An adult bicyclist is in critical condition Thursday evening after being struck by a vehicle near Old Koenig Lane and North Lamar Boulevard in Austin. Medics declared a trauma activation at the scene and rushed the patient to a nearby hospital for emergency care.
According to ATCEMS
, the incident was reported as a vehicle-versus-bicycle collision at the intersection, and medics declared a trauma activation on the adult patient who was reported to have been struck while riding a bicycle. The patient was transported to Dell Seton Medical Center with critical injuries, per the same agency's report.
Beyond the location, the trauma activation, and the transport to Dell Seton, the details of Thursday's crash remain limited.
A Pattern of Serious Cyclist Crashes in Austin
Vehicle-on-bicycle crashes have drawn scrutiny in Austin before. In one case examined by KXAN, cyclist JoJo McKibben was struck by a vehicle at Lightsey Road and South Congress Avenue on April 3, 2018, according to Austin police. The driver in that crash was arrested and charged with failure to stop and render aid, the station reported.
That wasn't McKibben's first serious crash. In an earlier incident described in the same report, police said a driver ran a red light, hit a van, and then struck McKibben, with that driver later arrested on a DWI charge. McKibben described suffering internal injuries in that crash, telling the station, “my liver was bleeding, that was the thing that would have killed me,” and loved ones said she spent six weeks in a coma afterward.
Those earlier cases underscore how severe injuries from cyclist-vehicle collisions can be, even when victims survive. For general safety guidance aimed at reducing such crashes, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration offers bicycle safety tips for cyclists and drivers alike, though that guidance is not specific to Thursday's crash or to Austin crash trends generally.
What Remains Unknown
As of Thursday evening, ATCEMS's report stands as the sole account of the crash near Old Koenig Lane and North Lamar Boulevard. The identity of the driver, the circumstances that led to the collision, and whether any citations or charges may follow have not been disclosed. Hoodline will update this story as more information becomes available.
