Truck driver arrested over fatal hit-and-run in Chiba

I've seen trucks driving recklessly around that area. Bicycles too tend to ride erratically swaying back and forth between road and pedestrian walk, with nobody wearing any helmets. One lane roads and narrow footpaths means everyone contesting for small available space.. RIP Khari-san..

Last week I had a near miss with a huge dump truck and he kept going in spite of my protest on his mistake. Again bicycle users specially old people are to blame too due to their carelessness and reckless driving thinking no one on the road except them.

Cyclists seem to think Japan's legislation makes them invincible. Big mistake.

We could easily halve the number of junctions, reduce driver fatigue, and improve cyclist and pedestrian safety as well as quality of life, by closing off many of the side roads that are too often used as "rat runs."

Is it just me? I really wished to read that Chibatman would have been the one to bring this guy to justice.

what the geezer doing out at 5 in the morn? some bicylists, young and old, are so reckless; they ride in the opposite direction of traffic, ride practically in the middle of the road or swerve wildly. to tell you the truth, i'm surprised there aren't more accidents involving bikes.

There's barely any explanation in this article except that it was a hit and run - yet a slew of cyclist-bashing comments in this thread would leave the conscience-challenged with the impression that the cyclist must have been at fault - or at least as much at fault as the truck driver. The 5 am bicyclist was probably going to work, he deserves some respect.

I admit my background is not neutral; I've ridden bicycles over 10's of thousands of kilometers of Japanese roads - many in Japanese randonneur events anywhere from 200 to 1000 kilometers in length. Met a lot of great and very open minded Japanese who always take care to follow the law and avoid --unnecessarily-- delaying traffic

what the geezer doing out at 5 in the morn?

Going to work? Getting some exercise? Enjoying the beautiful morning? What does it matter?

A truck driver was driving recklessly and this poor man had to pay for that recklessness with his life. It's a real shame. It's the motor vehicle driver's responsibility to pay attention to his surroundings at all times.

"what the geezer doing out at 5 in the morn?(sic)"

Should the time of day matter? Why do you blame the victim?

Why is it every time I turn around I read a truck driver hit someone or killed someone, are these people even taught how to properly drive a truck jeeze. Just last week my girlfriend was hit by a truck while she was trying to park her car at a parking garage he was speeding who speeds in a parking garage? She didn't have time to react he hit her so hard she went through the guard rail of the third floor and ended up on bottom floor she broke her leg her wrist her ribs and her jaw so it had to be wired shut my poor girls a mess because truck drivers can't drive properly and thanks to this guy an old man enjoying an early ride is gone rip

The driver MIGHT have been able to argue that it was the bike rider's fault... right up until the point the driver decided to drive off. Leaving the scene is tantamount to admission of guilt. Sure, you could argue that with Japan's laws he was going to get charged anyway, but the sentence is now going to be more severe than if he had stopped and tried to assist the victim.

I used to live right near Ichikawa and let me tell you, the roads are probably 50 years+ out of date. Unbelievably narrow, perpendicular corners & no footpaths whatsoever. Many of the crossings have no lines marked, nor adequate signage. It's a complete mess, which the same could be said for most of eastern Tokyo. Poor guy.

3RENSHO: "Should the time of day matter? Why do you blame the victim?"

People aren't necessarily blaming the victim here at all. What IS happening is a knee-jerk reaction to people asking questions and everyone assuming that the driver was being reckless. One reason why you can question if he was being reckless or not, or was just unlucky, is by pointing out the time of the accident, what type of road it occurred on, driving conditions, and geography in general. None of those are pointed out, except the time, and given that at 5 a.m. it's still dark this time of year, and the victim was riding on a road built to withstand 10-tonne trucks, well, it doesn't rule out the victim's fault in this. The hit-and-run is of course solely and 100% of the driver, for which he should be arrested and charged, but beyond that the point is that we have no detail.

It's true some people are quick to blame bicyclists in this type of accident, and others are quick to pounce on drivers, but until we have any more news you can't blame either up until the running away part.