OT: A little advice when doored

[Bret Lobree]

Not sure how many of you have had the pleasure of being doored (I have and in my case it was my fault. I mean, would you ever suspect a cyclist to ride by your door when you are halfway down a 40m long dead end alley?). 

I'm not sure how it goes in CA, but looks like not all states have "dooring" laws:

http://www.cyclelicio.us/2016/a-dooring-defense-in-new-jersey/

1T

[djconnel]

But what the article states is even if there is no explicit law, there's still a "duty of care".  In the instance there there's a striped bike lane which may lead a driver to conclude that the cyclist will be confined within the lane, as is generally required unless there's a broad range of exceptions.  In the case of the alley I very much doubt there's a striped bike lane.  And just because traffic is, err, "light" (in the case of the dead-end alley) doesn't mean it's non-existent.  I don't think there's any precedent for the argument "there's not much traffic here so I assumed there was none".

[Hyper]

Saw someone I expect was a Google employee in very bad shape after being doored on Rengstrof Ave in Mountain View commuting home in June.  The rider was going over 20 mph given the evidence I saw.  I did not witness the collision impact but police indicated they would find fault with the driver.  The police didn't seem to care the car was parked over 24 inches from the curb but his lawyer probably would since fault with dooring can be debated when witness reports conflict.

What I learned from experience that helps when  I come upon or witness a collision:

If you are first on scene, call 911 and attempt to prevent further injuries by directing traffic around the scene.  Assign others present to specific roles until help arrives.

Take pictures ( I sent mine to the local newspaper, since police in Mtn View don't publicize bike accidents calling them a privacy issue) for the victim, insurance and press.

Tape your contact information to the bike if your contact information is not in the police report so the victim can contact you with details police miss. 

Secure the bike for the victim with a lock in safe location  if possible since police and ambulance may not always transport the bike..

If you know who this victim was have them contact me if they are interested.

[Nathan Dushman]

Also on the topic of dooring (perhaps the rest of you have already heard of this, but I hadn't until a mention of it on NPR this morning): https://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2016/09/08/this-cyclist-wants-drivers-dutch-reach/V2Ei5bEiOCfU6ubxX1r8VN/story.html
Encourage drivers to open their door with their right hand, making it a natural motion to look back as they open the car door.