Cyclist sues Seattle over dangerous Ballard Bridge tracks after crash leaves lasting scars

SEATTLE — Emily Robinson, a former Seattle resident and avid cyclist, is suing the city of Seattle and the Ballard Terminal Railroad Company, claiming negligence led to a bike crash that left her with lasting physical and emotional scars.

Robinson said the city was aware of the dangers posed by the railroad tracks under the Ballard Bridge, a spot known for bicycle crashes, yet failed to take adequate measures to protect cyclists.

It is a highly dangerous area, and there have been a lot of bike crashes since, and the city of Seattle is responsible for that,” Robinson said. “I had no idea that there was a history of bike crashes at that site. I was new to Seattle, and if I had known that, I would have never biked that way.

In May 2020, Robinson was cycling along Shilshole Avenue when her tire got stuck in the train tracks under the Ballard Bridge, causing her to flip over the handlebars and land face-first. The crash left her with a bloody knee, a chipped tooth, and a scar on her lip. Robinson said the incident was so traumatizing that she had to leave Seattle and has not been able to ride a bike since.

The effects from my bike crash are something I have to stare at and face in the mirror every single day,” she said. “There’s a scar on my lip. My face is so sensitive that I can no longer bike, which is something that used to bring me so much joy.

Robinson’s attorney, Catherine Fleming, argued that the tracks were set at a shallow angle, forcing cyclists to cross at a dangerous angle, which contributed to the crashes. She added that poor signage and poor visibility contributed to Robinson’s crash. “That’s why we have this long history of crashes there. Emily was certainly not the first, and she wasn’t the last, unfortunately, who crashed there,” Fleming said.

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