RE: Teen Cyclist Mows Down Elderly Pedestrian in Crosswalk
1. Introduction.
2. Ms. Whitlow’s letter.
3. Analysis.
1. Introduction.
This blog’s purpose is to present environmental analysis of matters impacting the Charles River, its animals, its vegetation and its waters. The big problem is belligerently destructive governmental entities.
One of the most reprehensible “explanations” provided for environmental outrages by government is benefits to the belligerently irresponsible bicycle lobby. This explanation can be taken with a grain of salt because the repeated mentality looks like it is to use whatever excuse the target will swallow.
The following letter has been sent to the Cambridge City Council by Cambridge resident Chemi Whitlow. Chemi is a friend from the close knit Eastern Massachusetts world of movie actors. It is copied from her Facebook post.
Here is Chemi’s photo of the location of the outrage. It is taken from her earlier post on the matter. The STOP sign Chemi mentions is to the left of the camera. One way traffic legally flows from left to right. Violation of mandatory direction is common by bicyclists. Traffic flow on one way Pleasant Street (seen to the right) is legal from behind the camera and then straight ahead, also a requirement commonly violated by bicyclists.
2. Ms. Whitlow’s letter.
Dear Cambridge City Councillors,
I am a long time Cambridge Resident. I'd like to express my concern over Bike Safety namely reckless cyclists.
On Tuesday, February 8, 2022, just after 3:00PM, I was walking home from Central Square, down Pleasant Street between 7-11 and the Post Office. I was approaching the Greene St. Crosswalk when I saw an older lady walking towards me pushing her empty shopping cart crossing the street. There is a Stop Sign before the crosswalk. A guy on a bicycle going full speed ran over the older lady violently knocking her to the ground! He did not slow down, he did not swerve, he did not stop for the Stop sign. He just mowed her down!
I saw the bicycle hit the woman, I saw the impact, he struck her body. She was violently thrown and hit the pavement. He rolled over her as well and fell off his bike. Several people called 911, including myself! At first, she didn't move for over a minute, we thought she was dead, then she started moaning and groaning and asked what happened! The EMT's and police came quickly. As I was yelling that the guy never slowed down or stopped for the stop sign, I was told by police to calm down, the guy is a "juvenile" only 14 years old. and "he didn't mean it". The woman told EMT's she couldn't move and she was born in 1944. She was in agony. She was eventually taken away in an ambulance with sirens wailing.
I spoke with Cambridge Police Public Relations, yesterday, Friday, February 11, 2022, and was told the woman has a "LIFE" injury. She sustained injuries to her hip and leg and is in MGH. Because he is a "juvenile" the police will be stressing "safety" with him. I'm not sure what that means.
Overall, this older woman was maimed by a reckless teen cyclist. Before the accident she was independent. The lady was in the crosswalk where she should have been safe. I've been chatting with people about this accident only to find, people are almost getting run over by speeding cyclists daily in the City of Cambridge.
As the City is creating beautiful bike paths and spaces for cyclists. What are Cyclists responsibilities? Is Bike Safety taught in Cambridge Public Schools? When I went to school in South Bend, Indiana in the early 1970's we had to attend Bike Safety training and got a certificate before we were allowed to ride a bike to school. I'm raising this because in the accident I saw the teen did not slow, did not stop for the stop sign he didn't even swerve, so why didn't he see the older woman he mowed down at full speed in a crosswalk? Was he distracted?
It's my hope that the Cambridge City Council will stress Bike Safety not just for the safety of pedestrians but the riders themselves. And as to the accident that I witnessed, had the teen not struck the woman, he would have sped through the intersection without stopping and possibly been hit by a car.
3. Analysis.
One of the most reprehensible outrages coming from the Cambridge City Council is its participation in the ongoing and increasing destruction on the Charles River, including but not limited to the destruction of as much animal habitat as is convenient, the poisoning of the banks of the river and poisoning of the Charles River.
My analysis of the biggest single outrage on the Charles River is in my video posted at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pTplCCEJP7o. The video includes a segment in which I show the bike path creation “explanation” to be just another convenient lie. As I commented above in section 1, they look like they provide whatever lie the target will swallow.
The comments concerning the City Manager were directed at the last of the three James Leo Sullivan clique of City Managers, and is not targeted at the current City Manager.
I am not going to, yet again, repeat the constant and accelerating outrages. Here is my fact sheet on the most recent TYPICALLY IRRESPONSIBLE vote concerning Magazine Beach.
The DCR has announced plans for “input” on destruction west of Harvard Square. I anticipate unanimous SILENCE from the Cambridge City Council on that outrage as well. Silence under circumstances which call for outrage is consent.
The state legislature tried to clean up the situation on the Charles River by destroying the previous state entity charged with it, the Metropolitan District Commission, and replacing that entity with the Department of Conservation and Recreation (including the MDC’s “planners”) and the Massachusetts Department of Transportation.
MassDOT is not perfect, but it has, on key issues, been clearly the adult in the room with two irresponsible children. If Cambridge had a responsible City Council, it would be petitioning the state legislature to replace the DCR with MassDOT.
But, as demonstrated in Ms. Whitlow’s letter, the Cambridge City Council is not fit to manage the City of Cambridge, let alone behave responsibly on the Charles River.
