Ventura County bus driver arrested for felony hit-and-run after colliding with bicyclist Thursday
VENTURA, Calif. – A driver of a Ventura County Transportation Commission bus was arrested and booked for felony hit and run Thursday after colliding with a bicyclist and failing to render aid.
Around 9:50 a.m. on Thursday, Ventura Police Department Communications Center received multiple calls about an injury collision on Telegraph Road east of Joanne Avenue and responding officers found an injured bicyclist in the roadway with major injuries to his lower body detail Ventura Police Department.
According to Ventura Police Department, after an investigation, it was determined that the 64-year-old cyclist was riding lawfully on the right side of Telegraph Road heading westbound toward Joanne Avenue.
A westbound blue bus overtook the bicyclist, collided with his handlebars which knocked him to the roadway, and the bus' rear wheels then ran over the downed cyclists lower body causing major injuries detail Ventura Police Department.
Ventura Police Department relay that a motorist behind the bus observed the collision and stopped to render aid while the bus continued on its route without stopping to offer aid or exchange information.
Ventura Police Department explain that the bus was determined to be part of the Ventura County Transportation Commission's (VCTC) fleet based on a witness statement.
The driver was located with help from VCTC, placed under arrest, and booked into Ventura County Jail for felony hit-and-run detail Ventura Police Department.
Anyone with information about this incident is asked to contact Ventura Police Command Center at 805-650-8010.
The Ventura Police Department remind motorists that vehicles must leave a safe distance for bicyclists when overtaking them. Vehicle code section 21760 states:
(a) This section shall be known and may be cited as the Three Feet for Safety Act.
Vehicle code section 21760
(b) The driver of a motor vehicle overtaking and passing a bicycle that is proceeding in the same
direction on a highway shall pass in compliance with the requirements of this article applicable to
overtaking and passing a vehicle, and shall do so at a safe distance that does not interfere with the safe
operation of the overtaken bicycle, having due regard for the size and speed of the motor vehicle and
the bicycle, traffic conditions, weather, visibility, and the surface and width of the highway.
(c) A driver of a motor vehicle shall not overtake or pass a bicycle proceeding in the same direction on
a highway at a distance of less than three feet between any part of the motor vehicle and any part of
the bicycle or its operator. The driver of a motor vehicle overtaking or passing a bicycle that is
proceeding in the same direction and in the same lane of travel shall, if another lane of traffic
proceeding in the same direction is available, make a lane change into another available lane with due
regard for safety and traffic conditions, if practicable and not prohibited by law, before overtaking or
passing the bicycle.
(d) If the driver of a motor vehicle is unable to comply with subdivision (c), due to traffic or roadway
conditions, the driver shall slow to a speed that is reasonable and prudent, and may pass only when
doing so would not endanger the safety of the operator of the bicycle, taking into account the size and
speed of the motor vehicle and bicycle, traffic conditions, weather, visibility, and surface and width of
the highway.
