Ganderton Law LLC wants to protect all bicycle accident victims after they’ve been struck by a careless driver and left to wonder how they’ll pay for recovery. Colorado Springs victims should get the best care available and never worry about how medical bills will get paid or how lost time at work will be replaced.
We come to the rescue and fight to make sure injured victims quickly receive the support they need to heal and quickly get back to the rides they love. We hold drivers and auto insurance companies fully responsible. Contact our offices to secure a free, no-obligation consultation with a real truck accident lawyer. Find out how to find the fastest route to getting your life back to normal.
Pictured: A Colorado Springs Wayfinding Sign directing bicyclists towards routes along quieter streets with slower speed limits
How Do I Know If I Need a Lawyer After a Colorado Springs Bike Accident?
If you come out of a collision with only some minor scrapes or bruises, you may not need the help of a lawyer. Unfortunately, the outcome of a vehicle vs. bicycle accident is rarely minor. Cyclists can be carried away with more serious injuries, like a broken ankle, a neck or back injury, or a Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI).
These injuries bring longer recoveries and stacks of medical bills. They trigger car insurance adjusters to work overtime to avoid responsibility. They’ll try to pin the accident on you. If they can’t make the blame stick, they’ll attempt to cast doubt on how severe your injuries are. These are unfair tactics meant to rob you of support at such a vulnerable time.
A skilled lawyer is a shield against this shady treatment. Your Colorado Springs Bicycle Accident Lawyer immediately investigates what happened and the record of the driver. With evidence in hand, your lawyer can often secure much more in support for you. It’s often well beyond what you could earn by filing an injury claim yourself.
Bicycle Accident Dangers in Colorado Springs
Colorado Springs incorporates the beautiful scenery that surrounds the city. The sun and fresh air make it a paradise for cyclists. Unfortunately, local drivers don’t seem to ever slow down to enjoy the amazing backdrop.
Drivers can act recklessly and go too fast to safely brake when they see a rider.
Drivers can also just be ignorant of the laws that permit riders to take a lane when necessary. They can try to pass a rider in a dangerous spot or force a cyclist off the road completely.
These are just a few of the most dangerous moves by drivers that can send cyclists to UC Memorial Hospital:
- Left turns in front of approaching cyclists
- Drivers turning right veering over onto cyclists in bike lanes or pulling out in front of a rider approaching from the right
- Drivers passing cyclists when they don’t have room
- Drivers behaving recklessly by speeding or driving aggressively, making it harder to avoid vulnerable riders
- Distracted drivers who aren’t paying attention to the rider they may be approaching
- Dooring accidents, when parked motorists swing their doors open in the path of an approaching rider
Colorado Springs Bicycle Accident Statistics
The Colorado Department of Transportation’s (CDOT) latest figures show that Colorado Springs has seen at least 11 fatal bicycle accidents over the most recent 5-year period (2020-2024).
A collision with a car or SUV and the road surface can easily cause life-threatening harm. Cyclists can also be unable to ride or work for months after enduring a bone fracture in the arms or legs, or a frightening head injury.
Riders will need immediate support so they can pay their medical bills and support their families while they miss out on several weeks of paychecks. Unfortunately, car insurance adjusters can drag their feet on writing settlement checks and even try to pin an accident on the injured victim.
A skilled Ganderton Law LLC attorney can turn the tables on these underhanded tactics and force insurers to provide what’s fair. We also handle the frustrating claims process from start to finish so victims can focus on healing and getting back to their bike trips.
What Types of Bike Lanes Can Be Found in Colorado Springs?
Bike lanes and paths offer cyclists a way to get around or get some exercise without having to brave car and truck traffic. The city posted about some of the different bike lanes available in Colorado Springs.
These are some of the most common types of bike paths found in Colorado and Colorado Springs:
Conventional Bike Lane
A conventional or standard bike lane is the regular lane you may notice around the city. They are usually marked off with just two white lines. They may also be painted with green dashes and boxes as lanes approach intersections. This is to alert drivers who might have to veer over a bike lane to turn right to be aware of any cyclists nearby. These lanes lack any physical barrier to traffic. They offer a safer path for riders than simply riding in the traffic lanes with vehicles, but careless drivers can easily veer across a small painted line to cause a dangerous path for cyclists.
Pictured: A standard bike lane along Fontanero Street
Buffered Bike Lane
A buffered bike lane is a lot like a standard bike lane. It’s marked off with white lines, but there’s usually additional space added. Generally, it’s an extra white line indicating an additional buffer to traffic.
Pictured: Buffered Bike Lane Along Cascade Avenue near Uintah Street
Protected Bike Lane
A protected or separated bike lane is set apart from traffic by some sort of physical barrier. It may be separated by plastic bollards (sticks) like you’ll see on Pikes Peak Highway near the Can Am Highway intersection. Protected lanes can also be set apart from the rush of traffic by cement islands or even rows of parked cars.
Bike Route/Boulevard
A bike route is a designated path through the city on streets that typically see less traffic and may have slower speed limits. There’s no real path for cyclists. They are expected to ride in the lane with normal traffic. These are regular streets except that they usually feature additional reminders to drivers that they must share the road. You’ll see green bike route street signs and lane markings that show a bicycle symbol, an arrow, and “Bike Blvd” spelled out. Some of these lanes are part of the city’s Wayfinder program.
Pictured: Bike Boulevard along Corona Street Near Fontanero Street
Bike Trails and Greenways
Greenways and trails go for most of their length without coming close to motor vehicle traffic. The bike paths at Monument Valley Park are one example of these safe paths. Cyclists should show caution when they share greenways with pedestrians.
Pictured: Pikes Peak Greenway Trail in Colorado Springs
Bicycle Traffic Laws in Colorado
There are many state and local traffic laws meant to keep cyclists out of accidents and to hold motorists responsible when they cause impacts.
What may be the most important law is the one that gives riders full rights to use most streets. Bikes are classified as vehicles in our state. It means that cyclists are allowed to claim a lane when necessary. It also means that riders must obey most of the applicable traffic laws.
The specific laws are found in the Colorado Revised Statutes (C.R.S.):
Colorado Cyclists’ Right to the Road 42-4-1412. “(1) Operation of bicycles and other human-powered vehicles. Operation of bicycles and other human-powered vehicles. (1) Every person riding a bicycle shall have all of the rights and duties applicable to the driver of any other vehicle under this article, except as to special regulations in this article and except as to those provisions which by their nature can have no application…”
Colorado allows riding on sidewalks but requires cyclists to yield to pedestrians on sidewalks and in crosswalks. However, some cities prohibit riding on sidewalks in some areas, like business districts. Colorado Springs asks cyclists to stay off sidewalks where signs have been posted.
RIDING ON SIDEWALKS Colorado Springs Code of Ordinances 10.19.107:
“A. When authorized signs are erected giving notice, no person shall operate a bicycle, electrical assisted bicycle, electric scooter, EPAMD, skateboard, roller skates, or similar device upon a sidewalk.”
Drivers approaching cyclists must only pass if there’s at least three feet of room to do so. If they don’t have this room, motorists should slow down or stop and not try to pass until room opens up.
Passing With Three Feet of Safety 42-4-1003
“(1) (b) The driver of a motor vehicle overtaking a bicyclist proceeding in the same direction shall allow the bicyclist at least a three-foot separation between the right side of the driver’s vehicle, including all mirrors or other projections, and the left side of the bicyclist at all times.”
Helmet Law Colorado doesn’t require helmets for riders of any age.
How Much Is a Bike Accident Settlement in Colorado Springs?
The exact level of support you’ll receive will be hard to estimate until an experienced attorney hears about your accident and can investigate what happened. Your lawyer will be looking at the totals on your medical bills. Your lawyer will also work with your doctors to determine if your injuries may affect you in the years ahead.
Your lawyer will total your lost time at work and the time you may miss in the future. The pain you must suffer with and the emotional trauma you’ve had to cope with should also factor into how much you see on a settlement check.
It’s critical that every hardship you’ve endured is included when your lawyer files your claim. These factors and more will all determine how much in compensation you receive:
- Money to pay all your current medical bills and those to come
- Money for physical therapy and rehab for as long as needed
- Support for the physical pain you are left with
- Support for the emotional trauma left over from the collision
- Support for the loss of enjoyment of life if you can’t return to your bike for weeks or months, or forever
- Money to cover you and your family if you lose paychecks while you can’t return to work
- Money for transportation costs while you have doctor appointments and may be without a vehicle
- Money to repair or replace your bicycle
- Support for a permanent physical disability, including money for home care, medical equipment, and training for a potential new job
- Wrongful death support for families if a loved one is lost in a bicycle collision
Bicycle Safety Initiatives in Colorado Springs
The City of Colorado Springs continues to work to complete major bicycle and traffic safety plans put in place in previous years.
The city continues to spend federal money it received from the “Safe Streets and Roads for All” program. The 2023 grant plan brought $280,000 to Colorado Springs, along with a $70,000 city match. It’s meant to be spent on improvements to local roads and bicycle infrastructure. The goal is to reduce deaths and serious injuries in traffic accidents.
In 2025, very specific improvements were approved to help cyclists travel across the city as an effort to make Colorado Springs a “Gold Bicycle Friendly Community.” In 2025, KOAA-TV reported on how the city was already a silver community, as named by the League of American Bicyclists. 15 miles of new bike lanes added last year, and 2025 trail crossing projects in places like the Rock Island Trail and Sand Creek Trail are supposed to help the city reach the gold standard.
The projects mentioned are underway in conjunction with the Colorado Springs Bike Master Plan, begun in 2018.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long do I have to file an injury claim after a Colorado bicycle accident?
Three years. Colorado’s statute of limitations on lawsuits for bike accident injury claims is three years. You don’t want to wait years to begin exploring your options, though. Evidence can disappear, and witnesses might become harder to find.
What if I can’t afford to pay a bicycle accident lawyer?
You don’t need to have any money set aside to hire Ganderton Law to represent your bike accident case. We don’t accept any payment unless we win your case for you. Then our fee is paid out of the settlement check a car insurance company must write for you.
What if my child is on a bike and struck by a careless motorist?
Young bicycle accident victims must earn extra support for their current care and their future wellbeing. Children have less muscle and other tissue to protect them in a collision. They can suffer severe injuries that an adult victim would walk away from. Children should get the best care available right after an accident, but they must have the financial reserves to get help if their injuries return to cause developmental issues as they mature into adulthood. Ganderton Law LLC helps young victims with compassionate care and an eye on the years ahead. We demand support that will cover victims in their teen years if their injuries relapse or they require additional surgeries as they grow to ensure they mature normally. Our attorneys also provide compassionate care to families when a child has been lost to a careless driver’s mistake. Parents should get help with burial costs and with funeral expenses. They must also seek justice and receive support for being robbed of the companionship a child would have provided in the decades ahead.
Contact a Colorado Springs Bicycle Accident Lawyer
The victims of a careless driver’s mistake should never have to struggle to pay for their medical care over a collision they didn’t cause. It goes against what our law firm is all about. We stand by bicycle accident victims until they are back on their feet and back on that bike seat again.
If you contact Ganderton Law Personal Injury Law Firm, you’ll speak to a real Colorado Springs personal injury attorney. We offer a free, no-obligation case consultation to all victims and their families. It’s a chance to go over your options and determine how to get every damage you’ve suffered compensated.
We want to hear about what happened to you. If we can help you earn more for your recovery, we’ll tell you that. If you’d be better off filing a claim yourself, we are happy to point you in the right direction and warn you about some of the pitfalls of dealing with car insurance companies.
