Silicon Valley has highest number of bicycle crashes in the last decade
Silicon Valley has highest number of bicycle crashes in the last decade
A new report says Palo Alto and San Jose have had the most bicycle crashes in Silicon Valley over the last 10 years, leaving dozens of bikers injured. This comes just after San Jose hit a gruesome milestone of 64 pedestrian deaths due to a traffic crash this year.
SAN JOSE, Calif. - A new report says Palo Alto and San Jose have had the most bicycle crashes in Silicon Valley over the last 10 years, leaving dozens of bikers injured. This comes just after San Jose hit a gruesome milestone of 64 pedestrian deaths due to a traffic crash this year.
Local governments have been encouraging more people to get out of their cars and walk or use a bike for transportation. But how safe is it to do that? A biking expert explains what causes many accidents and what we can do to try and avoid them.
A new study based on state crash data identifies the five most dangerous areas for bicyclists in Silicon Valley.
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Palo Alto ranks first with 100 bike crashes from 2011 to 2021. The area around San Jose State University ranks second with 97 crashes. Since the pandemic began, more and more people are walking and biking as means of transportation.
"I will often go out of my way to bike on roads where they have the dividers like on 10th Street near the campus, San Jose State. But if there are no dividers, I don’t really feel safe riding," said Michelle Dreyband, who rides her bike near San Jose State University.
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Menlo Park and Redwood City both had 47 bike crashes and the Horace Mann neighborhood came in fifth with 42 crashes. Lorri Lown owns and operates San Jose-based Savvy Bike, where she teaches people how to prepare and safely cycle on the road.
"There’s a lot going on in our world, but we need to focus on the task at hand, which is driving our car, riding our bike, walking across the street and really stay focused on that. We have so many distractions," Lown said.
The city of San Jose announced last month that it’ll display more electronic message boards at busy intersections as it gets dark earlier in the day and lower speed limits in some areas of the business district. Still, Lown says many people simply aren’t trained how to properly ride a bike on the street.
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"Having reflectors, having bright colors, having lights on our bicycles, having lights on our helmets. That helps us as well," Lown said.
Lown believes biking can still be safe, especially if drivers slow down and stay within the speed limit. Just this month, San Jose hit an all-time high of 64 pedestrian deaths caused by traffic crashes in a single year.
The study used crash data from Santa Clara and San Mateo Counties. Earlier this year in March, San Jose announced $6 million towards improving road safety and reducing traffic deaths throughout the city.