Driver could face fine in cyclist's death for allegedly opening door into bike lane
CBC News | Posted: July 12, 2019 5:40 PM | Last Updated: July 12, 2019
Mike McIntosh, 55, died after colliding with a dump truck near Lonsdale Quay in January
A North Vancouver, B.C., man has been charged under the Motor Vehicle Act in connection with the death of a cyclist who was bumped under the wheels of a dump truck near Lonsdale Quay in January.
The cyclist, Mike McIntosh, had been riding west in the bike lane down Esplanade West around 1:45 p.m. PT when he became involved in a chain-reaction crash allegedly caused by a driver who opened the door of their parked vehicle into the bike lane.
McIntosh fell under a dump truck driving down the road and died at the scene.
Patrick Timothy Colwell, 59, has been charged with unsafely opening the door of a vehicle under the Motor Vehicle Act.
On Friday, RCMP confirmed the investigation has concluded and Mounties aren't pursuing criminal charges against Colwell.
The bike lane on Esplanade West in North Vancouver is set between parked cars and traffic.
"It was a Sunday afternoon, the weather was good, people were out and about ... but it's a high-density area and it's just so unfortunate somebody's life was taken because of this incident," RCMP Cpl. Richard De Jong said in January.
McIntosh had been a liaison librarian at Simon Fraser University's Belzberg Library for around 30 years. An obituary posted online by the university described him as "an avid cyclist and bicycle commuter" with "dry wit and unflappable nature."
Colwell's first court appearance is set to be in North Vancouver provincial court at 9:30 a.m. PT on July 24. The charge of unsafely opening the door of a vehicle carries a fine of $81.