this post was submitted on 13 Aug 2025
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The media blames the e-bike!: "Car crash that killed young boy started when e-bike hit car" (www.nbcbayarea.com)
submitted 1 day ago by miss_demeanour@lemmy.dbzer0.com to c/fuckcars@lemmy.world
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“It’s so sad, so I’m just devastated. It shouldn’t have happened, and I heard an e-bike was involved. Those e-bikes are out of control. They spook me all the time,” said Cathy Murray of Burlingame.

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[–] DrunkEngineer@lemmy.world 29 points 22 hours ago

To clarify: the eBike "hit" the car because the driver pulled out into traffic without looking, so the eBike rider was another victim.

The e-bike rider had the right-of-way. "Local police have confirmed e-bike riders were in the traffic lane and the driver pulled in front of them instead of yielding to oncoming traffic."

https://sf.streetsblog.org/2025/08/11/driver-caused-burlingame-tragedy-not-an-e-bike-rider

[–] Quacksalber@sh.itjust.works 88 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago) (1 children)

Burlingame police say a 19-year-old woman driving a white car was in a parking lot across the street when the car was hit by an e-bike. Police say the vehicle then accelerated forward across Donnelly Avenue into the restaurant, hitting the two children who were on the sidewalk.

Perfectly normal reaction. ^/s^

[–] BakerBagel@midwest.social 14 points 23 hours ago

My buddy's fiance is horrifying when she drives. Every little thing triggers her anxiety and her first reaction is to just floor ot when she gets upset

[–] PunnyName@lemmy.world 63 points 1 day ago

If they're spooked by an e-bike, they're gonna fucking lose their god-damned mind when they deal with an e-car.

[–] jerkface@lemmy.ca 32 points 1 day ago (1 children)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yellow_journalism

[–] FundMECFSResearch@lemmy.cafe 10 points 1 day ago

Aka. Clickbait

[–] MedicPigBabySaver@lemmy.world 9 points 23 hours ago

Alt headline: "New Teenage Driver Kills Kid."

[–] psx_crab@lemmy.zip 21 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Burlingame police say a 19-year-old woman driving a white car was in a parking lot across the street when the car was hit by an e-bike. Police say the vehicle then accelerated forward across Donnelly Avenue into the restaurant, hitting the two children who were on the sidewalk.

No no no, not the vehicle, the 19-year-old psychopath accelerated toward two kids, one is 4 years old and another one is 6, murdered one and assaulted another one.

Police say the driver from San Mateo stayed at the scene and cooperated with investigators, and they do not suspect drugs or alcohol were a factor in the crash.

It's murderous intent.

“It’s so sad, so I’m just devastated. It shouldn’t have happened, and I heard an e-bike was involved. Those e-bikes are out of control. They spook me all the time,” said Cathy Murray of Burlingame.

Bitches, a teenager using a car to murder a kid doesn't spook you, but an ebike does.

[–] onslaught545@lemmy.zip 9 points 23 hours ago* (last edited 23 hours ago) (2 children)

I don't think you know what murderous intent or psychopath means. There's no intent behind a panic response.

[–] astutemural@midwest.social 7 points 18 hours ago (1 children)

If it's not intentional, it's deadly incompetence. You have a responsibility to handle a several ton vehicle safely. If you cannot do that, it honestly doesn't matter if it was intentional or not - someone is still dead, and you are still to blame. Replace 'car' with 'gun' and this would be an uncontroversial take. Only with cars are people somehow willing to accept the risk of fucking murdering someone just to make their commute more convenient.

[–] onslaught545@lemmy.zip 5 points 17 hours ago

Right, that's why there's a criminal charge for it called vehicular manslaughter

[–] psx_crab@lemmy.zip 1 points 22 hours ago (2 children)

Panic respond? She's in the parking lot, a panic respond would be going down the car and scold the kids, not drive from the parking lot across the road and toward the kids outside the restaurant.

Do you panic the same way?

[–] onslaught545@lemmy.zip 2 points 19 hours ago* (last edited 19 hours ago) (1 children)

I don't, but hitting the gas instead of the brakes is a very common panic response.

I think you're misinterpreting the article. The kids she hit and the e-bike rider are different people.

She got hit, panicked, floored it, and hit unrelated children. She didn't get hit by the bike and say, "I'm gonna go murder some children now."

She's guilty of vehicular manslaughter, for sure, but absolutely not murder.

[–] psx_crab@lemmy.zip 2 points 14 hours ago

Huh, i think i did.

[–] ZJBlank@lemmy.world 1 points 19 hours ago (1 children)

People getting their pedals confused happens with frightening regularity. She probably meant to slam the brakes but her foot was over the wrong pedal, and in her panic and confusion failed to understand that the vehicle was accelerating because she was on the wrong pedal. Absolutely a bad driver, obviously, but that doesn’t make it wilful or malicious.

[–] onslaught545@lemmy.zip 2 points 17 hours ago

It sounds like they think the kids she hit were the ones riding the e-bike.

[–] user224@lemmy.sdf.org 11 points 1 day ago (3 children)

I read that, watched the video, and I am still confused what happened.

I do understand what is in the article, but not what might have happened in the car.

I am not a driver, and don't know anything about cars, so this may be a stupid idea, but could it be accidentally enabled cruise control? If it can just speed up from 0 to any arbitrary speed, that could be the answer, mixed with some panic. I am sure breaks still work in any case.

[–] tankplanker@lemmy.world 11 points 1 day ago

People panic and jam on the accelerator with their foot thinking its the brake pedal. Its very common with elders when they panic when they past the point they should be driving anymore.

[–] half_fiction@lemmy.dbzer0.com 13 points 1 day ago

I also read the article and am having a hard time understanding what happened in the car. Given the driver's relative young age, I have to wonder if it was a newer driver who straight up panicked and accidentally hit the accelerator instead instead of the brakes. This is often the cause when old people drive into buildings.

[–] Mike_The_TV@lemmy.world 21 points 1 day ago

Cruise control can only engage when already going over a certain speed. The car in this case could only go if someone hits the gas pedal.

[–] lath@piefed.social 6 points 1 day ago (4 children)

No offense to this, but teens on motorized wheels are usually a menace. Not their fault though, the need for speed is omnipresent. Regardless of vehicle, we want to go fast and furious.

[–] manxu@piefed.social 11 points 1 day ago

I fully agree with you: a lot of people shouldn't be on the roads. I am not blaming the need for speed, though. Even in places like Burlingame, with a decent public transportation system, people that shouldn't be on the road and even people that don't want to be on the road are forced to be there because it's near impossible to get from A to B without a car.

That 100% absolutely needs to change.

[–] coyootje@lemmy.world 9 points 1 day ago

Let me preface this by saying I haven't read the article so i can't say anything about this specific case.

As for your comment, I agree. It's one thing to have an e-bike that goes slightly faster than regular cycling speed (20-25 km/h). However, where I live (the Netherlands) there's have "fatbikes" now, basically the current generations scooter which is given to children at a much younger age and not regulated at all. No helmets, no protective clothing, no minimum age, nothing. Those things can go faster than 30 km/h and it's somewhat common to tune them to go 40 km/h or more. That is a ridiculous speed for a 12 year old to take part in traffic with.

You're going faster than a car driving to a neighborhood area here. There's a reason why cars can only go 30 and somehow you can go 40? Add to that the brazenness of a young kid and you have a pretty dangerous cocktail. Fatbikes formed a large share of the traffic accidents last year and there doesn't seem to be any sign of this changing with the government we have here being constantly in crisis or getting ready for another doomed election.

[–] griff 4 points 1 day ago (1 children)

carbrain/ e-bike brain/ pedestrian brain = why can’t we all get along?

[–] lath@piefed.social 5 points 1 day ago

Because due to a lack of proper infrastructure, we often come to see the others as being in the way.

[–] Tangent5280@lemmy.world 3 points 1 day ago

These kids should get themselves a dirt bike. Spends a ridiculous amount of energy, and tones your body down to a greek statue without you even knowing. It's a tad bit kore dangerous though at that age they shrug most injuries off