EUGENE, Ore. -- A trucking company agreed Wednesday to donate in excess of $1 million over the next 20 years to support bicycle safety programs in memory of a cyclist killed in a collision with a truck.

Ireland Trucking and its insurer agreed to make the donation to the Jane Higdon Memorial Fund.

Higdon died May 31, 2006, in a collision with an Ireland Trucking logging truck on Territorial Highway south of Eugene.

"What we hope can come out of this tragedy is a means to avoid similar tragedies in the future," said Tom Jefferson, Higdon's husband. "I believe that this donation will provide a living memorial to Jane, and I am pleased that something positive can come out of such a tragic event."

The donation was part of an agreement to resolve issues relating to her death without assigning legal fault.

"Although there was no liability on Ireland's part in this tragic accident," said Robert Williamson, attorney for Ireland Trucking, "in order to do the right thing, we got our insurer involved and kind of cooperated with Dr. Jefferson to see if we could come up with some kind of funding to use this accident as a platform to enhance the integration of bicyclists and motor traffic on the roads."

"It's not really about the money, it's about the public purpose of this agreement," said attorney Arden J. Olson, who represented Jefferson.

Ireland Trucking hired a consultant to study bicycle safety.

"He spent six or eight months," Williamson said, "conferencing with all levels of government, all levels of private enterprise, all levels of special interest groups -- including the Bicycle Transportation Alliance -- to find where the money could best be spent."

The study found human resources are lacking to make use of existing funding for extending bike paths and adding bike lanes, according to a press release crafted by the two attorneys.

The focus will be Eugene and Lane County to begin, Olson said.

"If we get more money and can expand the scope, there's no end to the charitable need," he said.

No lawsuit was filed.

"We've been engaged in a conversation with them for about a year," Olson said. "We invited them to make something good happen."

The Higdon Fund is administered by the Oregon Community Foundation. Advisors hope to attract other donations to reduce the risks to bicyclists sharing the road with motor vehicles.

"Look toward the the Higdon Foundation to see the fruit of the research," Williamson said.

Higdon was a nurse practitioner, nutritionist and member of the Oregon State University faculty who authored two nutrition textbooks and the Linus Pauling Institute's Micronutrient Information Center.