NEW ORLEANS (WGNO) — Bicyclists and families came out to a memorial ceremony on Sunday, May 19, to honor the lives of people killed while riding their bikes.
“Want to be able to create a space for them and advocate for them to make sure nobody has to go through it,” said Bike Easy Executive Director Allene La Spina.
The League of American Bicyclists’ latest studies show New Orleans has the highest rate of fatal bicyclist crashes among major metro areas in the U.S. Gerard Schoen with Lake Lawn Metairie Funeral Home and Cemeteries believes the event reminds both cyclists and drivers about safety.
“We are such a compact town, and the streets go different directions and whatever. So, bicycle safety is something that really needs to be educated. I got a feeling we will end up doing this and growing it further,” said Schoen.
Bicyclists rode through the oak-lined streets of the historic Metairie cemetery. Bike advocates say this is a safe space for all affected by bike tragedies. They plan to continue to speak out, hoping to make the streets safer for people riding their bikes throughout the city.
“It’s important to create a space for folks to come and heal together for the families of those who have died in crashes to find resources and have a sense of community. In general, to have the bike community come together, that’s really important, bringing awareness,” said La Spina.
“I can’t move on while this problem keeps stealing our families. I can’t move on while the same hot spots keep taking lives over and over again. Until, unless the city and the department of transportation move with me,” said co-chair of the New Orleans Complete Streets Coalition, Nellie Catzen.
La Spina doesn’t believe change is coming fast enough.
“Driving violence has become a norm. I know they are working on enforcement, which is great but there are ways we can design our streets to make it safer. Nobody who is on a bike doing the normal route that they do all the time should be killed,” said La Spina.
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