driving as a contributing factor.

In 2017, 19 percent of vehicle crashes on Texas roads involved distracted driving, and those 100,687 crashes resulted in 444 deaths and 2,889 serious injuries.

To try to rein in those high numbers, TxDOT last month launched its new “Heads up, Texas” campaign in partnership with AT&T “It Can Wait.” The centerpiece of the campaign is a 19-city, distracted-driving virtual reality experience, which was launched in Waco.

“It’s extremely concerning that drivers still choose to give their attention to things other than the road when they’re behind the wheel,” TxDOT Executive Director James Bass said in a statement. “As a society, we’re more connected than ever to our devices and easily tempted to multitask, but drivers need to understand all of these various distractions can lead to a tragic outcome.”

In Texas, the top five mobile phone distractions while driving found by an AT&T survey of motorists were texting, snapping or viewing photos, playing music, emailing and accessing social media.

Last September, a texting-while-driving ban became Texas law, and it is now illegal to read, write or send a text while driving. The fine can reach $200.

Educating drivers, cyclists

Garza, the Harlingen-San Benito MPO director, says his agency is well aware of the growing links between distracted driving and cyclist fatalities.

“With our Bicycle and Pedestrian Safety Campaign, we are reaching out to all drivers, pedestrians and cyclists and letting them know what the laws are when it comes to walking and biking,” he said. “With the help of the Harlingen CISD Digital Media Students, we produced a bike safety commercial, which is currently airing now.

“We are also taking part in different community events,” he added, “trying to spread the word on walking and biking safety, with our slogan being ‘Be Visible, Be Safe.’”

One of those community outreach events is the First San Benito Bike Rodeo scheduled for May 12. Beginning at 8:30 a.m. at W.H. Heavin Memorial Park, the free, three-hour event will stress safety and has enlisted the help of the City of San Benito, the San Benito Police Department and San Benito CISD.

“We hope to educate the participants on how to ride your bike correctly and safely on our roads,” Garza said. “We will also be practicing what was taught with a three-mile bike ride around the city, showing the participants the rules of the road, to stop at all stop signs, use hand signals and go in the same direction as traffic.”

Garza said transportation agencies such as his are also looking at creating not just more bike lanes, but traffic systems which help shield riders from the dangers of motorized vehicles.

“Currently the HSBMPO has a Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan, which has suggested roadway improvements like safer bike lanes and off-street trails,” Garza said. “But at the end of the day, it’s up to the local municipality for the implementation of these proposed projects.”