Area cyclists were saddened at the needless death of Paul Merges Jr., who was struck down by a pickup truck driver in Albany ("Speeding driver charged in death," Nov. 25).
The Albany Bicycle Coalition members, and cyclists in general, extend their sympathies to Mr. Merges' family.
Albany has not experienced cyclist fatalities since Nicholas Richichi and Diva De Loayza in 2007. In each of these cases, blame fell on both the motor vehicle operators and the cyclists.
Thankfully, drivers in Albany are generally considerate of cyclists even when those cyclists are somewhat casual in their approach to traffic laws and safety.
If there is any object lesson in the tragic death of Mr. Merges it is that, regardless of fault, bicyclists always suffer the most in any motor vehicle-bicycle collision.
LORENZ M. WORDEN
President
Albany Bicycle Coalition