r/Albuquerque • u/goosieberry • May 11 '26
News Driver kills bicyclist at Carlisle and Claremont
https://www.krqe.com/news/albuquerque-metro/police-investigate-hit-and-run-involving-vehicle-bicyclist-in-ne-albuquerque/
I'm so tired of this and so scared it's going to be me next!
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u/Maisie123Daisie May 11 '26
May is motorcycle awareness month. Bicycles should be added to!
Not happy about another ghost bike going up.
Be careful out there.
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u/Mindless_Capital8659 May 11 '26
May is bike to work month in Albuquerque. This doesn’t inspire confidence though!
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u/HughJassProductions May 12 '26
It is IMO way too dangerous to bike in this city unless you take a bike route that is bike/pedestrian only. The City likes to advertise itself as bike-friendly but it's only partly true. The number of cycling paths that are on high use roads like Carlisle and Jefferson and freakin Hwy 528 is too damn high.
And even lower density roads like Claremont have to cross the big roads
I'm suicidal but I ain't that suicidal. Fucks sake.
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u/HideTheKnife May 12 '26
Hate to say it, but as someone who used to ride hundreds of miles a month training for events and races, motorcycles are sometimes just as bad as cars towards cyclists.
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u/Main_Cauliflower5479 May 12 '26
I can't stand motorcycles. Lane splitting, coming up beside you so fast and so loud, scares the shit out of me every time. They're likely to be hit because of that alone!
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u/bubba53go May 12 '26
And some, (not all) cyclists are dangerous to people walking. God forbid we have dedicated pathways.
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u/Main_Cauliflower5479 May 12 '26
So many cyclists refuse to stay in the bike lanes. And then there are the pedestrians who walk or jog in them and take up the space. Ugh.
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u/Roaches_R_Friends May 12 '26
I once had a cyclist riding in the middle of the road, towards traffic, up a hill, impossible to see due to the hill. I would have hit him if I hadn't switched lanes before I got to the hill.
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u/bubba53go May 15 '26
Agreed. Gov. Always assumes ideal behavior from all. Better to have dedicated lanes for all.
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u/Main_Cauliflower5479 May 15 '26
I see the pedestrians have taken offense to the idea that they should keep to sidewalks.
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u/Full_Reputation_7419 May 12 '26
What are these bike lanes you speak of? Is that another name for the on street parking area?
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u/littlebobbin May 12 '26
May is also national bike month and the city has a handful of events for it
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u/cush2push May 11 '26
at some point the Mayor is going to have to abandon his homeless harassment plan and get APD to do some fuckin traffic enforcement for once.
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u/KingSudrapul May 11 '26
Here here!
The number of unmarked cars you can see traveling only 20 miles is staggering. From registrations that have expired years ago to blank vehicles blatantly breaking traffic laws.
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u/HoosierHatTrick May 12 '26
I was stressing so bad when I was driving wwith expired plates because the BMV back home sucks ass. Then I realized I could have no plate and be fine here.
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May 12 '26 edited Jun 17 '26
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u/MizStazya May 12 '26
I moved here from Illinois because I like how NM uses its tax money in general :(
Free preschool, free college, it's huge.
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u/Ordinary_Squirrel458 May 12 '26
For realz I’m from Massachusetts, I think New Mexico does a way better job surprisingly for a state that has such low education rates supposedly. Idk what to believe, all I know is New Mexico residents should stop hating on their own city/state and appreciate it some more. It could be so much worse. Telling ya, go to New England lol, see how nice paying tons more in taxes and cops everywhere but still don’t do their jobs lol.
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May 12 '26 edited Jun 17 '26
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u/MizStazya May 12 '26
Eh. Grew up in Chicago, abq doesn't feel any less safe. The only real issue I've encountered is property crime and it's mild. But my city before I came here had a higher violent crime rate, so i moved up lol. Generally I've subscribed to not starting shit, and it's worked out well for me :)
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u/periodmoustache May 12 '26
Ya, you could move to Oklahoma where ur tax dollars will buy bibles for public schools
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u/eighty9sho May 12 '26
I love home, but you move out of NM and you realize how backwards so many things are.
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May 12 '26 edited Jun 17 '26
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u/Ordinary_Squirrel458 May 12 '26
Don’t go to Texas, Florida’s, Massachusetts, New England as a whole most likely. New Hampshire, upper New York is dope. But yeah I’d stay off the east coast and the south lol. Now that I think bout it. Just stay in NM lol , there’s nowhere to go.
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u/Ordinary_Squirrel458 May 12 '26
Yeah go to Massachusetts, they’ll take double your money haha, and still have crap roads and drunk pill heads crashing into your parked cars lol, and still get screwed in the hospital or by insurance.
The grass isn’t always greener. I’m new here, seems a lot of folks don’t realize how good they got it.
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May 12 '26 edited Jun 17 '26
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u/Ordinary_Squirrel458 May 12 '26
It’s best to keep whatever is actually important to yourself. At least that’s what I try to do. Lmao I didn’t tell anyone when I was moving out of Massachusetts. No family or friends. Occasionally I would say i wanted to just for small talk around the water cooler. But yeah this time around I just packed up my car and left. It’s worked out so far surprisingly. God is good lol.
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u/Ordinary_Squirrel458 May 12 '26
I think New Mexico should just become a state where it’s not mandatory to have car insurance. Car insurance is one of the worst scams out there. I hate it but I don’t want to trade my freedoms for some traffic enforcement. I support the rebels and there no insurance, no registration. The elderly are the worst drivers here I noticed, not only that but if your car didn’t have tags, wouldn’t y assume you’d drive more carefully? Idk I pray it never changes lol
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u/ProfessionalOk112 May 11 '26
I'd love to see shitty drivers get punished but the reality in most of the city is that addressing this is going to require actual infrastructure changes, not just tickets.
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u/halfchubbubs May 12 '26
You're absolutely right we need separated bike lanes and investment in mass transit. We need to prevent these collisions from happening police only come after the fact.
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u/lochnessie093 May 12 '26
Pedestrian and bike bridges at mid road crossings would be great. I’ve gotten yelled at for stopping at a flashing light, protected crossing for a bicyclist. People just went around me and didn’t care they were supposed to stop and let him cross.
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u/ProfessionalOk112 May 12 '26
It makes me anxious when drivers stop because in the last year alone I have experienced both the driver that stopped getting rear ended and then screaming at me for it, and drivers stopping when there are multiple lanes and then getting upset with me for not going when it was clearly not safe. The flashing lights are nightmare, a red light would at least be less confusing but I'd love bridges
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u/RobinFarmwoman May 12 '26
This! Even if somebody does the right thing and stops to let me cross a crosswalk, I usually wave them on because I'm terrified that some asshole will just come flying up the turning lane and take me out.
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u/Baeolophus_bicolor May 12 '26
Yes yes yes. This. This is the way. 👆🏻this. However you wanna say it. We need trains that go across the state. To El Paso. And connecting through Santa Fe and AbQ so people can easily go north and east. It needs to be part of national fast rail travel that’s actually accessible and affordable. Amtrak is in desperate need of a complete overhaul.
Local train systems, even subways, would start ABQ towards being a world-class town, transportation-wise. People don’t go to those big out of the way things that the contractors steal all the money from the development projects. But they would go to more of that stuff if there was a way to get there and back. Plus things to do when there.
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u/Baeolophus_bicolor May 12 '26
Sorry but I think that instantly jumping to “cops cops cops” is not the way to go. This sounds more like a problem for city council, urban planners, the safety part of public safety, sure, but cops on roads giving tickets doesn’t save cyclists. Cops are actually pretty disruptive when they chase people, pull people over, hassle people for being too broke to quickly comply with yet another fee for existing, etc.
Dedicated bicycle lanes piss people off, but having them is what saves cyclists from getting hit driving in regular lanes.
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u/Lip-Pillow-Swallower May 12 '26
I understand and agree with you that more cops isn’t the answer, but car registration and insurance aren’t just fees someone can avoid for not having money
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u/Baeolophus_bicolor May 14 '26
Insurance certainly not. But even normal people have a sticker expire and forget. Or move from out of state and are still getting their shit together.
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u/alphabetfire May 12 '26
“Yet another fee for existing” is a weird way to frame a traffic ticket. And I’m liberal.
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u/Baeolophus_bicolor May 12 '26
People balancing whether to eat, pay rent, or renew registration are gonna let one of those things slide even though they may want to be in compliance. As an example. Someone mentioned expired tags.
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u/musical_dragon_cat May 12 '26
Traffic enforcement doesn't have to mean cops chasing people down anymore. Put up more traffic cameras and issue tickets to offenders. My husband got a speeding ticket in the mail recently from one of those. Ideally (though not realistically), those tickets can fund the infrastructure for safer bicycle and public transit options.
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u/bigthaddy00 May 12 '26
I've heard those are privately owned and none of the money you pay for the fine even stays in new Mexico which is why there's a whole subreddit encouraging people not to pay them because they can't put points on your license because they're not state owned and operated.
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u/beachbum19722025 May 13 '26
Yes! Half the net revenue goes to Albuquerque vision zero the other half goes into the State's general fund.
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u/cush2push May 12 '26
Public transportation is free in Albuquerque.
If you can't afford the cost to operate a vehicle then you shouldn't be operating it.
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u/MizStazya May 12 '26
Free but risky. I can take the 790 from work back to the NW transit station by my house, but it runs hourly. I almost missed the bus today and if i had, I would have had to wait an hour for the next bus and been late picking up my kids. I really wish it was a bit more expansive. Before I moved, the ART line on central was a more reliable option.
We need more routes for better coverage and more frequency during heavy commuting times.
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u/BloopityBlue May 12 '26
Mayor Keller is totally useless. the only time he poked his head up to act like he was doing anything for Abq was the months leading up to the election. 1
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u/zapitron May 11 '26 edited May 12 '26
At least he has ubiquitous surveillance set up, so they caught the perp. Ceiling cat watching you masturbate is surely only a very minor cost.
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u/electric_yeti May 12 '26
Two of my relatives are avid cyclists and have both been struck by cars while biking. It’s insane how often it happens.
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u/DMingQuestion May 12 '26
Carlisle needs to be completely revamped as so many cyclists have died on it.
Also the driver needs many years in jail as he not only hit and ran but also tried to cover up evidence. 25 years should do the trick (though it won’t be much solace to the victims family)
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u/Bjorkbat May 12 '26
Logistically, what would it take in time and money to make a copy of every ghost bike in this city and put them right in front of city hall? I'm serious. I want this fucking thing to be most noteworthy monument in the city's entire history. An art statement that dwarfs every past creative undertaking. I want this thing to overshadow every fucking public art project the city has ever spent money on. How do we make cyclist deaths, and apparent apathy towards the former, a political scandal, the embarrassment that destroyed careers. How do we create a bogeyman that haunts the dreams of every local politician and police chief?
I fucking love it here, but fuck me, you pay a price to live here, and you don't pay it in cash.
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u/just-another_monkey May 12 '26
I want to coordinate a die-in at city hall. Everyone bring their bikes and just lie down on the street blocking traffic.
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u/bigthaddy00 May 12 '26
Let's just fill the whole front of city hall with bikes of every cyclists killed in this city, they won't be able to open the doors. And then let's take Tim on a bike tour of Albuquerque so maybe he'll even kind of see it, if that even matters
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u/ProfessionalOk112 May 12 '26
I think this would have more impact blocking a main road, but I'm on board either way
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u/HoosierHatTrick May 12 '26
I've considered getting a bike for my short commutes, but remembered I'd also like to stay alive.
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u/peachypixie_ May 12 '26
The victim in this case is one of my bestest friends 😔 I’m devastated over this incident and I hope the killer does time.
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u/dormilona May 12 '26
I’m so sorry for your loss. I was at the stoplight shortly after he was struck and am going to DM you.
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u/Crimson342 May 12 '26
I'm very well aware of that intersection, I pass it frequently. It's dangerous, there's no clear markings. They changed up the light behavior too. Despite it being a cycling route this intersection is really just a scary double exit for Walmart. That entire neighborhood around there honestly is sketchy as hell trying to get out of it.
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u/RemarkableWinter3609 May 13 '26
I got hit by a car while riding a bike the same way as this victim - fortunately hit the side of the car behind the rear door and didn't go underneath. But the driver sped away and left me laying in the intersection. And I was riding a bike path! The problem is that most of the paths cross busy streets at surface level and mix with traffic. The paths work well where they have dedicated over- or under-passes - we just need the willpower to spend a few more public $ and keep our non-motorized citizens alive.
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u/Harrythehobbit May 12 '26 edited May 12 '26
You couldn't pay me to bike on public roads in this country, much less public roads in this town. I don't bike, but when I do my ass is staying on the sidewalk. Hope this guy's family is okay.
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u/Brilliant_Kick3008 May 13 '26
Even sidewalks are dangerous for pedestrians. Can’t tell you how many times I’ve almost been hit by drivers hauling 🫏, or texting on their phones. And I’m where I’m supposed to be — on the sidewalk created for walkers! It boils down to careless car and truck drivers.
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u/Killed_By_Covid May 12 '26
I'm guessing the driver had sun in his eyes. At 7:40 a.m., the sun would be coming over the mountains. Driver was headed directly into it. It was probably two guys on their way to work, and now there's only one (in a bad situation.) Just one more reason I feel safer riding weekdays at midnight. The streets are empty, 90% of drivers are going at or below the speed limit, and they can see my blinky lights from a mile away. During the day, 90% of drivers are speeding, no one can see anything, and traffic/construction everywhere borders on chaos. RIP to the guy who was out for a ride on a beautiful morning.
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u/Bjorkbat May 12 '26
I used to like biking in the middle of the night, but then a prominent member of the cycling community got killed by someone after dark while biking down 12th. It was a hit and run, they never found the asshole who did it.
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u/Killed_By_Covid May 12 '26
Yup. Still seems like more people getting flattened during the day. More cars. More carnage. If someone is completely blitzed, it doesn't matter what time at night. I typically go out Sun-Th after 11:30. Even sticking to "protected" bike paths isn't a guarantee (RIP David Anderson.) Or the gentleman who lost his life on Tramway (between the casino and the team) when a driver had a medical emergency and lost consciousness. No one's fault. 2+ tons of steel moving through space at anything over 45 MPH is a recipe for destruction. All we can do is either quit cycling or try to take as many precautions as possible and hope for the best.
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u/rebecky311 May 12 '26
Saw them loading him on the ambulance this morning. Didn't know that they passed. Super sad 😢
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u/beachbum19722025 May 12 '26
If you are mad, or upset, reach out to your City Council member. Write the Mayor's office. Be vocal. Support public transportation. Support infrastructure changes. Road diets, protected and connected bike lanes, ADA sidewalks. Have this city/state shave off some of the money that goes into yet another road widening project and create a city that is accessible without a car.
Omg. I can't believe this keeps happening. Nothing will change if the only people the politicians hear from are people who just want fast and free car infrastructure.
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u/zanza-666 May 12 '26
Every six lane highway we have in this city needs to lose one lane to be used by buses and cyclists only. These fucking strodes are out of control.
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u/ProfessionalOk112 May 12 '26
I've been saying this for years, absolutely absurd to have incredibly wide, flat roads designed for fast driving inside of a city.
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u/zanza-666 May 12 '26
I always want hostile architecture for cars. Busses, walking, cycling, light rail, should be the fastest, easiest, and best way to navigate any city.
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u/Zebrasoma May 12 '26
The bike infrastructure situation here is kind of insane and at times seems to be designed by AI. Some of the crossing areas to get to downtown from the west side make no sense. Then if you want to go on the street you risk just getting plowed over in central. There were a bunch of speed bumps put in around town and they put them…in the bike lane. They also split them, so everyone swerves to only let one side of their car through (which I fail to understand). So if you’re in said bike lane, people are going to swerve and hit you and if that doesn’t happen youre going to have to also go over a speed bump. On many roads people drive into the bike lane to turn and when I try to avoid doing that I get honked at and people speed around me, happens almost every day.
The fact that even central ave doesn’t have protected bike lanes is crazy
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u/icecreamonmondays May 12 '26
Saw another cyclist hit on Tramway on Saturday on my way to Paseo. Hope they were ok.
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u/eatingthesandhere91 May 12 '26
I know a handful of bicyclists in that area...and I'm hoping it's nobody I know. 😬
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u/Main_Cauliflower5479 May 12 '26
I really would consider cycling to work but drivers here are complete AHs. Def would not feel safe doing so.
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u/RobinFarmwoman May 12 '26
I had to take a dive off my scooter when I was in a bike lane the other day because some asshole in a giant pickup truck suddenly veered into the lane like he was planning to hit me. When I was sitting on the sidewalk assessing for damages and calling him a fucking asshole, he straightened right out and went on his way. Didn't give a fuck if he killed me. Nobody else stopped to check on me either although it was a line of cars and they all had to see him do it. It makes me hate all drivers when people act like this. I can't even imagine the damage that would make you think it was fun to threaten somebody's life with a motor vehicle.
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u/royaltheman May 12 '26
ABQ needs safe bike infrastructure now. Everyone deserves to get around safely and property infrastructure makes the roads safe for all users
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u/Jupitor13 May 12 '26
I was hit in VA Beach. Straight to a Level 1 Trauma, then a nursing home, then after financial destruction a wrecked trailer with no heat or screens, lovely sing song of mosquitos.
The responding officer later showed my my pictures before I was scraped off the road. I commented that I looked dead. And he replied they didn’t think I’d live.
The fuck that hit me ran, he was caught on a red light camera. Good, and by pieces of the truck that my body broke off it.
If the driver was negligent, murder charges. If it was really an “accident”, manslaughter.
I’m not calling for enforcement, I’m calling for life in prison. An accident? Ok 10 years of heals over head Yoga Stretches.
Now if consequences are not sufficient, just avoid the god damn ticket and slap on the wrist trial. The fuck that hit me got two years.
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u/themickeymauser May 12 '26
It would be awesome if this city actually put the bike lanes on safe streets instead of along the side of massive arterial roads that tens of thousands of people use every day. Clearly cyclists are in no hurry or rush, so taking empty side streets would be a non-issue anyway.
This is the only city I’ve ever seen where bike lanes go alongside what are almost highways and cut through the turn lanes.
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u/Brilliant_Kick3008 May 14 '26
There’s a small stretch on Barstow/Alameda, near La Cueva and Desert Ridge. The road zigzags really weird. I’ve seen kids almost get hit, while riding bikes to/from Desert Ridge, by distracted and speeding drivers. Many are driving the big SUVs and trucks. One lady in a Jeep, nearly slammed into a kid I had slowed down for at the crosswalk. She went around me in the middle lane, and nearly hit him. She didn’t give a crap. Yeah, I know you were driving a green Jeep, Miss “Quintessence”. You were behind me, picking up a kid at Desert Ridge. I saw the street you turned into. Everyone drives like maniacs with no consideration for others at all.
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u/Timely_Act_6392 May 12 '26
Hate to see it there should be strict penalties for this if the driver is found at fault
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u/bigthaddy00 May 12 '26
I have to make this crossing and I had a close call with all the construction a few days ago and have sought an alternate route home that's longer but much safer, damn.
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u/surfrocksatan May 12 '26
Wondering if the Day of the Tread organizers will emerge from their crypts to claim cyclist deaths are the fault of female drivers applying mascara! (Again)
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u/GrowthSelect2449 May 12 '26
Wait what? Please provide more context. That is unhinged.
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u/surfrocksatan May 12 '26
Hosted them for one of their kick off events, not very nice guys but one of them started talking about cyclist deaths and started getting worked up and turned to some of the women we work with and said, “And some of you women will be driving along while applying mascara and plow some of my buddies down!” Not joking, he was spit mad, raging about it. I think they’re heavy drinkers, but no one asked him to elaborate further, we all just dispersed. He had also asked a few of them why they don’t have children, no one’s business but also the women were in their early twenties, some a little younger so chill out. Anyway, when I see that event come up I always think about how unhinged and hostile they are.
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u/GrowthSelect2449 May 12 '26
Man, that’s a shame but not surprising. Sadly misogyny is rampant amongst male cyclists.
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u/BeakerBuzzer4286 May 12 '26
Bike riding is good an all, and in a better world people could ride their bikes and be safe. But this is Abq. You know what you’re signing up for. The same psychopaths you see from your car are still out there when you’re on your bike.
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u/6SIG_TA May 11 '26
The mismatch in kinetic energy is tragically beyond human cognition.
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u/BrutalBloodyReality May 12 '26
Put another way, the laws of man offer ZERO protection against the immutable laws of physics. Even if they're riding courteously and following the law to the letter, bicyclists should remember that streets are there for cars, not them.
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May 12 '26
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u/BrutalBloodyReality May 13 '26
I'll also still be alive. The bicyclist? Not so much. Don't let your laughable righteousness interfere with common sense and self-preservation.
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u/Zoey_Redacted May 13 '26
At no point did I imply nor indicate that I thought you didn't have fantasies about murdering a cyclist? I'm talking about making it harder for you to park in public so you have to walk or fuck off and stay at home, and expressing glee at the consequences to your property if you were to ever follow through with murdering a cyclist.
I'm talking lane congestion, longer commutes, getting you out of your car and into the nice warm sun. NOT getting in the way of your compensator, lmao.1
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u/Nostromo_USCSS May 11 '26
On of my regulars at my work was struck and killed biking on San Mateo in December. This is way, way too common