Dump truck driver strikes, kills 85-year-old cyclist crossing Havana Street in Aurora

AURORA | The driver of a dump truck struck and killed an elderly bicyclist as he was attempting to cross South Havana Street in Aurora Monday afternoon.

Aurora police said the driver of the commercial truck struck the 85-year-old cyclist shortly before 3 p.m. Feb. 22 near the intersection of Havana and East Exposition Avenue.

Traffic investigators believe the dump truck driver was stopped at a red light in the westbound lanes of Exposition. The cyclist was also traveling west.

Once the traffic signal turned green, the truck driver began to turn right onto the northbound lanes of Havana Street as the cyclist began to continue west on Exposition, crossing Havana via the crosswalk.

The truck driver struck the cyclist as the latter was attempting to use the crosswalk.

The cyclist died at a local hospital as a result of injuries sustained in the crash on Feb. 23.

The Arapahoe County Coroner’s Office is expected to identify the man in the coming days.

Investigators said the dump truck driver is cooperating with authorities. Police do not believe the driver was intoxicated at the time of the collision.

Among the 11 pedestrians struck and killed on Aurora roadways last year, one was a cyclist, according to police department figures.

The death Tuesday marks the first Aurora cyclist fatality in 2021, according to police. At least one pedestrian was struck and killed the first week of the year.

Preliminary data compiled by Outside Magazine suggest bicycle crashes were down by more than 15% across the country in 2020 with nearly 700 cyclist deaths reported.

Last year marked the deadliest on Aurora roadways in recent history with 36 traffic-related deaths in the city.