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[/profileleft]Chargers game traffic is often a complete mess. We all understand that, and that’s why those of us who have gone to Chargers games tend to plan accordingly and leave home early. When a Chargers game is held on a Friday night, traffic is likely to be even worse than usual. Many a San Diego bicycle accident lawyer has met with an injured person because of crashes caused by these traffic problems that relate to football games. Unfortunately for Peter King, a Tweeted photo of Chargers game traffic and how he and a colleague handled it led to a local backlash that was far from pleasant. No one was injured or even put at risk of immediate injury by what was happening in the photo, but it seems to have touched a nerve with the large bicyclist community of San Diego.
About the Controversial Tweet
Mr. King and his colleague, Jenny Vrentas, were on their way to Qualcomm Stadium on Friday evening to cover the Chargers preseason game. As per usual before the game, traffic was extremely heavy. Mr. King, per his own feed on Twitter, told Ms. Vrentas to get to the stadium as quickly as possible. Unfortunately, that may have led to driving down the bicycle lane and around the traffic that was backed up near the stadium. Mr. King took a photo of the maneuver. It appears below:
SAN DIEGO-I told driver @JennyVrentas to get to Qualcomm as fast as she could. I have no comment on this. pic.twitter.com/iIzCcAAOzA
— Peter King (@SI_PeterKing) August 20, 2016
After some initial lighthearted banter with other Twitter users, the overall reaction turned very negative. The San Diego Union-Tribune published an article on the situation, and that included some examples of those negative reactions. You can find a link to that article here. Mr. King apologized the next morning for the decision. Others who had initially engaged in conversation apologized for their lack of seriousness in their responses as well.
About San Diego County Bicycle Accidents
The obvious reason that people reacted in a negative manner to the Tweet is because San Diego is home to an enthusiastic bicyclist community. It’s rare for people to drive anywhere in the county and not see bicyclists along the side of the road. That’s one of the reasons that bicycle lanes are so common here. Driving in bicycle lanes is illegal for obvious safety reasons. Police officers will issue citations to motorists driving in these bicycle lanes even if no accident occurs.
Despite these safety measures, a large number of San Diego bicycle accidents still occur. In 2015 alone, 949 San Diego County bicycle accidents took place. These crashes led to 985 injuries and fatalities combined. That number has been relatively constant in recent years. It is fortunate that nothing went wrong in terms of a crash or even a heightened level of risk. However, this is an example of what not to do when attempting to avoid traffic.
Contact a San Diego Bicycle Accident Lawyer
If you are riding a bicycle and you are injured by a negligent motorist, you need to contact a San Diego bicycle accident lawyer who understands what it takes to hold those responsible for this type of harm accountable. Contact Gomez Trial Attorneys today to schedule a free initial consultation.
