A serious bicycle crash in Bentonville in March 2025 has raised new awareness of the importance of bicycle safety in northern Arkansas. The crash occurred at a busy intersection, which raises concerns about how to make Bentonville a safer place for everyone on the road.
Bentonville and Arkansas Bicycle Crash Statistics
Arkansas ranks 39 of 50 among “bicycle-friendly” US states overall and 9 of 13 southern states for bicycle safety, according to the League of American Bicyclists. The organization, which represents bicyclists throughout the US, ranked Arkansas 47 of 50 states in bicycle safety.
In 2019, 7,019 pedestrians and bicyclists died in traffic crashes, according to the Arkansas Department of Transportation (ARDOT). Between 2020 and 2023, the Arkansas State Police recorded 837 bicycle crashes.
A 2018 report found that 13 percent of all roadway deaths and serious injuries in that year occurred to bicyclists. The report also noted that despite significant investments by the Arkansas Department of Transportation (ARDOT) in bicycle safety throughout the 2010s, the rate of deaths and serious injuries had not decreased.
Common Causes of Arkansas Bicycle Accidents
Bicycle accidents occur for several reasons. Often, they result from motorists failing to take due care to share the roads safely with bicycles.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the most common causes of bicycle accidents include drivers failing to yield the right of way and distracted driving.
Failure To Yield the Right of Way
The most common cause of bicycle accidents is a driver failing to yield the right-of-way to a bicyclist. The bicyclist may have the legal right to proceed, but the driver moves instead, striking the bicyclist.
Failure to yield the right of way often occurs at intersections. A driver may turn left or right into a bicyclist’s path, hitting the bicyclist or causing the bicyclist to collide with another vehicle in an attempt to avoid the moving car. A driver may also hit a bicyclist while pulling out of a driveway or while changing lanes without checking for bicyclists.
Distracted Driving
The second most common cause of bicycle crashes are drivers who don’t see a bicyclist until it is too late to avoid the collision, according to the NHTSA. Driver distraction is a common cause of this failure to spot bicyclists.
Using cell phones, eating, having conversations, or becoming engrossed in something inside or outside the vehicle can all result in a distracted driving crash. These accidents can cause serious injuries or death to bicyclists.
Other Causes of Bicycle Crashes
Other factors that contribute to bicycle crashes include drivers failing to yield when changing lanes, drunk or drugged driving, impaired visibility due to weather or darkness, and road conditions such as curves and grades. Speeding is a factor in many bicycle crashes, according to the US Department of Transportation.
Bicycle crashes are most common between June and September, but they can happen at any time of year.
Other causes can also trigger a bicycle accident, causing serious or fatal injuries. If you’re injured or lose a loved one in a crash, speak to an experienced Bentonville bicycle accident lawyer as soon as possible.
Making Bentonville a Safer Place for Bicyclists
The League of American Bicyclists notes that Arkansas can take steps to make its roads safer for bicyclists, such as creating dedicated bike lanes throughout the state, increasing its funding for bicycle and pedestrian safety measures, and reducing speed limits in areas frequented by bicyclists.
Arkansas also recently passed a “stop as yield” law. This law allows bicyclists to treat a stop sign as a yield sign if it would be safer for the bicyclist to keep moving than to stop. The law recognizes that for bicyclists, visibility decreases sharply when the bike comes to a complete stop. By continuing to move through an intersection, a bicyclist can get out of the way of motor vehicles while remaining more visible to drivers. Eight other US states also have “stop as yield” laws.
In September 2024, the Arkansas State Police (ASP) Highway Safety Office launched a safety campaign. Called “Extreme Safety,” the campaign sought to reduce deaths and injuries among bicyclists, pedestrians, and motorists on the state’s roads. The campaign provided information to all three categories of travelers on how to keep themselves safe on the streets.
If you’ve been injured by a car after riding a bicycle in Bentonville, speak to an experienced Bentonville bicycle injury attorney today. The team at the Law Office of Jason M. Hatfield can help navigate you through this difficult time.