Family of Killed Bicyclist Sues City For Having Trolley Tracks on City Street – IOTW Report

Family of Killed Bicyclist Sues City For Having Trolley Tracks on City Street

MyNorthwest-

The family of a bicyclist who died in a crash last year is suing the city of Seattle and Sound Transit, claiming streetcar trolley tracks caused the crash.

The Seattle Times reports the family announced the lawsuit Wednesday, the anniversary of Desiree McCloud’s death.

They’re seeking more than $2 million in damages on each claim.

McCloud was riding with three other cyclists from East Capitol Hill to Alki Beach. Surveillance images from a police report showed McCloud pedaling between the tracks when she tried to pass someone in her group.

That cyclist told police she saw McCloud’s bike wobble, before McCloud crashed on the pavement. She died 11 days later.

The police investigation didn’t find evidence to conclude whether the tracks played a role in the crash.

Seattle Times-

The brother of a bicyclist killed a year ago has filed claims against the city of Seattle and Sound Transit, saying the First Hill Streetcar trolley tracks were to blame for the crash.

Cody McCloud, who described the year after his sister’s death as a “literal hell” for his family, is seeking damages of at least $2 million in the claims, which were announced at a news conference Wednesday morning on the anniversary of Desiree McCloud’s death.

“Streetcar tracks are a known hazard — known to the city of Seattle,” said Phil Arnold, Cody McCloud’s lawyer. “Seattle had many opportunities to fix this mess.”

Arnold described the streetcar tracks as a “lethal bicycle trap.” He said the city knew the streetcar tracks were a hazard, and yet continually encouraged people to bike on its streets.

Cody McCloud said the claims are “not about the money. It’s about a message: ‘Don’t kill me on these streets.’ ”

!snip!

If they are a known hazard – why was she biking on the “lethal bicycle trap” street?

ht/ illustr8r

20 Comments on Family of Killed Bicyclist Sues City For Having Trolley Tracks on City Street

  1. I knew these new-fangled space-age trolley cars with their tracks would be nothing but trouble. And hey! These horse drawn carriages go too damn fast! Look! Flower girls on every friggin corner! Apple carts! Who the hell likes apple carts?! Hobnail boots! Needabisquit and Coca Cola signs everywhere! It’s a living hell!

  2. put this down to the unexpected consequences of progressive policy.

    who knew recreational bicycling coupled with mass transit could be so deadly ?

    if only he hadn’t been warned out of his car by government supported progressive policies for his health and the environment he would still be alive.

    did he have his bike helmet on ?

    was he also known for not being able to walk and chew gum at the same time ?

    he should have never left his mothers basement.

  3. @bill, Going out on a limb here, pretty sure Desiree, is female.
    Were her parents porn stars, just fans?
    Cody and Desiree, porn star names.
    Did they have a sexually confused sibling named Dakota?

  4. Bikes should be banned!
    Assault bicycles, especially!
    Black ones with handles and sights and pedals that allow it to exceed 30 cm/s.

    Unsafe at ANY speed!

    If it only saves ONE life – it’s worth banning all bikes …

    izlamo delenda est …

  5. “Arnold said the city could have prevented Desiree McCloud’s death by excluding cyclists from East Yesler Way, separating the cyclists with a protected bike lane, marking the bicycle lane a “no-passing zone” or filling the gap with a rubber filler that compresses underneath the weight of a streetcar but would hold up for a bicycle.”

    Excluding cyclists from anywhere won’t do. They won’t have that. They’re entitled.

    I’m sorry for his loss, but when it comes to the state-supported and enforced insanity of co-mingling of cars and bikes, I’m ever more firmly in the Carlin camp of thinning the herd. “The kid who swallows too many marbles doesn’t grow up to have kids of his own.” Too harsh? Sorry about that.

  6. So if tracks kill bicyclist, would a high-speed set of tracks from say, oh Merced CA. to Bakersville CA. be a greater threat to Californians than bullet button rifles and magazines that hold greater than 10 rounds?

  7. Tim’s right! Assault bicycles must be banned. Owners of existing assualt bicycles must under go fingerprinting and a FBI background check. Assault bicycles with more than one gear should be melted down and turned into statues extolling the virtues of Progressivism. FORWARD!

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