A scooter rider got clipped in what could have been a disastrous incident in South Vancouver.
Shared on a Facebook driving group, the video shows a car heading south on Fraser Street near 45th Avenue following a white SUV and a scooter driver riding in the right lane on the two-lane street.
The South Vancouver collision occurred on June 3, the same day new BC road rules were enacted, though we are awaiting confirmation whether those rules were relevant to this collision.
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According to the person behind the video, who chose to remain anonymous, the driver later left the scene without communicating with the scooter rider despite the video showing the driver initially pulling over.
On the Facebook group, people speculated about who was at fault. The discourse in the comments reflects tensions between car drivers and cyclists or scooter riders.
One user suggested that the scooter driver “smacked the car, and that’s what he got.”
In response, one user pointed out that the new laws specifically state that the SUV was in the wrong. Others suggested that the car didn’t give the scooter enough space.
Most people in the group seemed sympathetic to the scooter rider, but some pointed out that he should’ve had his helmet strapped on fully.
Another user said that this stretch of Fraser Street is “crazy for cars, pedestrians, cyclists.”
According to the new rules, drivers passing vulnerable road users must keep a minimum distance of one metre on highways with speeds of 50 km or less or one and a half metres on highways with speeds of 51 km or more.
This also applies to drivers passing vulnerable road users riding in separated and protected bike lanes and on sidewalks, requiring a minimum of half a metre distance.
Regardless of whether or not those rules played a part in this situation, ICBC says that “drivers must allow three or four seconds of following distance when behind a motorcycle and plenty of lane space when you pass.”
We asked the BC Ministry of Transportation if it could clarify whether the new rules were relevant to this incident, but they told us to ask the police.
What do you make of this incident? Let us know in the comments.