Tucson cyclists and safety advocate, Brendan Lyons, was struck by a car last week and yesterday he held a press conference to raise awareness for bicycle safety and call for action.
Lyons, a firefighter with Rural Metro and the man behind the Facebook page “Look! Save a Life/Arizona,” was struck by a car last Friday while riding with his girl friend.
According to the Facebook page he’s been in the hospital since then. It’s there that he held this morning’s press conference and where he met with state representatives Steve Farley and Ethan Orr to call for more protection for cyclists.
Here’s what Lyons said about the crash:
Here’s what Farley had to say about the visit on his Facebook page:
Here’s the coverage from other media outlets.
- Cycling safety advocate treats second crash with Tucson driver as a teachable moment
- Cyclists hit by car, state lawmakers pushing for tougher safety laws
I don’t believe that the rear-end collision that injured this couple should be termed an “accident” in the media linked in this post.
When motor vehicle operators are negligent and cause injury to others, “accident” serves to rhetorically reinforce the idea carnage on the roads is natural and that cyclists are responsible for their own safety. This collision is not the fault of the cyclists- they did nothing wrong.
This was not an “accident.” It was an avoidable collision on the part of a distracted or negligent driver.
I am very pleased that Ethan Orr is taking this seriously. Kudos for him. I don’t always respect his positions on issues, but on this one, he has earned my support.
I met Ethan Orr recently at city hall and the first thing he said to me was that he wants to push laws making biking safer, such Idaho stop. Please write to him with your suggestions, everyone. It can’t hurt!
Brazil!