What are the common causes of bicycle/automobile collisions?
The most common cause of bicycle/automobile collisions are crashes at intersections where the driver of a car simply isn’t paying attention or doesn’t see the cyclist. Accordingly, the best way to avoid a crash is to ride defensively and assume the motorist isn’t paying attention and doesn’t see you, even if you have the right-of-way. Another common cause of crashes in the City comes from motorists opening the doors of parked cars into the bicycle lane when a cyclist is approaching, causing the cyclist to crash into the door, or swerve to avoid the door and enter the path of passing motorists. Accordingly, when cycling in areas with parked cars, cyclist should be aware of whether motorist are in parked vehicles (and potentially preparing to exit the vehicle), and travel on the interior side of the bike lane. It is also noteworthy that Illinois law specifically prohibits motorists from opening their door until they make sure it is reasonably safe to do so without interfering with the mo
