I found this statistic about cycling accidents in South Carolina. In South Carolina, 13 people were killed and 478 injured in more than 500 bicycle crashes in 2009, according to the South Carolina Department of Public Safety. Although the SCDPS determined that cyclists were at fault in 61.2 percent of those accidents. Although it is important to educate drivers, educating riders would benefit safety more it appears from the statistics. We need to emphasize safety to all we ride with, especially those new riders who may be not be familiar with riding and riding in a group. Below are some practical safety directives to pass on.
The most common causes of bicycle accidents, according to Bicycling magazine, include accidents where:
- A motorist fails to see a cyclist and makes a left turn immediately in front of the bike. This accounts for almost half of all bike / car crashes, according to the Pedestrian and Bicycle Information Center.
- A motorist passes a cyclist on the left and makes a right-hand turn into the bicycle’s path.
- A cyclist traveling next to parked cars lined up on the street strikes a car door opened by the driver or backseat passenger.
- A motorist pulls out of a driveway or parking lot directly into the path of a bicyclist.
- A motorist hits a cyclist from behind.
That’s why it’s important to use common sense and follow the South Carolina traffic laws, including riding as near to the right side of the roadway as practicable and using proper signals
