TACOMA (MCT) — A judge ordered the city of Tacoma to pay $242,000 to a bicyclist who crashed when his bike tire wedged in a crack in the asphalt.
Pierce County Superior Court Judge Stephanie Arend ruled this week in favor of Eugene Smith.
He suffered a fractured eye bone, separated shoulder and chipped teeth when he crashed in November 2010 in a city bike lane.
His lawyer said the city was negligent in designing the lane, putting a temporary patch on damage, and removing cones and barricades it had used to mark the damage because they blocked a bus stop.
The city admitted mistakes but argued Smith was partly at fault because he was aware of the crack as a regular biker on the route.
