Driver Hits Two Cyclists Today in Lloyd, One Sent to Hospital

Police are searching for the driver of a silver Subaru WRX that struck two people on bikes this morning in back-to-back hit and runs in the Lloyd Center.

• Jasper Lieber: Struck by a crazed Subaru, but he’s okay!

Jasper Lieber, 47, was the first cyclist hit. He was riding his cargo bike along NE Lloyd about 7:50 am, having just dropped his young son off at daycare, and needed to get into the bike lane on the south side of Lloyd. This is a particularly dicey stretch of road at Lloyd and NE MLK—westbound cyclists have to cross multiple lanes of traffic to reach the bike lane on the south side of the road that leads to the Steel Bridge. Lieber crossed into the left westbound lane when the souped-up Subaru came roaring up behind him.

“It had what sounded like a jet engine muffler, revving its engine,” says Lieber. “He was right on my tail and I was trying to go left, signaling with my arm. He was really mad at me.” Very quickly, the car decided to cut around Lieber on the right, but as it roared past, it clipped the front of his cargo bike, sending Lieber toppling into the road. Another driver stopped at the scene to help Lieber off the ground while a second car gave chase to the Subaru—they couldn’t get a plate number because the car has no back plates. Luckily, Lieber was rattled, but not badly hurt. After years of bike commuting in the city, this is the first time he’s ever been hit by a car. “I’m not daunted,” says Lieber cheerfully, who eventually shook himself off and even finished his commute to work.

After striking Lieber, the Subaru driver ran into a second cyclist, a woman, in the area of northeast 1st Avenue underneath the Interstate-5 Freeway overpass. That rider wasn’t so lucky; she has been taken to the hospital to treat her injuries. Police have not released her name. UPDATE: Joe Rose over at the Oregonian has some details on the second crash:

Witnesses said the driver of the silver car sped away on Northeast First Avenue, going around the Convention and blowing through a red light at Multnomah Street. When the driver realized he had hit a dead end near the Rose Garden, “he whipped around and came back,” said witness Wendy Unverricht. “He was flying when he hit the woman on the bike. He hit her hard.” … Initially, the woman tried to get back up on her bike and ride away, but people at the scene encouraged her to stay put until an ambulance arrived.

The car is a silver Subaru with no rear plates, but a green sticker in the back window similar to a “Monster” drink sticker. Anyone with any info about the crash or vehicle should call the Traffic Division at 503 823-2103.