I know, I know…how morbid, she likes stuff revolving around death…but its not all about the death part, its about remembering them and raising awareness. Ghostbikes.org is a website that I came across a couple years ago that serves as a directory to a rising trend in white painted memorial bikes stationed where cyclists have been killed on the road.
Maybe its just me, but there’s something artistic coming out of these tragedies and I don’t know about you, but I love this kind of stuff. Yes, its extremely sad why its happening, but its raising awareness that more cyclists are dying on the road due to negligence behind the wheel (and cyclist overconfidence in some instances) than we may realize. They can be found in cities all over the world, some are taken down some stay up. Sacramento had one when a biker was killed on L street near the Downtown Plaza by a bus. These roadside memorials serve as reminder to share the road, and to always be careful when riding or driving.
Maybe I love these ghost bikes because they remind me of what I’m working on for my book project. They are very similar in theory. A memorial to a lost loved one on the road.
After witnessing a bicyclist lying in the road recently, I am at awe that there are these memorials. Great job in bringing this subject up Val! We all need to be reminded that we need to be more aware of our surroundings while driving, especially at night. Love this article!
i totally forgot all about the time you saw that biker. yea its scary, apparently there is another ghost bike near sac state. people need to be taught to look out for cyclists. i feel like during drivers ed we glossed over cyclists and focused on pedestrians instead.