vettecat: (pen)
[personal profile] vettecat
While working in the store this afternoon, we heard a crash! from outside. We were both entangled in projects, and it wasn't a very loud crash, so neither of us went to investigate. Shortly thereafter, however, a police car pulled up in front of the store... followed by an ambulance... followed by a fire engine, all with sirens running. (I believe one of each is the prescribed response to a 911 call.) We looked out the window again to see a crowd gathering on the sidewalk. That made me curious enough to put aside my project (assembling things with bits of foam) to step outside and see what was happening.

As I watched the swirling chaos, a pattern emerged. There was a car stopped in front of our store, in the right-hand driving lane, with its passenger mirror broken off. A policeman was talking to the driver. The ambulance was parked next to that car, making it a narrow squeeze for traffic going by in the left lane. (I believe the police car was in front of that car, and the fire engine was behind it.) There was a Vespa parked directly in front of our store, between two parked cars; another policeman was examining it. On the sidewalk in front of the store to our left, a group of EMTs were attending to a man in a biking helmet, strapping him onto a board. (Fortunately he was sitting up when I first saw him, talking to the EMTs, so he didn't seem to be seriously injured.) And another policeman was talking with a man next to a parked car in front of the EMT group, who seemed rather excited and was gesturing a lot.

I asked the nearest people on the sidewalk if anyone knew what happened but nobody was sure. The best I was able to gather, from listening to chatter and watching what was going on, was that the Vespa rider had been hit by the car. I surmised that the guy by the parked car was a witness, but realized there was no advantage to my being out there, and went back to my project. Within a short while the crowd had dissipated and no evidence remained... except the Vespa, which was still parked in front of our store.

A couple hours later, we noticed a man trying to start the Vespa. At first, we thought it was the original rider - which would have been impressive - but I didn't think it looked like the same guy. We hypothesized that this was a friend come to take the cycle home. He didn't seem to be having much success, though. Shortly he was joined by a woman, and they both continued poking and prodding the cycle. After a few minutes of this, I decided to go outside and see if I might be able to help somehow.

The man and the woman had indeed come to get the cycle, but they turned out to be from the hospital. I thought it was impressive that this was part of the service! The rider had given them his keys and told them where he lived, and they had come to bring the cycle home for him. But they couldn't get it to start. I told them I unfortunately don't know much about Vespas... but then realized my mother has a friend who owns one. (Those of you who go to KTM might know who I mean.) So I offered to call her and ask for advice, and they gratefully accepted.

So I went back inside, dialed her number on the portable phone, and gave her a brief outline of the situation. (Fortunately, she was home.) She was happy to help, and I passed the phone to the man from the hospital so she could tell him what to try. But nothing she suggested seemed to work. (I learned later that he has been riding motorcycles for years, and was very frustrated by not being able to start this supposedly simple machine.)

While the man continued to poke at the cycle, I told the woman that I had seen the rider taken away but didn't actually know what had happened. So she filled me in. It seems that he had been riding his Vespa between the right-hand lane of traffic (stopped at the traffic light) and the parked cars, and someone in a parked car opened his door without looking. (This would be the guy I thought was a witness. She told me that the guy had a car full of children, and was probably distracted.) So the rider smacked into the door, was knocked off his cycle, and fell into the car next to it - which would be how its mirror got broken off. I asked how he was, and she said he seemed OK but they were running a series of x-rays to be sure. So in the meantime they had come to get his bike...

In the process of trying to get the cycle to cooperate, they noticed a dent where it had struck the door. Shortly we noticed another, and another... and they came to the conclusion that something must have come disconnected in the impact, and they'd have to go get a van from the hospital in order to move it. This seemed to frustrate them, understandably, but since there was nothing more I could do at this point I wished them well and excused myself to go back into the store. They continued to poke at it for a while longer, but eventually had to give up.

I don't imagine I'll ever find out who the rider was, but I'm hoping he wasn't too badly hurt. The woman from the hospital indicated that he was probably OK, but I'm sure that at a minimum he'll be sore for a while - and it seems he's going to need to get his Vespa fixed...

Bike vs Door

Date: 2006-05-05 10:16 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] cogitationitis.livejournal.com
Interestingly, a similar incident happened to me once when I was biking along Mass Ave in Cambridge--a guy opened his car door in front of me. Although I always look when I open my car door, I nearly did it to a bicyclist as well.

Re: Bike vs Door

Date: 2006-05-07 03:54 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] vettecat.livejournal.com
Glad you weren't hurt!

Date: 2006-05-05 10:29 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] pressburger.livejournal.com
That's what happens when you drive a Vespa. he should have driven a harley like a good American.

Date: 2006-05-07 03:54 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] vettecat.livejournal.com
Then maybe the door would have broken instead.

Date: 2006-05-09 02:16 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] pressburger.livejournal.com
Probably. Harleys are tough.

Date: 2006-05-05 12:50 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] angwantibo.livejournal.com
I have had 2 similar experiences. Car doors are not the friends of bicyclists. Most drivers do not look before opening their doors and cyclists or scooterists don't have enough time to react. One time I went flying from bike. Fortunately, my Judo training kicked in and I did a forward roll. Bystanders were amazed that I got back up, hopped on my bike and rode away.

Because of the speed of a Vespa, shouldn't the rider be in the traffic lane instead of on the side?

Speaking of which, Boston needs bicycle lanes. They could easily do this by removing all of the on-street parking. Without parking spaces, maybe more people will switch to bicycles and Vespas. That would reduce pollution, reduce arab oil consumption and increase exercise. :)

Date: 2006-05-05 01:49 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] pandorahunter.livejournal.com
Where are you from? Americans do not want to increase activity
and are not truly concerned about the environment:)

Date: 2006-05-05 03:12 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] angwantibo.livejournal.com
I grew up in California. You must not be considering Californians to be Americans. California is the only state that requires ultra low emissions. It also is a state where most people exercise outside regularly. The weather helps.

Date: 2006-05-05 03:18 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] pandorahunter.livejournal.com
ah the beautiful people, yeah i'm from cincinnati and here there is alot of talk but little action.

Date: 2006-05-05 03:16 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] michelel72.livejournal.com
I was under the impression that the reason Boston has so few parking spaces is because of an EPA (?) restriction on creating new parking spaces, because of pollution -- the theory in fact being that this would encourage more use of public transit ... but the reality being that people just spend longer driving around looking for parking!

Date: 2006-05-05 04:02 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] sfrose.livejournal.com
I always thought it was counter-productive for the MBTA to raise the rates at the commuter parking lots and garages. If the lowered the rates there instead, it might encourage more people to to take the T. (of course the green line stations closest to me don't have commuter parking or postage stamp sized lots!)

Date: 2006-05-07 03:57 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] vettecat.livejournal.com
Seems logical, which probably means it won't happen...

Date: 2006-05-07 03:56 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] vettecat.livejournal.com
Sounds frighteningly plausible...

Date: 2006-05-07 03:55 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] vettecat.livejournal.com
That's impressive about the roll-and-bounce, it's nice that your skills have real-life uses.

And I think it's more likely that bikes would be banned than that they'd get rid of the parking spaces...

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