Miami one of the harmful cities to experience a motorbike: Report
NBC 6- New knowledge suggests Miami is a dangerous place to experience a motorbike.
The League of American Bicyclists discovered that Miami ranks fifth within the nation for deadly bike crashes, primarily based on knowledge pulled from the Nationwide Freeway Visitors Security Administration.
It confirmed Miami’s deadly bike accidents elevated by 28% from 2017 to 2021. That’s drastically larger than the nationwide common of 5%.
Ken McLeod, coverage director for the League of American Bicyclists mentioned lots of the crashes occur on state-owned roads with many lanes, larger pace limits and better site visitors quantity.
“The very best observe could be separated bike lanes or shared-use paths which are separated from the roadway,” mentioned McLeod. “Lower than 8% of bicyclist fatalities in the US happen in bike lanes. Bike lanes work. We should always construct them.”
Based on Miami-Dade’s Division of Transportation and Public Works, there are 197 miles of unprotected bike lanes within the county. Solely 10.2 miles are protected or “buffered.”
Lisa Colmenares, the division’s Chief Planning Officer, mentioned the county is continuous to deal with 100 “scorching spots” as a part of its “Imaginative and prescient Zero” technique, aiming to remove these fatalities and extreme accidents by 2040.
“The place we are able to, we at all times will prioritize having these protected bike lanes in Miami-Dade County,” mentioned Colmenares. “It’s important however as , now we have challenges of proper of approach, which is house, now we have competing house.”
Not all bicyclists consider protected bike lanes are the reply. Brickell bicycle owner Junior Pena mentioned protected bike lanes don’t preserve drivers from swerving into the lanes. In February, Pena wakened in a hospital with a number of fractures after being hit by a truck.
He wasn’t using in a protected bike lane however mentioned he’s reminded by the risks of using a motorbike in Miami and competing with aggressive drivers.
“Texting, distracted drivers, rushing, folks in a rush heading to work, you would need to put a brick wall,” mentioned Pena.