Articles Posted in Bicycle Accidents

by

Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) frequently reminds its audience that “drinking and driving don’t mix.” Driving while impaired due to alcohol or drugs places everyone on the road at risk, especially those like bicyclists and pedestrians (who are the most vulnerable to serious or fatal injuries should a crash occur). If you were seriously hurt (or a loved one was killed) aboard a bicycle because of an impaired driver, you potentially may have a variety of legal options available. An experienced Oregon bicycle accident lawyer can help you identify the avenues available to you and outline a strategy best suited to your circumstances.

An alleged example of just how much harm mixing drinking and driving can do came from Crook County earlier this month. OregonLive reported that, at around 11 p.m. on April 25, an SUV struck a bicycle on Oregon 380 near Prineville. The 36-year-old woman behind the wheel of the Ford Expedition was unharmed. The 57-year-old man aboard his bicycle was pronounced dead at the scene.

Law enforcement thinks that impairment played a role in the fatal collision. According to the OregonLive report, police arrested the driver of the SUV “for driving under the influence of intoxicants and believe impairment played a role in the crash, though the investigation remains ongoing.”

Continue reading

by

According to a new report, fatal and serious injury crashes are a significant problem in East Multnomah County. The report outlines an action plan with the stated goal of reducing fatal and serious accidents to zero within 10 years. Steps designed to reduce or eliminate serious and fatal accidents should be applauded because, as the report stated, “one traffic death is too many.” For now, though, these crashes remain a very real problem, and if you have been harmed by one, you should talk to a knowledgeable Oregon auto accident lawyer about your situation.

As noted above, the problem in East Multnomah County is worsening. In 2013-2020, east Multnomah County logged 396 serious or fatal crashes, averaging 49.5 per year. In 2021, there were 75. In 2022, that number was 116.

The committee’s plan would target improvements in locations like Gresham, Troutdale, Fairview, and Wood Village. The committee behind the report identified 10 traffic corridors, which it labeled “priority safety corridors,” and targeted specific proposed steps for those areas. These 10 included important thoroughfares like Stark Street, Halsey Street, Burnside Street, 181st Avenue, 182nd Avenue, and 223rd Avenue.

Continue reading

by

Traveling by bicycle offers bicyclists many benefits. It is a great way to stay healthy, to take in our area’s beautiful scenery, and to reduce one’s pollution output. Unfortunately, recent headlines paint a dangerous picture for bicyclists in and around Portland. Speeding drivers, inattentive/distracted drivers, intoxicated drivers, and other negligent drivers are dangerous to everyone who shares the road, but a wreck that impacts a bicyclist often involves serious or fatal injuries. Because a catastrophic or fatal accident often involves many steps like insurance claims, civil lawsuits, or both, it is well worth your while to retain a skilled Oregon bicycle accident lawyer who can help you understand your rights and all your options for getting justice.

One of those recent bicycle accidents occurred in Southeast Portland. OregonLive reported that a vehicle driver and a bicyclist crashed near the intersection of SE 145th Avenue and SE Powell Boulevard at around 7:00 pm on July 13. The bicyclist died from his injuries on July 14.

According to the report, the vehicle driver, who was shoeless, had “bloodshot eyes and smelled like alcohol.” The driver also allegedly “appeared to be struggling to walk in a straight line or talk.”

Continue reading

by

Recent headlines have sounded an alarm about one type of injury accident trending upward in a big way: e-bike crashes. E-bike crashes may present some unique challenges when it comes to obtaining a recovery that adequately compensates you for the harm you endured. Whether you are dealing with an insurance company or the civil justice system, you can enhance your odds of achieving a fair outcome by retaining a skilled Oregon e-bike accident lawyer to represent you.
According to the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), the number of e-bike injuries in 2022 was 30 times higher than that recorded just five years earlier. The number of people who required hospital treatment for e-bike injuries in 2022 was 43 times the number recorded in 2017. The American College of Surgeons declared e-bikes an “emerging… public health hazard.”

This hazard recently touched one local community. In October, a high school sophomore in Tualatin died west of downtown after, police believe, he “may have lost control of the e-bike,” then hit a curb and ultimately a tree. The teen was wearing a helmet at the time.

The massive uptick in e-bike injuries has spurred the creation of new legislation. In Oahu, where e-bike injuries tripled in two years, the local council passed a bill in January intended to “clear safety guidelines.” The bill placed a power cap of 750 watts on e-bikes on public roads and mandated helmet use for all riders under 18.

Continue reading

by

At a Portland City Hall rally earlier this month, a group of bicyclists sought not to accomplish a solely bicycle-oriented policy goal. Instead, the bicyclists focused on a larger objective: reducing the high number of traffic deaths in the city and making Portland’s roads safer for everyone, including drivers, passengers, pedestrians, motorcyclists, and bicyclists. The bicycle accident lawyers at Kaplan Law LLC understand the incalculable human toll that traffic fatalities represent, and support policies that will make our area’s streets and highways safer for all.

According to KGW8’s coverage, the rally included signs honoring the lives of each person killed in vehicle incidents in Portland this year. As of the date of the rally, Portland had already logged 46 fatalities, a pace that could allow the city to surpass last year’s total of 63 deaths.

The protest was organized by BikeLoud PDX. A member of that group told KGW8 that the changes they desired were reasonable and modest goals. Those objectives included enhanced enforcement of speed limits, an increase in the number of traffic cameras (particularly on “high-crash corridors,”) additional infrastructure investment, and campaigns against impaired driving targeted at “bars, restaurants, [and] liquor stores.”

Continue reading

by

The last few months have brought a rash of deadly bicycle crashes here in Oregon, including at least two this month (one in Clackamas County and one in Polk County.) The tragic stream of fatalities is a reminder of the extreme dangers bicyclists face when they’re on the road — be it here in Portland or a rural area. Discovering the truth about the bicycle crash that took the life of your loved one can sometimes be a complex, challenging process. An experienced Oregon bicycle accident lawyer can help you both with amassing the factual evidence you need, and utilizing that proof in an appropriate legal action.

Sometimes, the facts regarding a crash can be fairly straightforward. In the recent Clackamas County accident, the mountain manager of the Mount Hood Skibowl died in a two-vehicle collision just east of Government Camp. According to the Oregon State Police, the 48-year-old bicyclist was headed southbound on Highway 173 when the 71-year-old driver of a Hyundai SUV, who sought to turn left from Highway 173 onto West Leg Road, failed to yield the right of way and turned into the bicyclist’s path.

The impact was so powerful that it launched the bicyclist from his bike and into the roadway. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

Continue reading

by

In what can only be considered a bit of depressing irony, OregonLive recently reported on a bicyclist struck and injured… while on his way to a rally “to demand safer streets” for bicyclists and pedestrians. This bicyclist’s injuries were, thankfully, not severe. They nevertheless highlight that much work needs to be done to ensure that everyone using Portland’s streets and roads can do so safely. Part of that process often involves holding accountable those responsible for unsafe conditions. That is also where an experienced Portland bicycle accident lawyer can provide you with invaluable assistance.

According to the OregonLive report, a van driver ran a red light and slammed into the bicyclist as the bicyclist crossed the street inside a marked crosswalk.

As this accident reflects, some crashes involve significant driver negligence or recklessness, and safety improvements can only do so much to protect bicyclists and pedestrians from those drivers. For those injured bicyclists and pedestrians, the law allows them to recoup economic and non-economic damages from the at-fault driver. If the driver was driving recklessly, the injured bicyclist or pedestrian may also be entitled to recover punitive damages.

Continue reading

by

Oregon is home to some of the finest opportunities to enjoy the outdoors on a bicycle. What that also means, though, is that Oregon is also a place where bicyclists who live far from here run the risk of suffering injuries in a crash. When that happens, it’s reasonable not to know where to turn. You should start by getting in touch with an experienced Oregon bicycle accident lawyer who can help you with the correct next steps.

When you suffer injuries in an accident close to home, it may seem easy to know what to do — call your regular local attorney and seek advice. When you’re far from home, that same attorney may be unable to represent you. Knowing what to do and doing it in a timely fashion is very important because you only have a limited time before the statute of limitations runs out.

Fortunately for a Canadian couple who were injured while bicycling in Oregon, they recognized what to do and did so within the deadline period.

Continue reading

by

A locally renowned chef lost her life recently in a gruesome bicycle accident in a notoriously dangerous intersection southeast of downtown Portland. The chef’s death has sparked protests and a call from one city commissioner to transfer control of the area from the state to the City of Portland, according to Oregonlive.com. As Oregon accident lawyers representing bicyclists and others harmed or killed in dangerous intersection crashes, we heartily endorse options that will that create or expedite the changes necessary to make Portland’s roads safer for all users.

The fatal collision, which occurred at the intersection of Southeast Powell Boulevard and Southeast 26th Avenue saw a semi-truck hit a bicycle. The bicyclist, 50-year-old Sarah Pliner, died at the scene. According to BikePortland, the collision occurred as the driver of the 53-foot semi-truck attempted a right-hand turn from northbound 26th Avenue to eastbound Powell Boulevard.

The accident that claimed the chef’s life was far from the first for this dangerous intersection. A 2014 Powell Boulevard safety audit that the Oregon Department of Transportation commissioned listed “heavy north/south bike traffic” as one of the primary safety issues at the intersection of Powell and 26th.

Continue reading

by

Getting everything that you’re owed after you’ve been seriously injured (or a loved one has been killed) in a vehicle accident can involve a long list of battles. Some of those battles may involve taking on your own auto insurer when they seek to avoid paying what they should. Whether you’re taking on an at-fault driver’s legal team or you’re taking on your insurance company, it pays to have an experienced Oregon auto accident lawyer on your side fighting these battles with you.

These battles can be especially important — and especially challenging — when your accident presents a need for a large sum in compensation.

A recent case involving several people injured in auto accidents — Batten v. State Farm Mutual Auto Insurance — makes for a good example of what we mean. One of those injured people, T.B., was severely hurt in a head-on crash. A different driver hit J.C. while he rode his bicycle, causing injuries that eventually killed him. Another driver hit the car in which L.C. was a passenger, causing severe injuries, and C.R. was a pedestrian severely injured when a fourth driver hit him.

Continue reading

50 SW Pine St 3rd Floor Portland, OR 97204 Telephone: (503) 226-3844 Fax: (503) 943-6670 Email: matthew@mdkaplanlaw.com
map image
Contact Information
50 SW Pine St
#302
Portland, OR 97204
Telephone: (503) 226-3844 Fax: (503) 943-6670 Email: matthew@mdkaplanlaw.com

Please do not include any confidential or sensitive information in a contact form, text message, or voicemail. The contact form sends information by non-encrypted email, which is not secure. Submitting a contact form, sending a text message, making a phone call, or leaving a voicemail does not create an attorney-client relationship.

Copyright © 2026, Kaplan Law, LLC
JUSTIA Law Firm Blog Design