VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — According to Virginia DMV data, there were eight pedestrian and cyclist accidents in Virginia Beach this past January. These numbers are top of mind for Virginia Beach Police Chief Paul Neudigate.
While little was known about what caused Tuesday night's fatal crash, he believes certain laws have made it harder to keep cyclists and pedestrians safe during his annual crime brief to the city.
“Many times, the bicyclists and the pedestrians are engaging in conduct that they are the causative factor. Many times they are in the roadway, they're in dark clothing. And unfortunately, we're having tragic outcomes.” Neudigate said.
Chief Neudigate didn't point out the exact number of pedestrian and bicycle crashes in 2023 but he did note a slight increase compared to 2022
"We are a little bit challenged because we can no longer enforce those jaywalking violations and those types of violations that contribute to them, disregarding traffic control signals or stepping out in front of vehicles." Chief Neudigate said.
Virginia Beach law does require bikes to have lights when riding at night. You can read the full list of cycling laws here.