Tragically, this afternoon a car driver reportedly doored a 35-year-old man on a bike in Bridgeport, causing him to strike the door and be thrown in front of a large semi-truck, whose driver fatally struck him.
According to the initial police report, on Friday, June 5 around 4:40 p.m., the victim was struck in traffic in the 3200 block of South Halsted Street. He was taken to Stroger Hospital, where he was pronounced dead. The drivers stayed on the scene.
The Chicago Tribune reported that a Chicago Police Department source and a bystander said the man was pedaling north before the collision. The driver of a white sedan opened their door into the non-protected, paint-only bike lane. The victim tried to steer out of the way but hit the door and feel into the street, where the truck ran over him.
This tragic death might have been prevented if the bike lanes on this segment of Halsted were located curbside, with the parking lane to the left of the bikeway, with concrete protection.
A couple miles southwest on Archer Avenue in Brighton Park, politically motivated protesters, including a 12th Ward alder candidate, have been demonstrating every week for the last six months, demanding that the City remove concrete-protected bike lanes…