| Additional info on our blog here: bethlehempolice.wordpress.com This is an attempted hit and run accident that occurred on the Fahy Bridge in Bethlehem, PA on 4/2/12. The offending driver, a juvenile, attempted to pass a bus on the left and struck a bicyclist from behind. As the driver fled the scene, the bus driver blocked the bridge to prevent the person from fleeing. Another citizen also blocked the offending car's path. The driver was taken into custody and charged with multiple offenses, including Pennsylania's latest law to protect cyclists that went into effect on this day. The lanes on the north bound side of the Fahy Bridge are each 10 feet in width. The lanes were reduced in size due to structural problems with the existing walkway. PennDOT created a secondary walkway and bicycles are not permitted to use this area. The cyclist was in the proper lane position due to the lane width. In a narrow lane, the cyclist is permitted, and is actually safer, by taking the entire lane. A motorist has plenty of room to pass the cyclist in the left lane. Had the cyclist been in the right portion of the lane and been struck by the car, he would most likely have suffered far worse injuries because of being pushed into the concrete barrier. Before you make insensitive comments, regardless of how you personally feel about the right of cyclists to use the roadway, remember that it is another human being and no one deserves to be struck by a car and left in the roadway. |
