Collision Type #1:  The Right Cross

This is the most common ways to get hit (or almost get hit. A car is pulling out of a side street, parking lot, or driveway on the right. Notice that there are actually two possible kinds of collisions here: Either you're in front of the car and the car hits you, or the car pulls out in front of you and you slam into it.

How to protect yourself:

• Get a headlight, if you ride at night
• Slow down
• Ride further to the left

A driver opens his door right in front of you. You run right into it if you can't stop in time. If you're lucky, the motorist will exit the car before you hit the door, so you'll at least have the pleasure of smashing them too when you crash, and their soft flesh will cushion your impact.

How to protect yourself:

• Ride far enough to the left of parked cars

Collision Type #3:  The Crosswalk Slam

You're riding on the sidewalk and cross the street at a crosswalk, and a car makes a right turn, right into you. Cars aren't expecting bikes in the crosswalk, so you have to be very careful to avoid this one.

How to protect yourself:

• Get a headlight, if you ride at night.
• Slow down so you can stop if necessary.
• Don’t ride in the crosswalk in the first place.
• Walk your bike.

Collision Type #4:  The Wrong-Way Wreck

You're riding the wrong way (against traffic, on the left-hand side of the street). A car makes a right turn from a side street, driveway, or parking lot, right into you. They didn't see you because they were looking for traffic only on their left, not on their right. They had no reason to expect that someone would be coming at them from the wrong direction.

How to protect yourself:

• Don’t ride against traffic

Collision Type #5: The Red Light of Death

You stop to the right of a car that's already waiting at a red light or stop sign. They can't see you. When the light turns green, you move forward, and then they turn right, right into you.

How to protect yourself:

• Don’t stop in the blind spot.
• If you chose spot A, then ride quickly to cross the street as soon as the light turns green. Are you sure the driver has seen you?
• If you chose spot B, then when the light turns green, DON'T pass the car in front of you
• Maybe a better option:
• Behave like a car to be seen

Collision Type #6: The Right Hook

A car passes you and then tries to make a right turn directly in front of you, or right into you. They think you're not going very fast just because you're on a bicycle, so it never occurs to them that they can't pass you in time.

How to protect yourself:

• Don’t ride on the sidewalk
• Ride to the left and take the whole lane if you have to.
• Look behind you before moving left.
• Assume a car may do this.

Collision Type #7: The Right Hook #2

You're passing a slow-moving car (or even another bike) on the right, when it unexpectedly makes a right turn right into you, trying to get to a parking lot, driveway or side street.

How to protect yourself:

• Don’t pass on the right.
• Look behind you before turning right.  Another cyclist may be passing you on the right!

Collision Type #8: The Left Cross

A car coming towards you makes a left turn right in front of you, or right into you. This is similar to #1, above.

How to protect yourself:

• Don’t ride on the sidewalk.
• Get a headlight if riding at night.
• Wear something bright.
• Don’t pass on the right making yourself invisible to left-turning cars.
• Slow down.  Inconvenience doesn’t matter.

Collision Type #9: The Rear End

You innocently move a little to the left to go around a parked car or some other obstruction in the road, and you get nailed by a car coming up from behind.

How to protect yourself:

• Never move left without looking behind you.
• Don't swerve in and out of the parking lane if it contains any parked cars.
• Use a mirror.
• Signal lane changes or movement.

Collision Type #10:  The Rear End #2

A car runs into you from behind. This is what many cyclists fear the most, but it's actually not very common, comprising only 3.8% of collisions.  However, it's one of the hardest collisions to avoid, since you're not usually looking behind you.

How to protect yourself:

• Get a rear light if you ride at night.
• Wear bright-colored clothes or a reflective vest.
• Choose wide streets.
• Choose slow streets.
• Choose back streets at night.
• Use a mirror to monitor the traffic behind you.
• Don’t hug the curb so as to give yourself maneuvering room.