[ETC-Discussion] Fwd: Bicycle crashes under the Ballard Bridge

[Lisa Baker]

Hi all -

I know Cathy Corn broke an arm, but has anyone else on the list met with the
ground at this unfortunate spot? If so, please contact the lawyer below -
sounds like he's building a case with Cascade Bike to get the city to
(finally) do something about it.

Cheers,
Lisa

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: David Stewart <trawetsdivad at gmail.com>
Date: Mon, Oct 12, 2009 at 8:56 AM
Subject: Fwd: Bicycle crashes under the Ballard Bridge
To: Lisa Baker <lebaker at gmail.com>


Below is an email I got from a lawyer working with some clients about the
ballard bridge and rail road tracks.  If you'd like to give him some details
of your wreck there, could help his case and the case for all cyclists
there.



---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: DaMiddaugh at aol.com <DaMiddaugh at aol.com>
Date: Oct 12, 2009 8:51 AM
Subject: Bicycle crashes under the Ballard Bridge
To: cbreidenich at yahoo.com, sayuri_w at hotmail.com, jmacuiba at comcast.net,
hgchambers at hotmail.com, harrylittle at comcast.net, beckyrex at comcast.net,
patharm at yahoo.com, jpanter at comcast.net, jon.cargille at gmail.com,
trawetsdivad at gmail.com, graemme.hanson at glg.com, hpapendick at gmail.com,
CliffVilla at aol.com, w.talbott at comcast.net, baplacek at comcast.net,
dmkabiz at fastmail.fm, rosannaj at gmail.com, aerodovey at comcast.net,
jherrin at heliotrope.cc, franklin.bradshaw at flukenetworks.com, dunfos at spu.edu,
john.mccullom at swedish.org, mruebel at herrerainc.com, chris at abajian.net,
diane.english at cascadebicycleclub.org


   Dear bicycle rider,

I am writing to you because  of the e-mail you sent to Chris Rule of the
Cascade Bicycle Club concerning the extension of the Burke Gilman trail.  In
that e-mail you indicated that you had a bicycle accident or witnessed a
bicycle accident on the railroad tracks under the Ballard bridge.

I represent 3  women who were injured in separate incidents at that spot
when their tires caught in the railroad tracks and they were thrown to  the
ground.

The railroad tracks under the Ballard Bridge where the unfinished portion of
the Burke Gilman trail crosses them is reputed to be the most dangerous
location for bicycle accidents in Seattle.  The City of Seattle maintains
that the crossing is not unreasonably dangerous.

To refute this claim I would like to show that there have been many
accidents caused by the railroad tracks. However, City of Seattle accident
records document only an average of 4 accidents per year since 2002.

What I need is to find out your name, contact information, the date
(approximate) that you crashed (witnessed a crash) on the railroad tracks. The
more accidents that I can document, the harder it will be for the City to
maintain that the crossing is safe.

In addition, if you were injured in the fall, would you consider becoming a
part of the lawsuit against the City?  I have learned that lawsuits have not
been filed against the City for this unsafe crossing because of the high
cost of litigation in comparison to the severity of the injuries sustained
by one individual. The more clients I have who were injured on the crossing,
the more economical it becomes to hire experts and  pay litigation costs.

If I am successful in proving that the railroad crossing is not reasonably
safe for cyclists and recovering damages for my client's injuries, the City
of Seattle will have to do something to make the crossing safer.

Thank you,

 David Middaugh,  Attorney