After the fatal accident in Trudering, in which a cyclist was run over by a truck on Friday, Mayor Dieter Reiter (SPD) announced that cycle paths in the middle would be checked for safety. He also commissioned the mobility department to check the accident scene in Trudering and, if necessary, to “implement immediate measures”.
“As a city, we have the goal of avoiding fatal and serious cycling accidents as completely as possible, the so-called ‘Vision Zero’, I continue to stick to that, and safety is my top priority,” said Reiter in a press release on Monday afternoon who expressed his dismay at the fatal accident. “If the arrangement of the cycle path led to the terrible accident, then we urgently need to rethink cycle paths in the middle.”
On Friday, the cyclist was riding her bike in a cycle lane that is located at an intersection on Bajuwarenstrasse between the straight ahead lane and the right-turn lane for motor vehicles. A 66-year-old truck driver overlooked the woman while changing lanes and hit her and her bike. The 65-year-old died at the scene of the accident.
The ADFC sent out a sharp statement on the accident on Sunday. This shows how dangerous the so-called central cycle lanes are for cyclists. The ADFC had already criticized the construction of the lane in Riem when it was being built. Andreas Schön, 1st Chairman of the ADFC Munich, explained: “Anyone who builds something like this puts the fastest possible traffic flow of motor vehicles above the road safety of cyclists. So the city risks deaths – as has unfortunately now been shown.”
Mayor Dieter Reiter must now finally prioritize the safety and health of cyclists and put the interests of motor vehicle traffic second, the statement continues. This also included immediate measures, such as introducing the cycle path into the road earlier, and ultimately converting it in the long term to protect cyclists.