When you ride your bicycle in Fresno, any number of different hazards can cause an accident. While most bicycle accidents are associated with motor vehicles, an often overlooked cause of bicycle accidents are potholes and other defects in the road. Even the smallest pothole or slightest crack in the road has the potential to cause a bicycle accident, and Fresno’s roads are no exception.
When these unfortunate accidents do occur, it may seem like it was your fault. However, that’s simply not the case. The maintenance and upkeep of Fresno’s roads fall on either the city itself or Caltrans, the California Department of Transportation. When these government entities fail to keep the road safe for you and other bicyclists, they can be held accountable.
Experience and Support From Fresno Bicycle Accident Lawyers
Going up against a government entity for not fixing a pothole may seem like a trivial matter, but when you’ve been injured because the city or state failed to do their job, you’ll need support to help you recover. Maison Law has a wealth of experience in dealing with these government entities, and knows how to follow the procedure so that your claim remains strong.
Contact one of our experienced Fresno bicycle accident lawyers today for a free consultation to learn how our firm can help you.
Who Is Responsible For Fixing Potholes In the Road in Fresno?
The two main entities responsible for maintaining the road in Fresno are:
- The City of Fresno’s Department of Public Works
- The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans)
Specifically, the city’s Department of Public Works’ Street Maintenance Division, the entity responsible for fixing potholes in certain areas of Fresno, having its crews repair potholes that form in the street from traffic and water erosion. Like Caltrans, the Street Maintenance Division can be reached by phone 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to report a pothole so that they can respond appropriately. Their response includes:
- Picking up debris
- Cleaning any spills
- Repairing potholes and other major traffic hazards to ensure traffic can safely pass
Caltrans is the other government entity responsible for fixing potholes in Fresno, with their focus more on state highways and freeways. While bicyclists are more common on city streets, they can still find themselves faced with potholes on one of these roadways maintained by the state. Overall, they have about 80,000 miles of road to maintain statewide, but their maintenance crews are housed in separate divisions throughout the state to be able to respond to hazards quickly. Fresno and the surrounding area sits within Caltrans Maintenance District 6, with the headquarters located in downtown Fresno.
Determining the entity that is ultimately responsible for a bicycle accident caused by a pothole or other improper road maintenance generally depends on where the accident occurred. A good rule of thumb is that the city is responsible if the accident occurred on a city street or path, while the state is responsible if the accident happened on a state route or similar road.
Why Do Potholes Cause Accidents in Fresno?
Potholes and other road defects can be extremely dangerous for bicycle riders. This is because the ability to ride safely on your bike depends not only on your maneuvering but also having a smooth roadway to ride on. A pothole, obviously, takes this away, as do other defects in the road like uneven pavement or steep shoulders. Still, there a couple common causes of potholes that can occur:
- Poor repair work to try and temporarily fix the road, causing it to sink or crack soon after they are done.
- Long-term wear and tear on the road causing surface breaks.
Once you suffer an accident because of a pothole in Fresno, the conditions that brought on the pothole, as well as the response to fix it become extremely important.
- If the pothole resulted from poor repair work, then either the Public Works Department or Caltrans crew that performed the maintenance would be liable for your damages.
- If the pothole was formed from long term wear and tear on the roadway itself, then the agency or entity in charge of the road took too long to fix or neglected the pothole is responsible for your damages.
This lag in response time is also important, as you can show that not only was the pothole reported, but the maintenance crews knew about the potentially hazardous conditions and the risk it posed to you and other users of the road.
However, if the pothole was quickly formed and maintenance simply hadn’t had time to respond and fix it, liability may be much more difficult to assert. Even with that fact, either the city or Caltrans will ultimately be responsible for your injuries in the pothole accident, because the duty to fix potholes and other road hazards falls on them.
Fresno Pothole Bicycle Accident Claims and Damages
Filing a claim for damages against either the City of Fresno or the State of California requires a different procedure than a normal insurance claim or lawsuit does.
For one, both are government entities that require two things prior to bringing a claim:
- Damages of up to $10,000 (damages over $10,000 require filing a claim against the California Government Claims Program)
- Formally filing a Notice of Claim within six months of the accident
Once these two requirements are met, both the city and state have 45 days to respond to your claim. During this timeframe, the government will typically investigate the accident, and determine their level of fault before either accepting or denying the claim.
If the government denies your claim, you will have to file a lawsuit against them to recover damages. Here, our team of experienced and skilled Fresno bicycle accident lawyers can be vital, helping you through the complexities of a personal injury case against the government.
The other part of your claim is your damages, which typically include the following in a Fresno pothole bicycle accident include:
- Costs of medical treatment and care
- Loss of income, future lost wages, and benefits
- Reductions in future earning capacity
- Pain and suffering caused by physical injuries
- Impairments, disfigurement, and disabilities
- Loss of enjoyment of life
Again, the key to recovering damages in these types of accidents is:
- Determining which government entity was in charge of maintaining the road.
- Whether or not the entity was negligent in their maintenance or inaction to fix the pothole.
- The extent of your injuries and other damages.
When a poorly maintained road has potholes, the resulting bicycle accident that you could be involved in may have long-term impact on your life, especially when you suffer significant injuries. Moreover, having to file a lawsuit against the government requires the skilled, experienced representation of our team of Fresno bicycle accident lawyers.
Contact Experienced Fresno Pothole Bicycle Accident Lawyers Today
At Maison Law, we have years of experience in dealing with bicycle accidents that come about because of potholes and other poorly maintained roads. Through our experience, we have developed a winning strategy to stand up to whatever government entity was responsible for not keeping the roads safe.
If you’ve been injured by a pothole bicycle accident in Fresno, contact us today to schedule a free, initial consultation with our office.
