Bike riding in a busy, high-traffic city such as New York City can be an efficient means of travel-but it can also be a very high-risk activity. An accident can happen at any time, but riding at night can be particularly dangerous because of low visibility, and a crash between a car and a bike can potentially be fatal.
Recently, a 24-year-old man was killed while riding a dirt bike in Brooklyn. The accident happened at about 11 p.m., on the same block where Kings County Hospital is located. The bicyclist and a vehicle crashed; both the bike and car were traveling in eastbound. The cyclist was pronounced dead at Kings County Hospital. Authorities did not state whether the driver of the car sustained any injuries in the accident.
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Liability for a bicycle accident often turns on negligence. Where the driver was the cause of the crash, courts looks to whether the driver acted negligently. Courts also consider whether the cyclist’s own actions were a cause of the accident. Both drivers and cyclists are required to exercise reasonable care under the circumstances, and a failure to do so can constitute negligence. Negligence on the part of the driver may be found where the driver failed to obey traffic signals or was speeding. Negligence on the part of the cyclist can be found by such things as riding the wrong way down a street, riding through stop signs or turning abruptly through traffic. Where a cyclist was injured in a crash with a car, and the cyclist is found to have acted negligently and therefore caused or contributed to the accident, the cyclist may be barred from recovering damages.
Both cyclists and drivers should heed the rules of the road, to ensure their own safety and the safety of others around them. If you have been involved in a NYC motor vehicle accident you need to contact a NYC motor vehicle accident attorney asap.
Source: NewYork.CBSlocal.com, “Man Killed In Dirt Bike Accident Outside Kings County Hospital,” Jan. 7, 2013
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