Prevent ‘dooring’
Chelsea Mobishwash should have been safe. She was, after all, cycling in a separated bike lane. But that didn’t prevent her from getting hit last year when a person inside an illegally parked truck swung the door open just as she was riding by.
The impact sent her careening into a pole and onto the ground. She was lucky. She lived to tell the tale, without even a broken bone. Just painful bruising and a gash to her left arm that required six stitches.
Her experience is not unusual. Last year, there were 209 collisions caused by “dooring.” That’s a worrying increase of 58 per cent since 2014, according to new statistics from Toronto police. And these are only the reported cases; the real number is likely much higher.
While the word dooring may sound playful, the accidents are anything but. “These are life-changing collisions that can result in serious injury or death,” warns Jared Kolb, executive director of the cycling advocacy group Cycle Toronto.
This sort of accident is largely avoidable. It only takes a few seconds to glance over your shoulder or look in the side mirror to make sure no cyclists are coming before getting out of a car.
Cycle Toronto advocates a practice called the “Dutch reach,” which requires drivers to open doors using their right hand. That forces them to look behind them for approaching bicycles before exiting their cars. In the Netherlands, this move is taught to children in school and is a mandatory part of driver education.
The Ontario government took welcome action to address the problem in 2015, increasing penalties for dooring. The offence now comes at a cost of $365 and three demerit points on conviction.
This was a good step, as was Toronto city council’s decision to build more dedicated bike lanes, which can prevent accidents before they happen. Last June council passed a $153-million, 10-year cycling plan that would add more than 400 kilometres of new bike infrastructure.
Still, as Mobishwash’s case proves, separated bike lanes don’t protect cyclists from those who inconsiderately choose to park illegally in them. In 2015, 6,500 tickets were handed out — at $150 a pop — to drivers for this offence. And that represents only a fraction of the problem, since many illegal parkers are presumably never caught.
Probably the best way to protect cyclists, then, is by educating drivers. That’s something the city plans to do in a safety education campaign planned for later this year, says Councillor Jaye Robinson, the city’s point person on the road safety plan.
In the meantime, drivers should try the Dutch reach. It could save a life.
There were 209 doorings in Toronto last year — an increase of 58.3 per cent since 2014