So far this year, there have been 685 bicycle crashes in Pinellas County — with 10 people dying as a result.
The Florida Department of Transportation reported more than 8,000 bicycle crashes statewide for the first 10 months of the year. This includes 156 deadly crashes — with 38 of the people who died riding in the Tampa Bay area.
According to the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office, a cause for their incidents involves cyclists running red lights, stop signs and getting hit by cars.
In a YouTube video, Sgt. Jessica Mackesy said that at least four cyclists in October were critically injured or killed in crashes with vehicles.
"Physics doesn't care if you've done it 100 times before. A 4,000-pound vehicle versus a bike, there's only one outcome," Mackesy said. "And looking both ways isn't enough when there's a driver who has the right of way and expects you to stop. Stop means stop — on the road, on the trail — every time."
On "Florida Matters Live & Local," host Matthew Peddie spoke with Kyle Simpson, who is the active transportation planner with Forward Pinellas. This is the county's metropolitan planning office.
Simpson said the current number of crashes is on par for the year, but that the goal is to have zero serious injury or deadly crashes for anyone using their transportation systems. That plan is called Safe Streets Pinellas. He said that when looking at trends over time, overall crashes with all modes of transportation have been trending steadily or down. Simpson also said they look at crash data on a rolling average because there tend to be peaks and valleys throughout the years.
ALSO READ: Car-Free St. Pete relaunches, expands as Connect Pinellas
"We have adopted the safe systems approach, which is with the Federal Department of Transportation, as well as the Florida DOT, and that the primary item of that is that people are human, and we all make mistakes," Simpson said. "And so we need to design a transportation system that allows for someone to make a minor mistake, and that mistake not be a serious injury or fatal mistake."
Simpson added this involves looking at how they design their roads and doing so with land-use context in mind. For example, if there are apartments on one side of the street and a grocery store on the other side, there should be a way for people to safely cross the street. Speed is another aspect of ensuring the limits are appropriate for how the area is being used.
He said that for their data, it's difficult to parse out how many electric bike crashes are involved, but that they do see those increasing.
"So under Florida law, if a device goes faster than 28 mph with the motor on that device, it's not an electric bicycle. It's basically an unlicensed or unregistered motor vehicle," Simpson said.
But if you think just because you're riding a bike, you're considered a pedestrian, you may want to consider where you're pedaling.
Simpson said under Florida law, if you're biking in the roadway, you're considered to be on a motor vehicle. Whereas, if you're on the sidewalk, you'll follow pedestrian rules.
"The biggest difference is on the sidewalk on a bike, you have to yield to pedestrians and then you follow pedestrian signals," Simpson said. "If you're in the road, you act like a car, and you follow all the stop signs and red lights that car would do."
Simpson encouraged newer cyclists not to bike where they would drive so they can get used to the roads and feel safer.
"I think overall, if you follow the rules of the road, it's safe to walk and bike within the Tampa Bay region," Simpson said. "We're not where we want to be on the safety measure. Our goal is zero and so we're working to get there. But if you follow the rules of the road and you're aware of your surroundings, it is a safe experience."
This story was compiled from interviews conducted by Matthew Peddie for "Florida Matters Live & Local." You can listen to the full episode here.
