We should try to do something about this.
The COVID pandemic sparked a surge in bike sales and bike riding across the Houston region at a time when pedaling — and driving — area streets is deadlier than ever.
A sharp drop in driving could not stop road fatalities from reaching a record high based on data compiled by the Texas Department of Transportation.
That lack of safety was especially true in 2020 for bicyclists, who represent a fractional number of road users but 5 percent of those killed. Last year 31 men and three women died on area roads. The annual total of 34 exceeds that of 2019, which also was a record at 27 for the region in a single year.
Based on a preliminary analysis — reports can take weeks to enter the state’s crash database maintained by TxDOT — crashes involving bicycles are down 15 percent while deaths are up 26 percent from 2019.
Safety researchers and cycling advocates, however, were reluctant to draw too many conclusions from the early numbers or begin laying blame for the jump on any single cause. In fact, where crashes occurred and who died does not align with the noticeable increase in recreational cycling but, rather, the same factors present before the pandemic: a lack of safe space for bicycles, inadequate or absent lighting, and street design choices that enable drivers to speed.
“These aren’t accidents,” said Joe Cutrufo, executive director of BikeHouston, a local advocacy group. “Our streets were intentionally designed to accommodate one mode, and only one mode.”
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Yet, despite bicycle use for recreation and commuting being higher in neighborhoods within and around Loop 610, that is not where fatalities are happening. Deaths of bicyclists within Loop 610 dropped from seven in 2019 to one last year.
Instead, it is suburban areas where crashes are happening in larger numbers, such as in Houston along U.S. 90 and major streets nearby within the Sam Houston Tollway and along FM 1960 near Bush Intercontinental Airport, which were not built with bicycles in mind.
The number of fatalities always has fallen off the farther from central Houston one gets, but this year some suburban counties logged increases, notably in Brazoria County where five bicyclists lost their lives in 2020. The county’s previous high was three in 2011.
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Last year’s rise in bicyclist deaths mirrors the increase in overall road deaths despite the pandemic-induced economic slowdown that has resulted in fewer vehicles on freeways and streets.
In the 11-county Houston area, 710 roadway deaths were reported by police in 2020, with almost 60 percent being drivers or passengers in cars and trucks. Despite efforts at the state, regional and local levels to curtail crashes and a pandemic that at times cut vehicle use in half, wrecks continued to claim more lives, including a record 482 in Harris County and 263 in Houston.
The conclusion of researchers — who caution that 2020 information is preliminary — is that fewer miles of automotive travel is leading to fewer wrecks, but the resulting collisions and catastrophes occurring are more severe. As a result, few can say roads are any safer.
The connection between less traffic (due to the pandemic) and more traffic deaths was noted months ago, and seems to be the result of people driving faster on those less-congested streets. For obvious reasons, that will be especially deadly for bike riders. There’s a chart embedded in the story that shows 2020 was the highest traffic fatality year since at least 2011 in the Houston area, which I believe in this case is the 11-county H-GAC region. There’s a lot that can be done about this, and a lot that needs to be done, including more roads built for safety over speed, more bike lanes, more and better sidewalks, and just more drivers being aware of bikes and pedestrians. We can make a difference, but we have to want to.
I agree that they aren’t accidents. Many of them are gross negligence. I do most of my traveling in town on two wheels. Most recent episode was when I was coming east down W. 16th St, and turning left onto Lawrence. A vehicle at the stop sign on Lawrence came out nearly into me, I went hard to the right and continued alongside the vehicle on 16th until I made a U turn to get back to Lawrence. The people walking along the street thought the car did it on purpose, however, I saw that the car was piloted by a woman around 80 years old who had no idea I was there, the entire time. A bit frustrating that we gave up our entire lives to protect octogenarians who are out there risking their own and others’ lives. Cognition begins declining around age 40.
Even though we are in the middle of Operation Stay Safe, during which we all will live forever, unless we don’t wear a mask, the city is not concerned about safety from murder and from traffic smashes. As Mayor Turner says, “it is what it is.” In some of the more humorous things I’ve observed: I saw a man riding a motorcycle with a mask but no helmet. I saw a car at the body shop with front end damage and a mask hanging from the rear view mirror. Just wear a mask and you are free to crash into anything.
The city continues to put the Giant Metal Plates down to repair streets. Quite a hazard on two wheels. The selfish people who insist on passing anything in front of them are everywhere. If a car hits a pedestrian, motorcycle, or bicycle, the car usually is not damaged that much and will drive off a high percentage of the time.
Houston is unprofessional. The sidewalks are awful. Nobody does anything about the mud slicks on the sidewalks. While walking I’ve slipped and tumbled several times. Construction sites get to close sidewalks, unlike professional cities, which make construction sites put a cover over the sidewalk so it can still be used. The streets are riddled with potholes and cracks. I broke my thumb on Judiway when I hit the uneven gap between the concrete blocks. I hit it because I pulled to the left when I saw a car sitting there parked on the right with people in it. You have to watch out. These days people sit in the car playing with a phone and then suddenly open the door and hop out, or start driving without looking around. Of course the city said nothing is wrong with Judiway Street. Nor did they make a law that it is illegal to sit in your car playing with a phone. So much for Stay Safe.
My personal observation is that the bike boom has declined. When we started years ago, with two weeks to flatten the curve, many families went out on bikes. It was March and the weather was nice. Schools were going to be on spring break anyway. Then it got hot, and the two weeks to flatten the curve became who knows what is the goal, let’s just stay inside forever, and people stopped riding so much. I do agree that cars seemed to be going faster when there was less traffic.