Chastity Rettinger Ghost Bike- Jacksonville, Florida
Posted by: 
macleod1
N 30° 08.492 W 081° 32.693
17R E 447521 N 3334593
This bike has been place just before the I95 South Ramp off Old St. Augustine Road. It was placed April 26, 2009
Waymark Code: WM6J7F
Location: Florida, United States
Date Posted: 06/09/2009
Views: 9
On Tuesday the 14th April, mother of 2 Chastity Rettinger set out from her office to spend her lunch hour training for the MS150.
Chastity along with friend and co-worker Kristine Whitley had no reason to worry about their intended route. They would be riding along Old St. Augustine Rd. which is one of the few roads in Jacksonville that not only has marked bike lanes. But that also correctly moves the cyclist to the left of right hand turn lanes eliminating "The Right Hook" which is the number one cause of automobile/cyclist accidents.
While moving the cyclist to left of the right turn lane might end the potential of the right hook. It doesn't however protect the cyclist from the inattentive driver.
Approaching the I-95 overpass a driver was too busy fiddling with his GPS to notice the cyclists on his left as he left the right turn only lane to merge back into traffic. In doing so he hit both cyclists ending Chastity Rettinger's life and sending Kristine Whitley to the hospital.
The driver drove away from the accident scene with a minor citation.
Kristine Whitley suffered no major injuries and is back to work and still plans on riding the MS150.
News article: (
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