Iowa Bicycle Coalition Statement on death of cyclist John Maxwell

Tue September 26 2006
Posted Sep 26, 2006
7,162

The death of cyclist John Maxwell on September 24, 2006 is this year's third preventable cyclist death on Iowa's roadways. The vehicle operator that killed John Maxwell was arrested following the crash for driving under the influence. Once again, this is a motor vehicle/bicycle crash that should have never happened. Too many people have lost their lives to drivers who choose to be drugged, drunk, distracted, or drowsy and get behind the wheel. We can longer accept irresponsible choices as regrettable yet unavoidable byproducts of our transportation system. The Iowa Bicycle Coalition is doing all that it can do to educate cyclists on safety, push for complete streets, and create motorist awareness. What will ultimately stop the needless deaths of the most vulnerable travelers is for Iowans to consider traffic safety as a responsibility and an to have an intolerance of reckless decisions while driving. Mark Wyatt Iowa Bicycle Coalition