Cyclist killed on bike trail crossing in Saint Louis Park this weekend
A cyclist was killed this weekend by being struck by a car on the LRT bike trail through Saint Louis Park, at an intersection where the trail crosses Belt Line Boulevard.
From the Star Tribune:
Roger Allen Tomberlin, of St. Paul, was going east on a bicycle trail around 8 p.m. when he apparently struck the driver's side of a car as he crossed Belt Line Boulevard near Hwy. 7, according to a St. Louis Park police report.
The driver told police she heard a loud thud from the rear of her vehicle. A State Patrol accident reconstruction team found a hand print and elbow dent on the rear of the driver's side of the vehicle consistent with her account of the incident, the report said.
"There was no fault on the part of the driver," said St. Louis Park Police Chief John Luse. "The driver will not be charged."
Tomberlin had been out with his uncle Saturday at a few bars and restaurants in Hopkins and had "a few alcoholic beverages," the report said. The pair were riding back to St. Paul when the accident happened.
Tomberlin, who suffered a head injury, was not wearing a helmet. He was unresponsive when paramedics arrived and took him to Hennepin County Medical Center in Minneapolis, where he died Tuesday.
There's a good discussion of the intersection and the accident over at the Minneapolis Bike Love message board.
Comments
This is a horrific story. I
This is a horrific story. I send my condolances to the family. I often wonder whether it might nit be worthwhile there being some kind of system as there is with cars, some kind of license to be gained if you plan to take long cycling trips through the city, and perhaps it should be illegal to not wear a helmet. Also, though I do it sometimes too, drinking and cycling shouldn't be mixed! But it is so hard to say this, as we are all partial to these small mishaps everynow and then..
Bicyclist killed
This is truely a sad story, which includes
the fact that other people have died and will
probably yet die. After this death is not the time to be passionate
about safety! It's before. Whoever makes public policies about these issues
should be required to sit on-site viewing this intersection
between 8-10 am or 3-6 pm!! Thee next best thing to do is put up bright yellow
& orange concrete pillars, oh say, 6" in diameter & 4ft high
that have a band of reflective vinyl surrounding it
set on both sides before the cyclists get to their
own stop signs. Place several of these this way
so they'd HAVE TO DIS-MOUNT their bikes.
to proceed.
aerial of the intersection
An aerial view of the intersection, before the median was installed and the crosswalk striping was removed (making it harder for cyclists who may be disoriented or in a low-light situation to tell they are crossing a major motor-vehicle road, and for automobile drivers to tell they are crossing a major bicycle route), is here >