Admittedly a no-go for me. There a lots of options for anyone.
“was wearing “relatively” dark clothing”
“Relatively” already gives the impression that we aren’t talking black, just that it wasn’t a signal or hi-vis color.
“using an earphone”
This wording makes me think the cyclist used one earbud and not both or full headphones. So he could hear his surroundings well.
“his front light may not have been working”
Not even a fact, but a possibility.
To summarize, he was a traffic participant in a non-signal color, listening to music. That’s it.
Of course cyclist are more vulnerable than cars, but anyone who sees fault in the cyclist behavior is often overlooking similar or worse behavior in drivers.
Nobody ever asks the owner of a black car if they have a death wish or ask someone to turn of the radio, because they can’t hear the traffic as well.
I wish people would hold all traffic participants to the same standards.
The article lists four things about the cyclist.
Admittedly a no-go for me. There a lots of options for anyone.
“Relatively” already gives the impression that we aren’t talking black, just that it wasn’t a signal or hi-vis color.
This wording makes me think the cyclist used one earbud and not both or full headphones. So he could hear his surroundings well.
Not even a fact, but a possibility.
To summarize, he was a traffic participant in a non-signal color, listening to music. That’s it.
Of course cyclist are more vulnerable than cars, but anyone who sees fault in the cyclist behavior is often overlooking similar or worse behavior in drivers.
Nobody ever asks the owner of a black car if they have a death wish or ask someone to turn of the radio, because they can’t hear the traffic as well.
I wish people would hold all traffic participants to the same standards.