Bicycles on the Road

There are numerous hazards in West Palm Beach along our roads that can provide the perfect storm environment for an accident and consequent personal injury. These can include weather conditions, construction along the road, other cars, motorcycles, and pedestrians. This might also include bicycles as well. Just like motorcyclists, bicyclists can sometimes be seen weaving in between car lanes or occupy a full lane themselves, requiring motorists and others along the road to be extra careful not to make contact or do anything sudden that will cause an accident. Bicyclists themselves can often make sudden moves that warrant particular vigilance from others on the road. Accidents can happen anywhere, and of course a question of liability always arises as with any road accident.

Bicycles Are Vehicles, Too

In the vast majority of states including Florida, bicycles are considered vehicles for the purposes of legal rules of the road. Accordingly, bicyclists must obey the rules of the road. This centers on a duty owed to others on the road to ride the bicycle with a standard of care that any reasonable and prudent bike, motorcycle, car or truck operator must use. Falling short of that standard of care is at a minimum negligence, and the measure of that negligence would lead to the measure of liability that a judge or jury will assign to a bicyclist in a lawsuit.

Intersections Are a Popular Place for Accidents to Occur

A substantial percentage of accidents involving bicycles tend to occur at intersections. Thus negligence and consequently liability will largely depend on who had the right of way in that intersection, and who failed to observe those circumstances. Where an intersection has a light, it is a relatively easy scenario where one person clearly had the right of way as a result of the light being green or yellow, while the other person did not because it was red.

In low traffic situations a bicycle may attempt to cross through a red light, and it is imperative that the cyclist does not go where there is any cross-traffic, or oncoming traffic looking to turn left across the intersection. In situations where there are no signals, but rather stop signs, bicyclists, like any other driver, must be wary of surrounding traffic, and it will be the first person that arrives at the intersection to have the right of way to pass through first.

Where vehicles arrive to the intersection at the same time, and one does not concede the right of way to the other with a kind wave of the hand, typically the car to the right will win the tiebreaker. In situations where only one way has a stop sign, a bicyclist must be sure to stop where he or she has the stop sign, and ensure no crossing traffic is coming before moving forward. Where they go through and an accident occurs, the bicyclist will be at fault. Typically where the driver has the stop sign, they must be very careful to ensure bicyclists are not crossing through the intersection before moving forward. Where there are no stop signs, bicyclists and fellow road travelers must be wary of oncoming and crossover traffic, and negotiate the road accordingly.

Where a bicyclist fails to take care, that person will incur liability for causing an accident. The reverse will be true for other motorists or motorcyclists, as well as other bike riders, where they fail to observe a bicycle on the road or a bike's right of way, and an accident results.

Law firms come and go, but The Law Team has been a Palm Beach Personal Injury Law Firm since 1973, and we are still going strong. Your case will be analyzed and handled by an experienced attorney.