If you are a cyclist in an urban area, you probably dread the sound of a car door opening. All too often drivers and passengers open their doors without looking if the coast is clear. Cyclists are the most common victims of dooring accidents.
Dooring accidents are a very real issue for bicyclists. More dooring accidents are occurring, news reports suggest.
Statistics obtained in Canada by the bike advocacy group Cycle Toronto, suggest incidents of “dooring” are on the rise.
This year the Toronto Star reported on figures from police in the city that found there were 209 collisions caused by dooring in 2016.
Dooring accidents injure cyclists
The term “dooring” is used to describe an accident in which the occupant of a parked car, bus or truck opens a door and hits a passing cyclist.
Dooring accidents can be very serious and even deadly. In some cases, cyclists have swerved to avoid a car door being opened and ended up being hit by an oncoming vehicle.
The 2016 dooring figure in the city of Toronto was up from 175 incidents in 2015, and 132 the previous year.
Between 2014 and 2016, Toronto saw an alarming a 58.3 percent increase in the number of doorings.
Jared Kolb, executive director of Cycle Toronto, said the gravity of these issues cannot be understated. He said:
“These are life-changing collisions that can result in serious injury or death.”
He thought the spike in accidents may reflect the fact more people are riding their bikes on everyday trips.
Cities such as Atlanta have also seen more trips on bicycles. Kolb speculated that dooring is happening more often, in part, because more people are choosing to ride a bike for their everyday trips.
Toronto is not the only city to see a marked increase in dooring accidents. In Chicago, these kids of accidents rose about 50 percent from 2014 to 2015.
In 2015, 302 bicyclists were hit by car doors according to data released by the Illinois Department of Transportation. In 2014, 202 bicyclists were injured by car doors.
Drivers in Georgia and elsewhere have a duty to look out for cyclists. If you were injured due to the fault of a driver, please call our Newnan personal injury lawyers at (404) 913-1529.