Truck strikes/kills bicyclist near Bozeman, MT

http://www.kbzk.com/news/bicyclist-struck-and-killed-by-semi-in-bozeman/

Bozeman- One man is dead after being struck by a semi while biking along Frontage Road and Reeves Road in Bozeman. According to Bozeman Police Sergeant Travis Munter, the man was in his mid-40s and had been living in Bozeman for quite some time.
The accident was dispatched around 6:30 Wednesday morning.
Munter says both the bicyclist and the driver of the semi, were headed eastbound on Frontage when for unknown reasons, the bicyclist swerved into the lane of traffic and was struck by the Semi.
The bicyclist was transported to Bozeman Deaconess Hospital by AMR where he was pronounced dead. Munter says the truck belongs to a Bozeman company and it is unlikely at this time the driver will be facing charges.
Munter says he will not release any names at this time.



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Personal Note:

The Frontage road in question runs parallel with the Interstate and is often used by local Belgrade/Bozeman commuters who want to bypass heavy Interstate traffic. It is the only road that leads to Bozeman's International Airport and is also the primary truck route that leads directly to terminals of local companies. One of my friends snapped a pic from the backseat to give you an idea how narrow it is. There is no shoulder and a drainage ditch runs parallel on both sides of the roadway. The max speed limit has recently been reduced from 70 mph to 60 mph due to the increase in traffic.

The gentlemen who was killed was a homeless man that rode his bicycle up and down this path on a daily basis. He was a bit of a curiosity for the locals since he always had trash bags filled with belongings strapped to his handles.

I am absolutely shocked they have not added a sidewalk or widen the roadway a bit to allow bicycle traffic. I personally do not use this roadway during the spring/summer months due to the increase in non-motor vehicle traffic.

EDIT: The picture my friend took is not the exact location of the accident. It was probably around 3 miles east. The road narrows and widens at random intervals. This is due to residential structures along the road (3 ft shoulder is a common pull-off for mail service/trash pick-up). The first pic is not where the strike happened, but the final resting place.

 

Absolutely not the drivers fault at all. The article even stated that the bicyclist swerved into traffic. I understand your point about the photographs. It does twist the story out of context. There are several sections on this roadway that have a wider shoulder due to their proximity to residential buildings. The road is about 9 miles long. I would say 70% of it has no shoulder on either side

 

Man, you are right. Not even gonna argue that one.

I apologize if the pictures are out of context. Again, I did not have the picture taken of the exact spot of the accident. It is merely a representation of what the majority of the road looks like. Doubt there are any other Bozeman members on here that can vouch for me.