A cyclist crashing into a parked car while using her smartphone has been captured on video and shared almost 800 times since Friday. The incident occurred less than a month after the smartphone/cycling ban was implemented.
Smartphones can do a lot of things nowadays: take pictures, provide navigation in cities all over the world, connect you to that random hot guy from your English class twenty years ago, and even listen in on your secret conversations (what, what?).
But, one thing these amazing pieces of technology can’t do is tell you when your bike is about to crash into a parked car, as one Utrecht cyclist discovered this week. (Paging @Apple @Huawei and @Samsung, #featurerequest)
How did this happen?
A video captured on a reverse dash-cam shows the cyclist riding down a typical Dutch street, and slamming full speed into the parked, unattended car.
UPDATE: the video isn’t available on Facebook anymore, but you can still see it here
A Facebook post by the owner of the car Binnert Mihajlović explained that the cyclist damaged the car, but failed to leave any details. He’s now on the lookout for the offender.
“I think insurance-wise this does not have to be very difficult,” said Mihajlović in the Facebook post. “Additionally, I also hope that you were not injured, but it looked like you were okay.”
What was the fallout?
Mihajlović warns that while he has blurred the face in the shared video, if the cyclist fails to come forward he will release an un-censored version.
It comes less than a month after the Netherlands implemented a blanket ban on using smartphones while cycling, perhaps giving reason as to why the law was created.
Ever been distracted while on your smartphone on the bike? We’ll admit it, we’ve all been there! Let us know your story in the comments below!
Feature Image: Still from Video – Binnert Mihajlović