Another Bicyclist Killed in Hit and Run Accident

Every weekend thousands of cyclists take to the streets of South Florida.  Likewise every weekend there are multiple accidents involving  bicyclists, and a large number of those accidents are hit and run fatalities.

This morning  Joe Edward Torres of Homestead was riding his bicycle near the intersection of Krome Avenue and Mowry Drive around 6:45 a.m, when he was struck by a small, gray SUV.  Mr. Torres died on impact.

We are at the time of the year when sunrise doesn’t occur until after 7:00 a.m., thus many cyclists that were accustomed to riding without lights early in the morning, now must use lights until well after 7:00 a.m.  There is no evidence that lighting or lack thereof contributed to the accident, but that is something to be mindful of.  Again, given that this was a Hit and Run accident, I doubt lighting was an issue.  The more likely scenario is that the motorist was impaired and fled the scene.

If apprehended the Hit and Run Motorist will be prosecuted and sentenced in accordance with the tougher standards implemented under the Aaron Cohen law.  Under the new standards the motorist, if convicted, would be sentenced as if he committed DUI manslaughter.

As Miami Bicycle accident lawyers and cyclists, we urge anyone who has information to contact the police in hopes the motorist is apprehended.

We have written multiple articles on the causes for  the large number of bicycle accidents in Miami, and one obvious factor is the lack of bicycle paths.  To that end, the City of Doral is planning to add 30 miles of bike paths throughout the city.  While we applaud the City for doing SOMETHING, we wish the city city was adding all bike paths and not “sharrows,” (regular traffic lanes shared with cars and painted with markings to indicate bikes are welcome.) Unlike traditional on-street bike lanes or off-road paths, sharrows give cyclists no separate area in which to ride. Instead, cyclists must share the lanes with cars on an equal footing.  Unfortunately many motorists see bikes as a nuisance and become angry that bikes are in their lane of traffic.  Again, we applaud the City of Doral for at least taking an initiative to do SOMETHING.  We are still waiting for Miami-Dade to make good on their  3 year old promise to implement bike lanes throughout the city and into Key Biscayne.

 

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