While in route to work yesterday morning I witnessed another road bike accident on Rancho Santa Margarita Parkway. This time it was a young boy riding his road bike on his way to school. The biker collided with the landscaping truck while he was traveling downhill in the bike lane down RSM pkwy. The driver of a truck made an abrupt right turn into the driveway right in front of the biker without signaling or slowing down for the biker. The biker ended up going head first into the passenger side door of the truck. The accident happened a couple feet away from my SUV so I pulled over along with another lady to call 911 and stay with the kid until the first responders arrived. The boy was bleeding but said he felt okay and that he needed to go to school. Unfortunately, he was not able to get up and I could tell that he was in shock. I recommended for him to lie still and not move until the paramedics arrived. Once the first responders arrived I left the scene. A couple things that I found disturbing were the fact that the driver of the truck who hit the kid could not even speak one word in English and he did not make any apologies at the scene nor did he assist with caring for the kid that he crashed into. I hope the Sheriffs who arrived at the scene booked him for wreckless driving. I hope the kid checks out okay at the hospital and this accident doesn't discourage him from enjoying the sport of road biking. Watch out for those idiot drivers making right turns there's plenty of them out on the road. Be safe out there!
Did the kid have a helmet on? Hard to tell, but I sure hope so. My 12 year old rides to school. If its one thing I try to teach him after my years of riding the roads is to watch for people making right turns. And based on your description of the incident, this poor kid couldn't have reacted sooner to avoid the collision. The good news, if there is any, is that the landscape company surly has insurance. they seem to be a pretty large operation. I should know; their friggen trucks are all over RSM parked in bike lanes on busy roads, often right under signs that specifically say no stopping in bike lane. Heal up lad. For the rest of us, keep the rubber side down.
I don't understand why you were disturbed about the driver not speaking english? And it's highly doubtful the driver was arrested for reckless driving. Accidents happen involving people who speak and don't speak english everyday. I'm sure if you had just hit a kid you'd be pretty shocked and scared to talk.
Sometimes I think that company goes out of its way to hire bad drivers. I've nearly been taken out by their trucks on more than one occasion. Healing vibes to the kid.
Why would you expect the driver to signal his turn? No one does THAT anymore. It's not cool. I don't even know why they install turn signals in cars anymore. Luxury car makers will probably stop installing turn signals in their cars starting in 2014 to make their cars look more sleek and modern.
I know what you are saying but I have a correction. If what the OP says is true, this was not an "accident". This was another negligent driver who could have killed an innocent child. People who drive for work should be held to an even higher standard than others. I hope he loses his job and I hope his employer gets sued for not training him properly.
Nighthawkrzx, you may want to give your account to the police if you haven't done so already. I always watch out around gardener service trucks because they seem to be more unpredictable than cars (if that's possible).
This is one of those things I've never been able to figure out. I mean, how lazy do you have to be to not use a turn signal? How much effort does it take to move your fingers the two inches to hit it? I just don't get it. Do these people sometimes $4!+ themselves because they're too lazy to get up and go to the toilet? And the cops aren't any better. Seriously, its a simple courtesy and safety issue that takes zero effort. Oh, wait... you have your phone in one hand and your Ginormous Gulp in the other? Well, you're excused then.
i don't have to signal.....in my self entitled world.....I am gonna take what ever I want....even if that means the space on the road that you currently occupy. You should know better and just get outta my way.
I hope the little guy is ok... This looks like the downhill section about 1/2 mile before Trabuco Hills High School? Not far from where the road biker was killed not too long ago... My son runs those roads for cross country and track every day... Scares the hell out of me.
Not to negate the fact the driver was at fault, but it looks like the cyclist was riding on the sidewalk, not the bike lane.
If the OP was as close as he says he was to the collision, then I believe him when he says the kid was in the bike lane. There are many reasons why he would end up there.
Thankfully he was wearing a helmet. It seemed to be a service truck maybe for the city. Roger that. The biker was hit while traveling in the bike lane. Negative. The biker was in the bike lane. The resting place of the truck and bike ended up on the sidewalk. Imagine riding down rsm in the bike lane and have a truck cut right in front of you on the dh.
i just wanted to quote all of the pix again. In all seriousness, I hope the lil' buddy is OK, that is a scary site to see.
Haha! I was just going to bitch about all the people quoting the pictures over and over. Good for you taking care of that kid. Make sure the police get your version of what happened.
I made sure to provide my contact info to the Sheriff at the scene along with another driver who stopped to help. It's scary to see someone on a bike get run off the road by an automobile. I understand now how an accident like this could easily turn for the worst. My wife and I were like oh my god that truck just crashed into that kid.
