Teen cyclist killed in bus collision wrote prophetic essay

“Please Do Not Run Me Over” is the title on an essay that Austin Miller of Beaverton, Oregon, wrote for his high school newspaper last year.

It surfaced again this week in Portland media outlets after the 15-year-old sophomore at the Art and Communication Magnet Academy was struck and killed by a bus while pedaling home from school on Feb. 11.

The story by the young bicycling enthusiast tells about a fictional town where the inhabitants abandoned their bicycles for motor vehicles. He later goes on to write about the poor state of motorist-biker relations and the need for bike lanes.

The essay concludes:

“There will always be hard feelings about this subject-we can only hope that no one will get hurt or loose a loved one due to a lack of responsibility and respect for the road. These are dangerous times, and especially for bikers, our fate lies not only in our hands, but in the hands of the drivers of which we share the road. I am glad for every day I reach the X point unscathed, but besides doing everything I can for myself, I cannot control you, I can only mutter these few words in a hope that it might do good: please do not run me over.”

Reading the whole piece, available at BikePortland.org, makes me sad and angry. The problems with our roads and motoring public are so obvious that a 15-year-old can readily grasp them, yet nothing is done and a young life is lost.

Soon after the collision, the Oregonian described the collision site as a place where, “in the course of a few hundred yards, arterial roads, sidewalks, and “multi-use” lanes snake together in what many say is a confusing and dangerous intersection.” Bicycles are routed from streets, to sidewalks, and back to streets.

A joint press release by Tri-Met transit and the Bicycle Transportation Alliance reports that “early indications are that the bus operator followed TriMet safety procedures.” Even so:

“Following the crash, TriMet trainers immediately began reinforcing to every operator (nearly 1,200 of them) the safe operating requirements when cyclists are present, including anticipating bicyclists’ movements, and yielding to cyclists before pulling into or out of a bus stop, or turning or changing lanes.”

Tri-Met says it will include more training for bus drivers operating around bicycles, and the tranist agency and BTA will work to improve bike facilities around bus stops and heavily trafficked areas.

Police are still investigating the collision; the driver is on paid leave.