Bicyclist hit on Milpas Street

BY COLBY FRAZIER
DAILY SOUND STAFF WRITER

A 50-year-old man was in stable condition Monday night in Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital after a car hit him on his bicycle in the intersection of Cota and Milpas Streets.
The man, identified as Jorge Arredondo, was heading eastbound across Milpas Street in the north crosswalk when he was struck by a Volkswagen Cabrio convertible that was traveling south, according to witnesses.

Santa Barbara Police Officer Carl Kamin said he had not determined who was at fault because he received conflicting statements.
The driver of the vehicle, who did not want to be identified, told the Daily Sound she was in the far right lane and couldn’t see the crosswalk because a car several feet in front of her in the left lane created a blind spot. She said the traffic light for cars traveling along Milpas Street was green and she’s not sure why the man rode into the crosswalk with a red light.
“I didn’t see him until he was right in front of me,” she said while waiting for a two truck to move the car, which had a crushed windshield. “I just hope he’s OK.”
Lindsay Lane, who was driving the car slightly in front of the woman, said she began to slow down when she spotted the man on the bicycle. But as the Arredondo made it safely in front of her, the Volkswagen broadsided him.
“I saw her in my peripheral vision coming,” she said. “She just hit him. It was perfect timing. It was just a complete accident.”