Cp53x11@aol.com

Amen! If they don't care about safety or well being of others, the almighty
$$$$$ will speak to them.

Tell them that is an operator of a fleet, in the event of an accident where
there is bodily injury, a full scale investigation into their safety
practices/education and documentation will certainly be a part of the deal. The
plaintiff will be very anxious to illuminate how proactive they are about this area
of the DOT regs. In my experience with working with the DOT, most companies
won't look too good in this light.

I feel like it's important to appeal to them on a non-confrontational level,
it's also our reponsibility to remind them that there are rules for everybody.
And a friendly reminder that one of their employees is putting the company
in tremendous liability is our duty, and maybe soemthing their not necessarily
thinking about.

It's funny how they think that the bikes are slowing them down, isn't it? I
don't hear about how the 100-200 cars gridlocked in front of them are ever
part of the problem slowing things down. But you get one bike whizzing down the
bike lane past the row of cars and suddenly he (or she) is the problem.

Mark J. Ginsberg

Actual TriMet on board video showed the passenger, a former boxer, get off the bus and punch the bicyclist.

The bicyclist never touched the passenger. (other than his face with the boxers fist)

Mark Ginsberg

Dan H wrote:  While I do not condone the actions the actions of the "cyclist" that got into a fist fight with a Tri-Met passenger last winter, I would have liked to heard the drivers meeting that followed.
----- Original Message -----
From: GEORGE SCHRECK
To: evanm@ci.hillsboro.or.us ; obra@list.obra.org
Sent: Friday, September 15, 2006 5:28 PM
Subject: Re: [OBRA Chat] sample letter

You may also want to mention thta bicyclists are consumers of services as well, and that a driver's bad behavior will only serve top alienate us as consumers.
This is something that any business owner will understand no matter what his opinion is regarding bicyclists on the road.

----Original Message----
From: evanm@ci.hillsboro.or.us
Date: 09/15/2006 10:14 AM
To:
Subj: [OBRA Chat] sample letter

st1\:*{behavior:url(#default#ieooui) } OK, so I read the complaint letter, and I thought about some of those responses. In the heat of the moment, it is easy to take the situation personally and want to vent. But that doesnâ??t always get us where we want to be with â??the accused.â? So I drafted a quick letter that might be useful by people who have similar encounters. Feel free to plagiarize, modify, or do what you will with it. If you can come up with something better, great.


To Whom It May Concern:

I was recently involved in a minor altercation/incident/whatever with one of your drivers. At approximately 12:00 p.m. on September XX, 2006, near the intersection of XXXX road and XXX Street, one of your delivery vehicles almost hit me on my bicycle. The vehicle number/license number was XXXXX. When I confronted the driver, he/she started yelling obscenities at me about so on and so forth, and threatened me, etc.

I ask that you please consider the actions of your employees when they are on public roads. As a cyclist, I have the same rights and responsibilities on the road as any other user. As a driver, your employees have the right to be on the road just as I do, and they also have the responsibility to be safe and courteous drivers. Threatening cyclists simply for being on the road is neither safe nor courteous, and poses a very serious risk to your company both in terms of public relations and personal liability.

While I escaped this situation unharmed, it is very possible the employee who caused this situation has done so in the past, and may continue to do so in the future. This sort of behavior, if not checked, has the potential to result in injury or even death for the next bicyclist this employee encounters, and potential financial ruin for the company who employs him/her. Certainly you can understand that in our increasingly litigious society, the financial consequences can be dire when an employee acts irresponsibly while on the job. Not to mention the needless injury or death of an innocent person, and the immense grief that will be suffered by family and friends who must deal with the senseless loss of life of someone very dear to them.

A lot of people ride bicycles for a lot of different reasons. Some because they like to, and many because they have no other choice. Bicyclists are mothers, fathers, children, and friends. They are people just like you. In fact, one of them might be your son or daughter (or mine). I know that not every bicyclist obeys the rules of the road, and as much as I wish they did that does not excuse a driver from harming one who does.

I would hope that you would educate all your employees to these facts, and also to the fact that they are all personal representatives of your company. Their actions reflect on your company, and as their employer you are ultimately responsible for them. You have a vested interest in employing people who respect the rules of the road.

Thank you for your time and understanding.

Keep the rubber side down,

Joe Cyclist

---------------------------------

_______________________________________________
OBRA mailing list
obra@list.obra.org
http://list.obra.org/mailman/listinfo/obra
Unsubscribe: obra-unsubscribe@list.obra.org
_______________________________________________
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obra@list.obra.org
http://list.obra.org/mailman/listinfo/obra
Unsubscribe: obra-unsubscribe@list.obra.org

Mark J. Ginsberg
Attorney At Law
621 SW Morrison St., Ste. 900
Portland, OR 97204
(503) 542-3000
Fax (503) 227-2530
markjginsberg@yahoo.com
www.bikesafetylaw.com

---------------------------------
Get your email and more, right on the new Yahoo.com

Dan H

While I do not condone the actions the actions of the "cyclist" that got into a fist fight with a Tri-Met passenger last winter, I would have liked to heard the drivers meeting that followed.
----- Original Message -----
From: GEORGE SCHRECK
To: evanm@ci.hillsboro.or.us ; obra@list.obra.org
Sent: Friday, September 15, 2006 5:28 PM
Subject: Re: [OBRA Chat] sample letter

You may also want to mention thta bicyclists are consumers of services as well, and that a driver's bad behavior will only serve top alienate us as consumers.

This is something that any business owner will understand no matter what his opinion is regarding bicyclists on the road.

----Original Message----
From: evanm@ci.hillsboro.or.us
Date: 09/15/2006 10:14 AM
To:
Subj: [OBRA Chat] sample letter

OK, so I read the complaint letter, and I thought about some of those responses. In the heat of the moment, it is easy to take the situation personally and want to vent. But that doesn’t always get us where we want to be with “the accused.” So I drafted a quick letter that might be useful by people who have similar encounters. Feel free to plagiarize, modify, or do what you will with it. If you can come up with something better, great.

To Whom It May Concern:

I was recently involved in a minor altercation/incident/whatever with one of your drivers. At approximately 12:00 p.m. on September XX, 2006, near the intersection of XXXX road and XXX Street, one of your delivery vehicles almost hit me on my bicycle. The vehicle number/license number was XXXXX. When I confronted the driver, he/she started yelling obscenities at me about so on and so forth, and threatened me, etc.

I ask that you please consider the actions of your employees when they are on public roads. As a cyclist, I have the same rights and responsibilities on the road as any other user. As a driver, your employees have the right to be on the road just as I do, and they also have the responsibility to be safe and courteous drivers. Threatening cyclists simply for being on the road is neither safe nor courteous, and poses a very serious risk to your company both in terms of public relations and personal liability.

While I escaped this situation unharmed, it is very possible the employee who caused this situation has done so in the past, and may continue to do so in the future. This sort of behavior, if not checked, has the potential to result in injury or even death for the next bicyclist this employee encounters, and potential financial ruin for the company who employs him/her. Certainly you can understand that in our increasingly litigious society, the financial consequences can be dire when an employee acts irresponsibly while on the job. Not to mention the needless injury or death of an innocent person, and the immense grief that will be suffered by family and friends who must deal with the senseless loss of life of someone very dear to them.

A lot of people ride bicycles for a lot of different reasons. Some because they like to, and many because they have no other choice. Bicyclists are mothers, fathers, children, and friends. They are people just like you. In fact, one of them might be your son or daughter (or mine). I know that not every bicyclist obeys the rules of the road, and as much as I wish they did that does not excuse a driver from harming one who does.

I would hope that you would educate all your employees to these facts, and also to the fact that they are all personal representatives of your company. Their actions reflect on your company, and as their employer you are ultimately responsible for them. You have a vested interest in employing people who respect the rules of the road.

Thank you for your time and understanding.

Keep the rubber side down,

Joe Cyclist

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

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OBRA mailing list
obra@list.obra.org
http://list.obra.org/mailman/listinfo/obra
Unsubscribe: obra-unsubscribe@list.obra.org

david baker

Thank-you Evan,
I was starting to feel like writing a letter just like that this morning but had to work.
You are right on!
Thanks for taking the time to write that.

----- Original Message -----
From: Evan MacKenzie
To: obra@list.obra.org
Sent: Friday, September 15, 2006 10:14 AM
Subject: [OBRA Chat] sample letter

OK, so I read the complaint letter, and I thought about some of those responses. In the heat of the moment, it is easy to take the situation personally and want to vent. But that doesn't always get us where we want to be with "the accused." So I drafted a quick letter that might be useful by people who have similar encounters. Feel free to plagiarize, modify, or do what you will with it. If you can come up with something better, great.

To Whom It May Concern:

I was recently involved in a minor altercation/incident/whatever with one of your drivers. At approximately 12:00 p.m. on September XX, 2006, near the intersection of XXXX road and XXX Street, one of your delivery vehicles almost hit me on my bicycle. The vehicle number/license number was XXXXX. When I confronted the driver, he/she started yelling obscenities at me about so on and so forth, and threatened me, etc.

I ask that you please consider the actions of your employees when they are on public roads. As a cyclist, I have the same rights and responsibilities on the road as any other user. As a driver, your employees have the right to be on the road just as I do, and they also have the responsibility to be safe and courteous drivers. Threatening cyclists simply for being on the road is neither safe nor courteous, and poses a very serious risk to your company both in terms of public relations and personal liability.

While I escaped this situation unharmed, it is very possible the employee who caused this situation has done so in the past, and may continue to do so in the future. This sort of behavior, if not checked, has the potential to result in injury or even death for the next bicyclist this employee encounters, and potential financial ruin for the company who employs him/her. Certainly you can understand that in our increasingly litigious society, the financial consequences can be dire when an employee acts irresponsibly while on the job. Not to mention the needless injury or death of an innocent person, and the immense grief that will be suffered by family and friends who must deal with the senseless loss of life of someone very dear to them.

A lot of people ride bicycles for a lot of different reasons. Some because they like to, and many because they have no other choice. Bicyclists are mothers, fathers, children, and friends. They are people just like you. In fact, one of them might be your son or daughter (or mine). I know that not every bicyclist obeys the rules of the road, and as much as I wish they did that does not excuse a driver from harming one who does.

I would hope that you would educate all your employees to these facts, and also to the fact that they are all personal representatives of your company. Their actions reflect on your company, and as their employer you are ultimately responsible for them. You have a vested interest in employing people who respect the rules of the road.

Thank you for your time and understanding.

Keep the rubber side down,

Joe Cyclist

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_______________________________________________
OBRA mailing list
obra@list.obra.org
http://list.obra.org/mailman/listinfo/obra
Unsubscribe: obra-unsubscribe@list.obra.org

GEORGE SCHRECK

You may also want to mention thta bicyclists are consumers of services as well, and that a driver's bad behavior will only serve top alienate us as consumers.

This is something that any business owner will understand no matter what his opinion is regarding bicyclists on the road.

----Original Message----
From: evanm@ci.hillsboro.or.us
Date: 09/15/2006 10:14 AM
To:
Subj: [OBRA Chat] sample letter

st1\:*{behavior:url(#default#ieooui) }

OK, so I read the complaint letter, and I thought about some of those responses. In the heat of the moment, it is easy to take the situation personally and want to vent. But that doesn’t always get us where we want to be with “the accused.” So I drafted a quick letter that might be useful by people who have similar encounters. Feel free to plagiarize, modify, or do what you will with it. If you can come up with something better, great.


To Whom It May Concern:

I was recently involved in a minor altercation/incident/whatever with one of your drivers. At approximately 12:00 p.m. on September XX, 2006, near the intersection of XXXX road and XXX Street, one of your delivery vehicles almost hit me on my bicycle. The vehicle number/license number was XXXXX. When I confronted the driver, he/she started yelling obscenities at me about so on and so forth, and threatened me, etc.

I ask that you please consider the actions of your employees when they are on public roads. As a cyclist, I have the same rights and responsibilities on the road as any other user. As a driver, your employees have the right to be on the road just as I do, and they also have the responsibility to be safe and courteous drivers. Threatening cyclists simply for being on the road is neither safe nor courteous, and poses a very serious risk to your company both in terms of public relations and personal liability.

While I escaped this situation unharmed, it is very possible the employee who caused this situation has done so in the past, and may continue to do so in the future. This sort of behavior, if not checked, has the potential to result in injury or even death for the next bicyclist this employee encounters, and potential financial ruin for the company who employs him/her. Certainly you can understand that in our increasingly litigious society, the financial consequences can be dire when an employee acts irresponsibly while on the job. Not to mention the needless injury or death of an innocent person, and the immense grief that will be suffered by family and friends who must deal with the senseless loss of life of someone very dear to them.

A lot of people ride bicycles for a lot of different reasons. Some because they like to, and many because they have no other choice. Bicyclists are mothers, fathers, children, and friends. They are people just like you. In fact, one of them might be your son or daughter (or mine). I know that not every bicyclist obeys the rules of the road, and as much as I wish they did that does not excuse a driver from harming one who does.

I would hope that you would educate all your employees to these facts, and also to the fact that they are all personal representatives of your company. Their actions reflect on your company, and as their employer you are ultimately responsible for them. You have a vested interest in employing people who respect the rules of the road.

Thank you for your time and understanding.

Keep the rubber side down,

Joe Cyclist

Joel Morrissette

Beautifully written. Why not make this an open letter to drivers and see if
the Oregonian will publish it? It's just the kind of thing we could use
right now.

-Joel

--
__o "It never gets easier,
_ \<_ you just go faster."
(_)/(_) -- Greg LeMond

Josh LeBus

well said....

On 9/15/06, Evan MacKenzie wrote:
>
> OK, so I read the complaint letter, and I thought about some of those
> responses. In the heat of the moment, it is easy to take the situation
> personally and want to vent. But that doesn't always get us where we want to
> be with "the accused." So I drafted a quick letter that might be useful by
> people who have similar encounters. Feel free to plagiarize, modify, or do
> what you will with it. If you can come up with something better, great.
>
>
>
>
>
> To Whom It May Concern:
>
>
>
> I was recently involved in a minor altercation/incident/whatever with one
> of your drivers. At approximately 12:00 p.m. on September XX, 2006, near
> the intersection of XXXX road and XXX Street, one of your delivery vehicles
> almost hit me on my bicycle. The vehicle number/license number was XXXXX.
> When I confronted the driver, he/she started yelling obscenities at me about
> so on and so forth, and threatened me, etc.
>
>
>
> I ask that you please consider the actions of your employees when they are
> on public roads. As a cyclist, I have the same rights and responsibilities
> on the road as any other user. As a driver, your employees have the right to
> be on the road just as I do, and they also have the responsibility to be
> safe and courteous drivers. Threatening cyclists simply for being on the
> road is neither safe nor courteous, and poses a very serious risk to your
> company both in terms of public relations and personal liability.
>
>
>
> While I escaped this situation unharmed, it is very possible the employee
> who caused this situation has done so in the past, and may continue to do so
> in the future. This sort of behavior, if not checked, has the potential to
> result in injury or even death for the next bicyclist this employee
> encounters, and potential financial ruin for the company who employs
> him/her. Certainly you can understand that in our increasingly litigious
> society, the financial consequences can be dire when an employee acts
> irresponsibly while on the job. Not to mention the needless injury or death
> of an innocent person, and the immense grief that will be suffered by family
> and friends who must deal with the senseless loss of life of someone very
> dear to them.
>
>
>
> A lot of people ride bicycles for a lot of different reasons. Some because
> they like to, and many because they have no other choice. Bicyclists are
> mothers, fathers, children, and friends. They are people just like you. In
> fact, one of them might be your son or daughter (or mine). I know that not
> every bicyclist obeys the rules of the road, and as much as I wish they did
> that does not excuse a driver from harming one who does.
>
>
>
> I would hope that you would educate all your employees to these facts, and
> also to the fact that they are all personal representatives of your company.
> Their actions reflect on your company, and as their employer you are
> ultimately responsible for them. You have a vested interest in employing
> people who respect the rules of the road.
>
>
>
> Thank you for your time and understanding.
>
>
>
> Keep the rubber side down,
>
>
>
> Joe Cyclist
>
> _______________________________________________
> OBRA mailing list
> obra@list.obra.org
> http://list.obra.org/mailman/listinfo/obra
> Unsubscribe: obra-unsubscribe@list.obra.org
>
>
>

Evan MacKenzie

OK, so I read the complaint letter, and I thought about some of those
responses. In the heat of the moment, it is easy to take the situation
personally and want to vent. But that doesn't always get us where we
want to be with "the accused." So I drafted a quick letter that might be
useful by people who have similar encounters. Feel free to plagiarize,
modify, or do what you will with it. If you can come up with something
better, great.

To Whom It May Concern:

I was recently involved in a minor altercation/incident/whatever with
one of your drivers. At approximately 12:00 p.m. on September XX, 2006,
near the intersection of XXXX road and XXX Street, one of your delivery
vehicles almost hit me on my bicycle. The vehicle number/license number
was XXXXX. When I confronted the driver, he/she started yelling
obscenities at me about so on and so forth, and threatened me, etc.

I ask that you please consider the actions of your employees when they
are on public roads. As a cyclist, I have the same rights and
responsibilities on the road as any other user. As a driver, your
employees have the right to be on the road just as I do, and they also
have the responsibility to be safe and courteous drivers. Threatening
cyclists simply for being on the road is neither safe nor courteous, and
poses a very serious risk to your company both in terms of public
relations and personal liability.

While I escaped this situation unharmed, it is very possible the
employee who caused this situation has done so in the past, and may
continue to do so in the future. This sort of behavior, if not checked,
has the potential to result in injury or even death for the next
bicyclist this employee encounters, and potential financial ruin for the
company who employs him/her. Certainly you can understand that in our
increasingly litigious society, the financial consequences can be dire
when an employee acts irresponsibly while on the job. Not to mention the
needless injury or death of an innocent person, and the immense grief
that will be suffered by family and friends who must deal with the
senseless loss of life of someone very dear to them.

A lot of people ride bicycles for a lot of different reasons. Some
because they like to, and many because they have no other choice.
Bicyclists are mothers, fathers, children, and friends. They are people
just like you. In fact, one of them might be your son or daughter (or
mine). I know that not every bicyclist obeys the rules of the road, and
as much as I wish they did that does not excuse a driver from harming
one who does.

I would hope that you would educate all your employees to these facts,
and also to the fact that they are all personal representatives of your
company. Their actions reflect on your company, and as their employer
you are ultimately responsible for them. You have a vested interest in
employing people who respect the rules of the road.

Thank you for your time and understanding.

Keep the rubber side down,

Joe Cyclist