Ride of Silence tommorow night

The National Ride of Silence takes place tomorrow, Wednesday May 16^th. Plan to join Bikeville for a silent community bike ride through downtown Greenville to honor those bicyclists who have been killed or injured while riding on public roadways. Meet in front of City Hall (206 S. Main St.) at 6:30pm to get your black armband and to hear a reading of the Ride of Silence poem. The one hour ride will start at 7:00.

So far in 2012, the SC Department of Safety reports that 7 bicyclists have been killed while riding on South Carolina roads. For several years we have been ranked as one of the least safe states in the nation for cycling, so it is quite alarming that we are on track for an even higher number of fatalities than the 13 which occurred in this state last year. Please come out tomorrow to remember those who have died, and to remind people to be careful and watch for others on our public roadways.

Sad news from Simpsonville

If you are reading this, you have probably already heard about the tragic crash last week in Simpsonville that took the life of Walter Glenn Brackin Jr. while he was cycling. I didn’t know Mr. Brackin personally, and I don’t know any details about the incident other than what is stated in the news story. As always though, I feel deeply saddened any time I hear of the death of a fellow cyclist on our roadways and I urge you to keep Glenn Brackin’s family in your thoughts and prayers during this difficult time.

While overall traffic fatalities have dropped slightly in South Carolina in recent years, there is an “upward trend in fatalities among pedestrians and cyclists who are considered Vulnerable Roadway Users.” We need to reverse that trend, so please remember to be careful and alert anytime you are out on our roads…especially if you are driving a car.  Watch for pedestrians and cyclists and be extremely careful as you pass. That person walking or on a bike is someone’s son, daughter, wife, father, husband, sister (I could go on, but you get the idea). It is up to all of us to pay full attention and watch out for each other on our public roads. Many accidents can be avoided with a little extra vigilance from everyone, so please remember to always pay full attention to the road and your surroundings when you are behind the wheel of a car.

Where is the outrage?

February has been a terrible month for bicycling fatalities in South Carolina, and I was sickened to hear of another senseless tragedy over the weekend. Obviously, one person killed on our roads is one too many, but David William Welty’s death in Anderson over the weekend was the fourth fatality that I know of in the first two weeks of the month. A couple weeks ago, 70-year-old James Premmer Frazier was killed here in Greenville while riding on Highway 183 at Old Buncombe Road. The following day, a 7-year-old girl was killed while riding a push scooter in Liberty, and just a few days after that Gerald Hooker was killed in Aiken when the tandem he was riding with his wife was struck by a driver who tried to pass as they made a left turn.

It is not hard to understand why the Alliance for Biking & Walking ranked South Carolina 49th among states for bicycling safety in their recent Bicycling and Walking in the U.S.: 2012 Benchmarking Report. The safety record on our roads is atrocious, and if this month is any indication, perhaps the problem is getting worse. I believe that the reason for the increase in fatalities (not just in SC, but nationwide) stems from the attitude that we as a society have about the use of our roads. Despite the fact that roads were not built for cars, many Americans tend to believe that drivers have a greater right to use the roads than those who are not in motor vehicles. The idea that “streets are for people”, not only people in cars, is a common attitude in places like the Netherlands and Denmark, but here in the U.S. there are many who believe that a pedestrian or cyclist is “asking for it” if they are hit by a car, particularly if the “accident” occurs on a major road. Drivers are rarely charged when they take the life of another due to impatience or negligence on their part. On top of that, there are those who use each and every cyclist/pedestrian death on our roadways as an opportunity to blame the victim by bringing up the same old (false) arguments about who pays for the roads. The comments left on any online news story about the death of a cyclist are as predictable as they are sickening, but I am afraid that those attitudes are also increasingly becoming accepted by a growing element within our society- those who actively oppose the very idea of cycling and walking as forms of transportation.

I just wonder where the outrage is sometimes…even among people who never walk or ride a bike to get anywhere. On average, 40,000+ Americans are killed by motor vehicles each year, but the majority of those deaths are simply dismissed as “accidents”.  Hundreds of Americans die on our roads every day, but it seems like there are very few people really are actually willing to call for a change. I truly believe that holding people accountable for their actions behind the wheel is the only way that we will ever see a substantial decrease in the traffic fatality rate. A driver who kills another person (on foot, on a bike, or in another car) while chatting on the phone, playing with the radio, talking to a passenger, or just daydreaming, should be held responsible for the death that resulted from that act of negligence. The operation of a motor vehicle requires complete and undivided attention to the road, and anyone who fails to do that should be prepared to face consequences if they hurt or kill another road user. It’s all about accountability…and unfortunately that is lacking on the roads of South Carolina, and the U.S. as a whole, at this point in time. What can we do to change that?

“Lights for Life”

Yesterday, I was at the Tour de Georgia team time trial at Road Atlanta. It really was a great stage and I had a lot of fun photographing it. To say that I was excited about the race, and cycling in general, as I drove back to Greenville would be an understatement. To be honest, advocacy was not on my mind as I sorted through and cropped my pictures, but unfortunately it came to the forefront when I checked my email this afternoon. I saw a couple of messages about a tragic cycling fatality that occurred last night in Greenville and the news certainly put a damper on my excitement.

It appears from the news story that a cyclist was killed by an 18-wheeler while riding on White Horse road at around 9:30 pm. I don’t know any details about the accident, and I don’t want to speculate. No matter what the circumstances were, this is a horrible tragedy. If the cyclist was riding at night without lights though, it is all the more reason that we should support the Greenville Spinners new “Lights for Life” project that Michelle James has been putting a lot of effort into lately. Basically, the idea is to give away free rear lights to those who ride for transportation and who really need them. The Spinners are teaming up with the Greenville County Sheriffs Department and the Greenville Police Department to distribute the lights. Charleston cyclist Peter Wilborn, who spoke to the Spinners at a club meeting about bicycle safety and pointed out with statistics how lights can save lives, will supply the lights.

Tim St. Clair sent out a great email about this to the Spinners list, but I want to mention it again for any of you who might not have received it. Next Tuesday, the 29th at 5:30 before the Donaldson ride, Peter and the Spinners will meet with law enforcement and provide them with lights to distribute to those they see riding at night without them. WHFF-TV will be on hand to cover the event, so show up a half hour early for the ride if you can to show support for the “Lights for Life” initiative. Hopefully this effort can save some lives. Thanks to Peter, Michelle and everyone else for making this happen.

A letter to all cyclists

For those of you who may have missed it, I want to quickly pass along a touching letter that was emailed to the Palmetto Cycling Coalition membership. The letter was written by George Rice, a friend of Tom Hoskins, one of the cyclists who was tragically killed in South Carolina less than two months ago. I think George’s message is a good one; all of us who ride need to give back to cycling and try to make a difference. Sometimes it is hard to find the time, but it is important to remember those who have who have been injured or killed doing what we all love to do. Anyway, I won’t ramble on; here is George’s letter:

There aren't many cyclists who venture out cycling without their sunglasses. Rose colored glasses is a term used to describe something that inhibits us to see things for what they truly are. I had rose colored glasses on when I first thought about the value of membership in groups like the Palmetto Cycling Coalition. I had the selfish agenda of WIIFM (What's In It For Me)?

On October 21, 2007, lives were changed forever. A century ride turned into what I hoped was a horrible dream. Since that day, families, friends, and cyclists have celebrated the lives of two people who put aside selfish ambition to bring light to the tragedies of brain injuries. Tom Hoskins and Lee Ann Barry logged hundreds of miles for the benefit of others. Lee Ann wore a jersey on that beautiful, sunny day, embossed with Spoke n" Word. A church in Kentucky gave it to her. I did a Google search using Spoken Word and one web site that came up was the University of Central Florida Bicycle Team. A member of their cycling team died after being struck on his bicycle the same day, October 21, 2007.

A year prior, I stood in a line of 2000 bicyclists, waiting to finish the second day of the MS ride. We learned of the death of Rachael, who died cycling for the benefit of others. Like others, I have to live with being one of the cyclists who survived. I now know the pain others have felt as they tried to revive someone they had been drafting for or being pulled by earlier in the day.

My high school band performed "One Voice" during our field show. The words include "just one voice, singing in the darkness, all it takes is one voice. If you venture to the PCC website and click on links, you will see rows of bike clubs and bike shops. One hour of your time during 2008 may save the life of a cyclist. One hour writing letters to politicians, one hour sitting in a hearing room with your favorite cycling jersey on, or one hour encouraging someone to keep peddling on their first ride, will make a difference.Prior to October 21, 2007, I didn't see it that way. I was too busy having pitty parties because of the heat, the steep hills, or the lack of a water stop.

You and I can name someone who lived through a bicycle/vehicle collision, or died from the collision. Take a moment, fill out a PCCapplication in appreciation for that saved life or in memory of that life because your one voice singing in the darkness can make a difference.

Charges filed in October cycling deaths

I have been out of the country for the last couple weeks, so I haven’t been hearing follow up stories regarding last month’s tragic cycling fatalities in this state. When I returned, I was a bit surprised to read this story out of Columbia. As I have mentioned before, South Carolina has a poor track record when it comes to prosecuting motorists who hurt or kill cyclist, so I was glad to hear that the driver who killed Lee Ann Barry and Tom Hoskins is being charged with murder.

The article contains a statement by the Hoskins family in response to charges.

"Just like a bicycle, the wheels of justice must turn. Nothing can replace the lives of Lee Ann Barry and Tom Hoskins. It is our hope that those operating a motor vehicle will be focused on the road before them. The death rate continues to rise due to the inattentiveness of motor vehicle operators. Two spouses must now walk through life alone raising families."

Let’s hope that South Carolina continues to take cycling fatalities like these seriously. I am glad that they are doing so in this case.

A letter from the PCC

Last night, I posted about the tragic cycling fatalities that occurred this week in our state. I’ll be honest, when I wrote that post I was very tired and feeling a mix of anger and sadness that made writing anything at all very difficult. I think that I made my point about the very poor track record that South Carolina has in prosecuting those who, through reckless driving or carelessness, hurt or kill cyclists and pedestrians. I did not go into enough detail on specific actions that we need to take to solve some of South Carolina’s problems.

Yesterday, Natalie Cappuccio Britt, executive director of the Palmetto Cycling Coalition, sent a letter to all members that mentioned a few of the projects that the PCC is working on to improve conditions for all cyclists in the state. Training law enforcement regarding laws that affect cyclists and pushing for a minimum safe passing distance law are just two of the things that she mentioned in the letter. Those of you who are members have already seen this letter, but I am posting it (with Natalie’s permission) for those of you who have not yet seen it. Again, if you are not a PCC member, I encourage you to join today to help with the “fight for a more bicycle friendly South Carolina.”

Now on to Natalie’s letter:

PCC Members,

By now all of you are aware of the horrific crash that took two avid cyclists lives earlier this week. A hit and run fatality killed a third cyclist in SC on Tuesday. No one has to die on a bicycle, but they do. Contrary to popular belief, bicycling is not inherently dangerous, especially when everyone follows the rules of the road particularly motorists. What is dangerous are the often-illegal interactions that occur between bicyclists and motorists every day, increasing the danger for everyone. Cyclists must deal with careless unyielding drivers, the threat of bike theft, and undereducated authorities and institutions. If everyone followed existing laws more carefully, we would be able to share the road safely. If motorists remembered to be a little more considerate, patient and respectful we would have fewer fatalities across the board. Motorists by law have a responsibility to look for bicycles in traffic just as they do other automobiles. Unfortunately, when a car meets a bicycle in a collision, it is almost always the cyclist that loses. At motor vehicle speeds above 35 mph, the result is almost always a bicyclist fatality. Even if the bicyclist does not die, they may suffer life-altering injuries. We are all responsible for traffic fatalities when we drive a car or bicycle carelessly or lawlessly. Don't think it could happen to you? How often do you "zone out" while driving? How often does a motorist who has just hit a bicyclist say "I didn't see the bicycle"? Did they not see? Or were they not looking...not paying attention. Cell phones and radio’s are potential recipes for disaster while operating a vehicle. A crash is no accident...a crash can be prevented.

Many of you have written me in the past few days wanting to know what you can do to advocate for cyclist rights in SC. First, I want to say this anger, this passion that you all feel now as a result of three cyclists being killed, please keep it up. Do not let the momentum die down. All too often after a fatality, cycling advocates are fired up and ready to work. However, far too quickly this energy dies down and we all seem to go back to our normal daily lives. In order for cyclists to have an impact on the decision makers in this state we must forge a united front. We need THOUSANDS of cyclists to stand together and tell our elected officials, “enough is enough”!

The PCC is working harder than ever on the fronts of enforcement and education in order to prevent more unnecessary fatalities. Just last week we hosted a law officer training course. The major objective of the training was to give law enforcement officers of all backgrounds the tools they need to properly enforce the laws that affect bicyclists and to protect cyclists. The course aims to change officers sometimes negative attitudes toward cyclists. Peter Wilborn traveled to Columbia to assist in teaching the course which included a speaker from the National Center for Bicycling and Walking. Over 65 officers participated. Currently we are working on making this a statewide program. Last year we hosted a law officer training course in the upstate. We plan to host our next training at the SCDOT bike/ped conference in December and then in the lowcountry.

In addition to this you are all aware of the legislation the PCC proposed last year. PCC volunteers worked tirelessly with legislators to educate them on the bicycle legislation. The bill went through the house committee and will go to the floor for a vote in January. The bill still needs to go before the Senate Transportation Committee. I do not need to explain how vital this piece of legislation is to you (visit our website for more detailed information). It is the stepping stone to introducing additional legislation proposing specific fines and penalties against motorist that kill cyclists. The creation of a minimum safe passing distance law will save lives and ensure prosecution of motorists that hit cyclists. As we approach the legislative session, I will be calling on SC cyclists to support the successful passing of this bill. We will need you all to call, write and even come to Columbia to interact with your elected officials. If you do not do it, who will?

Finally we will continue to work on public service campaigns with PSAs, literature, classes and much more. We must work to change perceptions regarding cycling and educate the general public on the rights of cyclists. Currently there are PSAs running in Charleston and the Midlands. The PCC worked with the SC Department of Public Safety to include bicycle related questions on the SC Driver’s exam. The PCC submitted new revisions in 2006 to improve the bicycling and Share the Road section of the SC Driver’s manual. It now states that drivers should give bicycles a minimum three foot clearance when passing. The PCC provided scholarships for 8 individuals to go through the LAB’s Road 1 and League Cycling Instructor courses and worked with Partners for Active Living to hold these courses in Spartanburg in January and March of this year. We now have 14 LCIs in South Carolina because of this initiative. The PCC produced several thousand bicycle safety bookmarks in English and Spanish for law officers to distribute. Several hundred bookmarks were also distributed to children through the Spartanburg County library. A few years ago we successfully moved a Share the Road license plate bill through the SC legislature becoming only the second state (behind Florida) in the country to do so. We raised $4,000 to produce the first 1,000 plates. With 2800 plates sold it is now the most popular non-profit specialty plate in the state. In 2003 the PCC worked with SCDOT to get their board to adopt a complete streets policy – one in the first half-dozen states to do so. The PCC is working with BCDCOG on educational programs aimed at cyclists and motorists. We are working to distribute bicycle lights throughout the state in conjunction with law officers.

There is way too much happening to mention here, but none of this would be possible without the support of cyclists statewide. We have a long uphill climb but we cannot do it alone. I ask you to join me in the fight for the rights of cyclists. I ask you to give your precious time to fight in honor of all those cyclists that died doing what they loved on SC roads. I ask you to stand with me in front of elected officials this session and demand better laws to protect cyclists. I ask you to the support the PCC, local cycling organizations and national groups as well. If you are a PCC member, I would strongly encourage you to ask other cyclists to join. There is a lot of power in numbers, the more members we have statewide, the more influence we have when we go to the statehouse! Let us work together to prevent future tragedies and work in honor of those that are no longer with us. I hope you will join me in our fight for a more bicycle friendly South Carolina!

I am so grateful to all of the PCC members, I thank you!

Cycle Safe

Natalie Cappuccio Britt
Palmetto Cycling Coalition
http://www.pccsc.net/

A tragic week in South Carolina

I was out of town earlier this week, hiking and mountain biking with my family in western North Carolina. Since I was away from the internet, television, and newspapers, I did not hear about the horrible tragedy that I would read about when I picked up the Tuesday edition of the Greenville News upon my return. By now, anyone reading this has probably already heard about the untimely deaths of Lee Anne Barry and Thomas Hoskins, who were both struck by an SUV on a rural South Carolina road this past Sunday. Mrs. Barry, the founder and executive director of The B.I.G. Ride, was on the last leg of her latest cross country ride to raise awareness about brain injuries. You can read more about her and the great work she did with her charity group in this article in the Charlotte Observer. Mr. Hoskins, an avid cyclist for 20 years, had just joined her for the last leg of the ride into Charlotte on Sunday. His funeral took place in Columbia today, with members of the local cycling community wearing jerseys and serving as honorary pallbearers. Just a couple days after this tragedy that took two lives, a third cyclist was killed in a hit and run near Beaufort. It is unbelievable and terribly sad that these three deaths occurred in the same week, but unfortunately, fatalities from cyclist/motorist crashes are more common in South Carolina than they are in most other states.

Here in Greenville, the number of cyclists on the roads seems to be increasing all the time. Greenville already has a great cycling community and is geographically located in a wonderful part of the country for cycling. Add in factors like the US Pro Championships and George Hincapie’s Pla d’ Adet development in the northern part of the county, and it is no wonder that the number of cyclist on the roads continues to grow. I like to promote cycling in this area as much as anyone, but it is important to always remember that this state has a very BIG problem to address when it comes to cycling safety. South Carolina ranks consistently near the top of all 50 states in the number of bicycling fatalities per capita. According to the SCDOT website, in 2004 South Carolina's fatality rate stood at 5.24 per 100,000 population, the fourth highest death rate in the nation. In that same year, 12 hit and run bicycle “accidents” occurred in this state, one of which was fatal. 2004 happens to be a year for which I have statistics, but South Carolina’s record has been about the same every year since at least 1999. As I stated before, our rate of cycling fatalities per 100,000 residents has ranked us near the bottom of U.S. states in recent years (we have consistently ranked between the 2nd to 6th worst state every year since 2000).

A total of 101 cyclists died in collisions with automobiles on the roads of South Carolina between 2000 and 2004. In all of those cases, only 18 citations were issued to the motorists involved (some drivers may have received multiple citations so the total number of drivers charged could be less than 18). To me, that is a sickening statistic. In South Carolina, only around 5 percent of drivers are charged with anything at all when they “accidentally” take someone’s life? Nationwide, between 2000 and 2003, only about 18 percent of drivers were charged in fatal cyclist/motorist crashes. That is still a low number, but as you can see, South Carolina’s prosecution rate in cases involving the death of a cyclist is much lower that the national average.

Since I already mentioned the Tuesday edition of the Greenville News, I’ll point to another very sad article that appeared in the paper that very same day. The number of traffic deaths in this state is up from this time last year. The article stated that, as of Sunday, 870 people had died on South Carolina’s roads. The article points out that 651 of those people were in motor vehicles, which means that 219 were bicyclists, pedestrians, and motorcyclists (who apparently aren’t classified as motor vehicles by the state). I have mentioned before that the act of driving a car is something that most people take way too casually. Driving requires complete attention to the road and those who hurt or kill others when they fail to do so should be held accountable for their carelessness. I don’t want to turn this post into a rant about inattentive drivers; I’ll save that for another time. I also don’t want this post to come across as bashing the state in which I live. I am very happy to live in Greenville and I truly do believe that this is a great town for cycling (and is going to get better). My point in bringing up the state’s poor track record regarding cycling fatalities is to encourage all of you to get involved in improving conditions for cycling, not only here in Greenville, but all over the state. If you are not already a PCC member, you should join today. That organization is doing great work to make conditions safer for all cyclists in South Carolina. I also encourage all of you to write your elected officials to ask them, not only for bicycling infrastructure improvements like “Share the Road” signs and bike lanes, but also for driver education and, perhaps most importantly, better enforcement of existing traffic laws. Let’s not let the tragic deaths of three cyclists in our state pass by unnoticed. We can’t expect our elected officials to do anything about the issue of cycling safety in South Carolina if it is not brought to their attention. I encourage all of you to let them know how you feel and to tell them that we need their help to reverse our state’s extremely poor cycling safety record. If we all work together, we can make positive changes for all cyclists in South Carolina.