VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — New data from the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles shows increased bicycle and motorcycle fatalities in 2023 compared to 2022.
In 2023 there were 15 deadly bicycle crashes statewide, according to the DMV. That number is up more than 36% from 2022. The data also shows a 12% increase in motorcycle fatalities and 15% in pedestrian crashes between 2023 and 2022.
Cyclists are on high alert after a motorcyclist was killed in a crash on Granby Street in Norfolk and a bicyclist died after colliding with a car on General Booth Boulevard in Virginia Beach over the weekend.
“We can do a better job of, you know, educating the other bicycle riders that are out there. Not running through a red light, a stop sign,” said Tim Woolford, who is an experienced bike rider.
Woolford is the lead technician at Freedom Bike Works in Virginia Beach. He said cities like Norfolk do a good job of protecting cyclists from vehicles on the road.
"They've put little icons in the middle of the lane, to let the drivers know that cyclists are gonna be in the lane,” Woolford said.
The Virginia Beach Police Department tells 13News Now that there have been six fatal crashes between pedestrians and cyclists this year.