Cyclist killed in hit-and-run in Chiba

Cue the standard response: I didn’t know I hit somebody

or

I hit something but thought it was a cardboard box

” I was on my Phone “.

No Joke riding bikes on National Highways is very risky,

I stick to city streets with much patience, due to last minute vehicle signal chasers, middle of the sidewalkers who refuse to move to ones side, or a mammy stopped in the middle of the sidewalk or small road road talking to their children/walking a dog(s), or kids playing in the street. And momma chariots whipping around a blind corner, or impatient huge trucks who can cut you off making a left tor right turn on an approaching streeteven though you have the green light or the male or female walker staring down at their phone, or the ones who like to walk 3 wide like they own the sidewalks, and lastly the opportunist J-walkers zipping across the street just to cut you off.

@pudus, yep I've seen all that.

Maybe drunk driving

Same happens elsewhere in the World too. Just thankfully, it's a rarity here in Japan - hence it making to the News Headlines for today! My thoughts go out to the Family invovled.

It makes me ill that people think the cyclist must be completely guiltless or that the system is completely fair. For all we know the cyclist suddenly swerved into the car, and if you think the driver will be excused even in such a situation where its clearly the cyclist's fault then you don't know how the Japanese system works. The driver will do jail even in such a case. The driver will lose their job and even after jail may not find decent work ever again. If married, will be divorced. If kids and male, won't see them again.

That said, the stupid new law put cyclists on the road even when the sidewalk is free of pedestrians and the road is clearly dangerous. Not every inch of road in Japan is downtown Tokyo. Where I live there are places with long straight roads, wide sidewalks and literally zero pedestrians. There are big trucks and cars travel faster than a cyclist could ever dream. To cycle on the road in such a place is very dangerous and totally unnecessary. Yet the law says they must.

I don't know what happened here and neither do you. But the automatic judgement against the driver is totally unfair.

Well I pity the fool who can sleep at night after killing someone. The dreams must be torture.

If someone killed themself via putting themself in front of or under my vehicle with no reasonable way for me to avoid them, there would be those who said I killed them but I would disagree and sleep just fine, pity the dead fool though I would.

” I was on my Phone “.

Said the ghost of the deceased?

Maybe drunk driving

Maybe drunk riding?

Artemis..... The fault is on the driver... He, well probably a he...DID NOT STOP!

If someone killed themself via putting themself in front of or under my vehicle with no reasonable way for me to avoid them, there would be those who said I killed them but I would disagree and sleep just fine, pity the dead fool though I would.

You're tougher than me. I hit a deer once in my car when it jumped out from the bushes, and had to watch it die on the side of the road. It still haunts me at night sometimes.

If that were a person, it would never leave me.

This is for you Artemis Rodgers

If the car driver had passed a driving test and wasn't drunk or speeding s/he would have known to give a cyclist s/he was passing a wide berth so that even if the cyclist was drunk and fell suddenly from their bicycle then the car would not harm the cyclist. This is considered in law in all modern nations the responsibility of drivers and as an ex cop I know its a fact.

One wonders why you are so quick to blame the cyclist? How many cyclists have you injured or killed? Do you think getting behind the wheel of a motor vehicle makes you king of the road ? And be damned anybody on two wheels?

the stupid new law put cyclists on the road even when the sidewalk is free of pedestrians and the road is clearly dangerous. 

What? The law has always required cyclists to ride on the road, and was amended to provide exceptions allowing riding on the sidewalk under certain circumstances.

And it’s 100% driver’s responsibility to be safe around other vehicles - which bicycles are legally included in Japan. So if the driver hit the cyclist, it’s negligence on the driver’s fault for not driving with care around another vehicle.

RIP the cyclist. Hit and run is totally unacceptable. The guy may have been savable.

We don't know what happened, but as advice, anyone on a koku-do at nine pm should have at least one rear light and reflective clothing. Shopping bikes in Japan do not have a rear light as standard, so fit one or don't ride them on busy roads at night. If there is still light remaining, hi-viz colours, especially yellow, do work very well. There is lots of trendy cycling wear in dark and muted colours (Rapha etc), but in early morning and early evening, fluoro is far better. After actual dark, hi-viz doesn't work and you need lights and reflectors. The best place for reflectors is on velcro belts around your ankles, because they constantly move up and down and attract most attention. Stay safe everyone!

If the car driver had passed a driving test and wasn't drunk or speeding s/he would have known to give a cyclist s/he was passing a wide berth so that even if the cyclist was drunk and fell suddenly from their bicycle then the car would not harm the cyclist. This is considered in law in all modern nations the responsibility of drivers and as an ex cop I know its a fact.

Don't assume that kind of road like Tokyo residential area where you expect pedestrians or bicycles in any corner of the street. On the other hands on national highways you can drive on same roads for several days without seeing any bicycles at all, so drivers will expect a car with all light head and tail light but suddenly when encountering a slow moving bicycle that quite often without night time reflector or sufficient light will lead to accident.

Based on?

MontyJune 7  07:15 pm JST

Maybe drunk driving

One wonders why you are so quick to blame the cyclist?

I didn't. I clearly stated I don't know while offering explanations of how the cyclist could be at fault in the face of people solidly blaming the driver despite not knowing either.

How many cyclists have you injured or killed? 

None. But my car did hit a cyclist once and he fell to the ground.. It was on a blind T intersection. I was at the bottom. When the light turned green I started forward turning left. Then a cyclist came at great speed running the red light right in front of my car which bumped him and knocked him to the ground. Luckily he knew he was the idiot in that picture and he apologized. Had he called for police the system here would have put me in jail. Had he killed himself I would have gone to jail.

And I have had a million close calls with these idiot pedestrians and cyclists who seem to be blind and deaf to the one ton steel boxes around. Drivers have permanent visual and auditory obstacles and stopping a car takes time and distance. Bicycles and human bodies alone don't have such disadvantages at all. So what is their excuse?

And be damned anybody on two wheels?

Damn all irresponsible idiots and damn their wheel count! That said, its the bicycles and pedestrians I see doing the damnedest craziest things every singe day. Its like they have a death wish.

And what is the difference between what I say and what billygonzoid says??

Don't assume that kind of road like Tokyo residential area where you expect pedestrians or bicycles in any corner of the street. On the other hands on national highways you can drive on same roads for several days without seeing any bicycles at all, so drivers will expect a car with all light head and tail light but suddenly when encountering a slow moving bicycle that quite often without night time reflector or sufficient light will lead to accident.

Motor vehicle drivers should not be behind the wheel if they are not prepared for the unexpected. And if you encounter a cyclist on a narrow road you should be patient and wait until you have room to pass safely i.e by giving the cyclist a wide berth. Anything else is just impatient dangerous driving and motorists deserve to be prosecuted if they fail to be courteous, considerate and patient towards other road users including cyclists.

None. But my car did hit a cyclist once and he fell to the ground.. It was on a blind T intersection. I was at the bottom. When the light turned green I started forward turning left. Then a cyclist came at great speed running the red light right in front of my car which bumped him and knocked him to the ground. Luckily he knew he was the idiot in that picture and he apologized. Had he called for police the system here would have put me in jail. Had he killed himself I would have gone to jail.

Why am I not surprised you've hit a cyclist? You're whole attitude is that it's everybody else's fault when road accidents happen. You should have seen that cyclist and braked in time so as not to hit them. You were clearly not paying attention. You were at fault.