For those who don’t know that area, there are multi-use paths (north and south side) separated from the road on Victoria St, where this cyclist was hit.

For a car to hit someone, they would need to be turning in or out of the business entrances without stopping/looking, which would mean they were at fault 100%.

No charges have been laid, but hopefully this will change.

Far too many cyclists being killed in Ontario. When are we going to take things seriously?

  • saigot@lemmy.ca
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    9 months ago

    Kitchener is one of the more bikeable/walkable cities in Ontario and victoria street is one of the better bike lanes for a road of it’s size. really sad to see this, the driver would have to have been doing something particularly reckless.

    • Showroom7561@lemmy.caOP
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      9 months ago

      I think it’s a great illustration that no matter how “safe” you make it for cyclists, it will never be safe with motorists wielding multi-ton vehicles nearby.

      We just had another cyclist in their 60s die at the hands of a driver the other day in Scarborough. Terrible tragedy for the families of these victims.

    • awwwyissss@lemm.ee
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      9 months ago

      If so, they should spend time in prison and compensate their victims family.

    • Oderus@lemmy.world
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      9 months ago

      Or the biker wasn’t riding safely.

      Investigation is still open so let’s not jump to conclusions.

        • Oderus@lemmy.world
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          9 months ago

          Yes, IF he was on the bike path it seems clear the SUV was in the wrong but nowhere in the article does it say if he was on the bike path.

          Is this place turning into /r/fuckcars cause damn people, let the investigation finish before making assumptions?

          • Isoprenoid@programming.dev
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            9 months ago

            let the investigation finish before making assumptions

            From reading the article, we can infer that the SUV must have been booking it for the cyclist to sustain multiple serious injuries.

            This article from 2011 claims that in the case of bike fatalities from bike-motor accidents, it is slightly more likely that it was the motorist at fault.

            So I’m going with the driver at fault, it’s more statistically likely.

            • Oderus@lemmy.world
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              9 months ago

              You can ‘go with’ whatever you want. You’re still assuming from nothing.

              • Isoprenoid@programming.dev
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                9 months ago

                Me: Here’s my reasoning along with supporting evidence.

                You: You’re still assuming from nothing.

                • Oderus@lemmy.world
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                  9 months ago

                  Referring to a article from 2011 doesn’t mean you’re arguing with reason. You’re using facts from 2 years to assume why the SUV was at fault, while the investigation is still going. You really think you’re some sort of Columbo don’t you?

              • Evkob@lemmy.caM
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                9 months ago

                IMO, even if the cyclist wasn’t “riding safely”, the onus of ensuring safe roads should be on the people driving tons of steel at high speeds, as well as the various levels of governments involved in a city’s infrastructure. I’m not familiar with the area, but the comment you originally replied to indicates that the infra where the incident happened was bike-friendly (at least for Canadian standards, which are admittedly quite low).

                I agree with not jumping to conclusions, but I find odd your decision to jump to the defense of the motorist. No amount of “safe cycling” can protect you from over a ton of metal ramming into you at speed.

                (Also, I’m curious as to why you seem to dislike /r/fuckcars. I have a hard time imagining anyone who cycles not being on the fuckcars-bandwagon. I guess people who see cycling purely as a hobby/sport and not a utilitarian means of transportation, because in my experience anyone who cycles around cars long enough usually isn’t a fan of them.)

                • Oderus@lemmy.world
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                  9 months ago

                  What world do you live in where I jumped to the defense of anyone? I merely made an opposite assumption, to prove either assumption could be right and that we shouldn’t assume anything unless we get all the facts.

                  I hate /r/fuckcars but it’s pure reactionary garbage where people who seem to not have cars, shit on people who do. Saying guys with large trucks have small penises or no one should ever own a car for any reason etc. It’s childish pure and simple.

                  I live in a city where we have bike paths nowhere near roads so when I cycle in, or scooter in, it’s a non-issue. When I drive, I often see cyclists in the middle of the road as if they were a car so they end up blocking traffic. I can see why people hate on both sides, but I don’t subscribe to hating someone for doing something different than me. /r/fuckcars embodies that hate.

      • bwrsandman@lemmy.ca
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        9 months ago

        Such a bad take. Even if he was riding recklessly (no indication in the article that he was), would he deserve to die if he was riding along the road on winter? How would that work exactly? Are you imagining him charging at 2 ton truck with a meter high hood?

        • Oderus@lemmy.world
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          9 months ago

          What a stupid question. I’m not even going to answer it. God damn that’s stupid.

          • bwrsandman@lemmy.ca
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            9 months ago

            Funny how on these threads where someone lost their life always someone rushing to don their cape to defend the poor driver who killed someone.

  • thisbenzingring@lemmy.sdf.org
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    9 months ago

    Do you all do ghost bikes? Someone can find some old bike and paint it white then lock it somewhere at the site of the accident.

    I have seen many of these around Seattle and it makes change happen when people start to notice them

    My heart goes out to the cyclists family.

    • Showroom7561@lemmy.caOP
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      9 months ago

      Yes, we do. There’s a memorial ride this weekend for a cyclist killed the other day, and I’m sure there will be one for this cyclist, too.

      Unless this madness stops, we’ll end up with as many ghost bikes as we have light posts.

  • Grass@sh.itjust.works
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    9 months ago

    I took my bike apart again to change a bunch of stuff and drove the little 90’s golf I borrow from time to time. Parked at work next to a ram, an f150 and some other monster I didn’t recognize. The hood of each towers over the golf and reaches about my eye level. Nobody ever hauls anything in these shitty things. They should require additional licensing and permits. These are always the guys that try to pass without fully changing lanes where the road signs indicate cars and bikes are single file, and only to stop at the light and get passed by me again, but thankfully that is where the bike lane starts.

  • SpiceDealer@lemmy.world
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    9 months ago

    I’ve started to ride my bike in lieu of my car recently. One thing I noticed immediately was just how fast people drive. On one of my return trips whilst I was waiting at the intersection, some guy in a Silverado drove so fast that it produce enough wind to push back just enough. To think I actually used to considered myself a car nut. Our city officials should really do something about this shit.

    • Showroom7561@lemmy.caOP
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      9 months ago

      Yes, and you aren’t just imagining it, either.

      I got a rear light for my bike with an integrated radar that warns me of drivers coming from behind. But it also measures and logs their speed, and I’m seeing some people going 30-40% above the speed limit on a regular basis.

      I’m talking highway speeds on roads marked as 50 or 60km/h. It’s insane that it’s pretty much normalized.

      • limelight79@lemm.ee
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        9 months ago

        I have that, too. One day I was riding on a road that is signed for 35 or 40 mph. My radar recorded someone passing me at 80 mph.

        I will say the radar actually made me feel better in a way I didn’t expect - most cars actually do slow down as they approach. But I’m in an area where cycling is extremely popular.

        • Showroom7561@lemmy.caOP
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          9 months ago

          I will say the radar actually made me feel better in a way I didn’t expect - most cars actually do slow down as they approach.

          I believe that’s because the radar will flash the light faster/more intensely as vehicles get closer. I was told that this does get people’s attention.

  • AutoTL;DR@lemmings.worldB
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    9 months ago

    This is the best summary I could come up with:


    A 66-year-old man from Kitchener is dead after he was hit by an SUV while cycling in the city Monday night.

    Emergency crews were called to Victoria Street N. between Frederick Street and Forfar Avenue in Kitchener Monday at 9:45 p.m. after receiving reports a blue Kia SUV had hit a cyclist.

    The cyclist was taken to an out-of-region hospital with serious, life-threatening injuries.

    Police said on Tuesday the cyclist has since been pronounced dead.

    There was no word on whether charges would be laid in the case.

    The Waterloo Regional Police Service said the investigation remains ongoing and anyone who witnessed the collision, or who may have dash-cam footage of what happened, to contact officers.


    The original article contains 116 words, the summary contains 116 words. Saved 0%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!