{"id":19298,"date":"2016-09-27T12:17:30","date_gmt":"2016-09-27T19:17:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/averagejoecyclist.com\/?p=19298"},"modified":"2016-09-27T22:06:42","modified_gmt":"2016-09-28T05:06:42","slug":"cyclists-killed-by-motorists","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/averagejoecyclist.com\/cyclists-killed-by-motorists\/","title":{"rendered":"Should Motorists who Kill Cyclists go to Prison?"},"content":{"rendered":"

A London lorry driver who \u201ccarelessly\u201d killed 29-year-old #cyclist<\/span><\/span> Louise Wright in London has been convicted of causing her death by careless driving \u2013 but has walked away with a suspended sentence and assorted wrist slaps. This has caused understandable global outrage among many cyclists and non-cyclists who think people should be able to walk or cycle without being violently killed. But the family says they didn\u2019t want him in prison. Why would they say that? Read on \u2026<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

This death was another in the long list of cyclists killed by motorists. In this case, the lorry driver, 31-year-old Adam Haywood, pleaded not guilty. He\u00a0said in court that he \u201cmust have\u201d checked his mirrors (before turning left and killing Wright), but he could not remember if he had seen the young woman cyclist. He also could not remember if he had indicated, but thought that \u201cthere was no reason\u201d why he would not have indicated.<\/p>\n

There but for the grace of God go I?<\/h3>\n

Judge Jonathan Bennett apparently saw the incident as so many of us do when these tragedies happen. We have all had careless moments while driving, and many of us think, \u201cThere but for the grace of God go I.\u201d I don\u2019t know how many motorists I have heard say, \u201cMy biggest fear driving is that I will kill someone.\u201d I have had exactly that thought myself.<\/p>\n

This sentiment is reflected in the judge\u2019s words to Haywood:<\/p>\n

\u201cYou are going to live with this for years to come and others will live with it for even longer than that. You did not, that day, I accept, expect this to happen, you set off to do a day\u2019s work, you were doing what you enjoyed doing, but you were careless that day.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lorry Driver was Having a Careless Day<\/h3>\n

As Haywood was having a \u201ccareless\u201d day, cyclist Louise Wright and her partner James Faulkner were about to start a family \u2013 a family which now will never exist. Faulkner is devastated to have lost the woman he has been with since they were both 14, and says:<\/p>\n

\u201cShe was always there to support me physically and emotionally and now I go home to an empty house every night. Most days it is a challenge just to get out of bed.\u201d<\/p>\n

Despite this devastating loss, Louise\u2019s mother, Sharon Brown, said:<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel that the right verdict has been made, we did not want to see the driver sent to prison. When something as tragic as this happens, there are no winners.\u201d<\/p>\n

The family may be right. Everyone makes mistakes on the road, without any intent to kill someone else. But then, why does a \u201cspecial, unique\u201d young woman have to pay with her life? Who is to blame in all these incidents were cyclists are killed by motorists?<\/p>\n

Motorists Found Not Guilty of\u00a0Killing Cyclists<\/h3>\n

In other similar fatal crashes, motorists\u00a0are sometimes\u00a0found not guilty<\/strong> (taking \u201cThere but for the grace of God go I\u201d to unacceptable lengths, in my opinion). A case in point was Janina Gehlau, a 26-year-old post-grad student, who was crushed to death by Vincent Doyle in his massive Foden Truck at Ludgate Circus in London, later in 2014. If you Google this incident, note that the wheels of the truck appear to be about six foot high.<\/p>\n

Doyle was found not guilty, despite having passed Janina just minutes before, and despite having waited at the traffic light for 23 seconds as she approached (giving him ample time to notice other traffic), and despite the fact that his mirrors were not correctly positioned, and despite the fact that she was yelling and waving as he drove into her, and despite the fact that his initial reaction was anger at the woman who had the cheek to be under his truck: \u201cAt first I was angry, thinking ‘What is this person doing?\u2019\u201d<\/strong> (He does claim to have felt really bad about her death subsequently, even to the point of having a nervous breakdown.)<\/p>\n

The family of Janina Gehlau reacted differently to the family of Louise Wright. Her husband Marcel sobbed when the verdict of not-guilty was returned (the jury only invested an hour in thinking about it). In a statement, her family said \u201cWe are devastated by the verdict and do not feel that we have got justice for Janina<\/strong>. \u2026 I told her I thought the roads were too dangerous when I visited her, but she was an experienced cyclist and told me not to worry, she said it would be fine. Too many families are losing loved ones in these circumstances and action needs to be taken to improve safety before there are any more tragedies.\u201d<\/p>\n

“Action needs to be taken to improve safety before there are any more tragedies.”<\/h3>\n

Janine’s family\u00a0were right. Action does need to be taken.<\/strong> After all, 113 cyclists died in Britain in 2014. The year 2015 seemed to be especially bad for women cyclists in London, when six out of eight\u00a0cyclists killed by lorry drivers were women. Globally, far too many cyclists are killed by motorists.<\/p>\n

If you read any of the online articles about any of these crashes, avoid reading the comments. They are a totally depressing exchange of people arguing about who is \u201cto blame.\u201d<\/strong>\u00a0With a remarkable number blaming the victims. Apparently, some people feel that because some people sometimes cycle\u00a0recklessly, all cyclists deserve to die<\/strong>. Ironic really, seeing as the consensus seems to be that more women are killed by lorry drivers because women cyclists tend to be more cautious<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Absolutely Nothing will be Achieved by\u00a0Blaming Each Other<\/h3>\n

However, the whole blame game is a total red herring<\/strong>, in my opinion. The reality is that all<\/strong> people are sometimes careless, sometimes reckless, etc. We can blame each other for a century, but\u00a0that reality will never\u00a0change. Therefore, we need infrastructure that keeps all people as safe as possible, all the time<\/strong>. And lorries and bicycles should not be sharing road space, ever.<\/p>\n

Most people seem to agree. The response to my tweet below has been overwhelmingly positive.<\/p>\n

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This is how all streets should look \u2013 safe space for pedestrians, #cyclists<\/a> and motorists in downtown #Vancouver<\/a>! pic.twitter.com\/SDr4CZY91L<\/a><\/p>\n

— Average Joe Cyclist (@AvrgeJoeCyclist) June 19, 2016<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n