Car collides with motorized wheelchair in south Eugene
EUGENE, Ore. - A person in a motorized wheelchair went to the hospital with serious injuries, including broken bones, after a collision with a car at the intersection of 30th Avenue and University Street in South Eugene on Thursday night.
At around 6:20 p.m. Thursday Robert Charles Six Jr., 57 of Eugene, was crossing to the north side of 30th Street at University when an eastbound Toyota Corolla hit his motorized wheelchair, police said.
Officials said that Six was taken to Riverbend Hospital with numerous injuries, including several broken bones. On Friday afternoon, police reported that he is in critical condition.
The driver, later identified as Jennifer Christine Ellis, 43 of Dorena, was not injured in the crash.
Police ask anyone with more information about the crash to call investigators at (541) 682-5138.
People really have to understand that he was practically invisible, and we only had about a second to see him, and in that second someone was flashing their brights at us before we even knew what was happening. So in that split second when she was supposed to be looking in front of her to see why the car in front of us swerved out of the way, she was looking at the brights on the other side of the road in confusion. He really should have used his horn instead, he's the only person at fault in my eyes. And we weren't speeding, in fact we were still picking up speed to get to the speed limit when we felt the impact. We didn't see him until we felt him. And I know the article says she was alone but my step sister (15) and I (16) were also present.Â
People, he *was* in the crosswalk. A crosswalk is legally defined as any place where the sidewalk would've continued across the street (i.e. it doesn't need to be painted and it doesn't need to be at a traffic signaled intersection). The RG reported that he was thrown more than ten feet, which is why it looks like he wasn't at the crosswalk in this picture. Also, if you spend even a minute to think about it, how on earth do you assume a wheelchair user got into the street if he didn't use the curb cut at the intersection? I live 2 blocks from where this happened and am very familiar with the traffic patterns. It is a frequent crossing point for pedestrians and cyclists, and there is a school right on that corner. There used to be regular speed traps held here because people are always going way too fast on this stretch of road. That, coupled with the large number of car-focused people who don't even know what a crosswalk is, is why so many pedestrians are getting injured.
I wasn't there and don't know specifically what happened but I will comment in general terms since this is in my neighborhood and I've driven that same way hundreds of times.. Considering that it's two lane traffic each way and it was dark and it's that time of day when people are rushing to get to dinner or whatever, it would have been difficult to see any pedestrian crossing that street unless he/she had lights, light-colored clothing, and/or reflective tape. But, also, there is no accessible crossing but for four blocks away. I mean, in retrospect, him having an motorized wheelchair wouldn't have made it too difficult for him to have chosen the cross-walk instead. But, humans are risk takers, as we know. The driver may have been speeding, intoxicated, whatever, adding to the riskiness. And, I've noticed in my 10-plus years of living in the neighborhood that there does seem to be a lot of risk-taking in that area (well, maybe everywhere): Â speeding cars, people on cell phones, merging illegally, etc; bikers going without lights/helmets; pedestrians crossing a four-lane busy intersection with no crosswalks between Albertson's and LCC. We all need to slow our minds and bodies down--be less impulsive and think about the safety of others.Â
me not perfect. That said some of you folks are coming down pretty hard on a handicapped person that just got hit by a car.  All kinds of folks get run over.  Probably more that are damaged from war, drugs, alchohol, life, decease.  I drive a lot.  Everyday in the darkness of morning and evening there are folks dressed in there favorite color, black.  It is time for a public campaign to light up bikes, wheelchairs and peds. Whether churches, police, mission, good samaritans  handing out reflective tape, lights at intersections it would be a nice thing. Drive with caution.Â
Another Lane county pedestrian with no common sense.
Oregon law allows for a pedestrian to cross where there is no crosswalk. However, establishing who has the right of way does little for the pedestrian, or in this case, the gentleman in the wheelchair.
In a collision, the loser is always going to be the individual struck by the vehicle. If you're dead or in the hospital, it brings little comfort to know you were in the right.
I notice he wasn't in a crosswalk. =/ I don't care if there aren't enough crosswalks... that's not an excuse. Park on the other side of the street, go the long way around, whatever. DON'T dart across a busy street, especially in the dark! Two nights ago we saw someone almost get hit because she decided it was too far to walk to the crosswalk (wasn't very far)Â and instead cross 4 lanes of traffic during rush hour. When my husband honked at her she glared at us like we were the jerks. =/
 @PleaseBeSmart This is an excerpt from KMTR's story. "Investigators say the man was trying to cross the intersection of 30th Avenue and University Street in his motorized wheelchair when he was hit by an eastbound Toyota Corolla about 6 PM Thursday. The crosswalk is not marked but it is a location where drivers would normally expect to see pedestrians crossing." I would like to see you go and look at this area and tell me how you would cross 30th Avenue if you were in a wheelchair.Â
 @mamabear  @PleaseBeSmart Thank you so much for defending this poor man. I live in New Mexico and my daughter lives in Eugene. She called me last night sobbing into the phone because she and her family, (including my 9-year-old grandson) had witnessed a man in a wheelchair get hit by a car traveling at a high rate of speed. They saw the man struggling to make it across the street, his wheelchair moved slowly, and they were concerned that he might get hit by a car. They pulled over to help him and as my son-in-law was getting ready to get out, he saw a car speeding towards the man, he tried to warn her with his flashers, but she didn't slow down. She pummeled into the man...it was horrible! My daughter screamed and called 911 and my grandson cried uncontrollably. They stayed until help arrived and then took my distraught grandson home to calm him down. My daughter gave the 911 operator her contact information and told her that they had seen the entire thing. She also contacted the media and the police department to let him know that she was an eyewitness. No one has gotten back with her. She called again when she saw the media pleading for eyewitnesses to come forward, but still no response. I don't know what's going on, but it seems like someone doesn't want to solve this crime. They released the woman that hit him without giving her a citation, even though they suspected she might be under the influence of drugs and/or alcohol. Even if she wasn't, she was at fault for not slowing down, she was going too fast to be approaching an intersection. This man faces many challenges in his life, it's not right that he has to make such a cumbersome, dangerous trip just to make it across the street to his home, because the city is unwilling to put in a crosswalk.  Someone, please give this poor man a break! I appreciate your willingness to speak up in his defense.Â
 @sidnee37  @mamabear  @PleaseBeSmart Despite the reports say that the woman was alone, she wasn't. I'm her 16 year old son and her 15 year old step daughter was also in the car with us. There's no way she was speeding because we had just pulled onto 30th 2 blocks before. The fact that he flashed his lights is why she didn't see him... The car in front of us swerved out of the way and the person that flashed his lights DISTRACTED her. Don't you think a horn would've been a better option than blinding her? It was pitch black outside and the man wasn't crossing under a street light. Fact of the matter is he was J walking in an unsafe spot when there was heavy traffic and the only reason they say intoxicants may have been involved is because she had marijuana in the car, she has a card. They gave her various sobriety tests all night while we had to stand in the cold and watch. She was shaking uncontrollably how are they supposed to be able to tell if someone is 'high' or not when they're shaking uncontrollably. I don't blame the man for crossing there, but I do blame him for not taking any safety precautions, especially as simple as going UNDER the street light. In my view the only person at fault is the one that averted her attention to the other side of the road and blinded her from seeing the darkly dressed man that was low to the ground making him even less visible. I know for a fact that we weren't speeding, we were still gaining speed though, and she didn't put her foot on the break until impact because she didn't see him. I'm sure it looked like we were speeding because we were still gaining momentum to get up to the speed limit when we hit him.
 @sidnee37 This is really a very simple issue. If he was at an intersection and the driver was speeding... not his fault. If she wasn't speeding, it's his fault. There's really not a lot of wiggle room in the law. And it's okay to recognize who is at fault; it doesn't mean you can't also feel sympathy for him. It is, of course, a horrible thing no matter who is a fault. I think the only reason fault comes up in the first place is Eugene has a HUGE problem with pedestrians and bicyclists darting out where they should not. That's not really a problem in NM, or at least not the parts I spent 20+ years in.
 @mamabear If that's the case, it may not be his fault. Unless the car was going the speed limit or under, then it certainly is.
 @PleaseBeSmart The problem here is that the nearest crosswalk is four LONG blocks downhill. The bus stop where this gentleman came from is probably the one nearest his house. You really expect him to go downhill for four long blocks in the dark and then go four long blocks back up the hill in the dark? This man has taken this route every day for quite awhile. He obviously thought he could make it once again. But, the driver was going in excess of 45mph (posted speed limit is 35mph - right next to a school!!!), and it's possible she was intoxicated.
 @SAB17  @PleaseBeSmart She really wasn't speeding. I was in the car (her son) and we had just gotten onto 30th 2 blocks earlier. Its not like there werent cars around, we were behind an SUV(blocking our view of the wheelchair) and he swerved out of the way as a car on the other side of the road simultaneously flashed his brights at us, blinding us. If he used his horn its a reflex thing for the driver to at least take their foot off the gas if not break. She wasn't intoxicated, she was with her 2 15 and 16 year old kids despite the articles.
 @SAB17 Yes, I expect him to go to the nearest crosswalk. It appears the city needs to put it more crosswalks but until that happens, go to the crosswalk. It sucks, but it's the only legal, relatively safe way to cross. Like it or not, cars have the right-of-way there. As for the driver, I don't know if she did anything wrong or not. If she did, she should face the consequences. Her doing something wrong doesn't absolve him from his wrongdoing though.
 @mamabear  Of course cars shouldn't have to stop for pedestrians when cars have the right-of-way! It's obviously not an ideal situation, but that hassle doesn't prevent him from doing what he's supposed to, and it doesn't excuse him from not doing so.
 @XoztedMama Intersections are totally acceptable.Â
 @XoztedMama  @PleaseBeSmart  @SAB17 He was at the intersection of 30th and University. The nearest crosswalk is all the way down the hill at Albertson's. At a brisk walk, it would take about 15 minutes to walk there and back. Being in a wheelchair, in the rain, in the dark, and having to come back up hill, I estimate it would take him 25 minutes. That is unreasonable expectations. The only way to cross 30th near where he was hit is using the footbridge: a steep, concrete staircase that is not handicap accessible.Â
 @PleaseBeSmart  @SAB17 Are you at all familiar with this area? You expect a man in a wheelchair to travel 8 blocks uphill because cars shouldn't have to stop for pedestrians? FYI, the sidewalks are mostly unlit along 30th AND they spit you out into traffic to cross the side streets (Harris, Kinkaid, Potter). It is mere inches between you and cars speeding along just to get back on the sidewalk.Â
Also, what do you mean by "park on the other side of the street"? He takes the bus and it drops him off on the other side of the street. Not everyone has cars.
 @PleaseBeSmart  @SAB17 Under Oregon law, there is the presumption of a crosswalk at ANY intersection; and pedestrians have the right of way even in the unmarked crosswalks. I'm not familiar with this area however. Is there any intersections near there?
Ok. Here's the deal: Notice it's dark outside. Note the headlights on the car in the foreground aimed at the motorized chair. Note that there are NO REFLECTORS OR REFFLECTIVE TAPE. This frustrates me to no end that pedestrians, bikes and now motorized chair operators choose to place themselves in a motorway under low-visibility conditions and not take the least personal responsibility by making themselves more VISIBLE. With oncoming vehicle lights, street lights, etc this chair was probably not very visible, if at all. Regardless to the cause and extenuating circumstances of this incident, that chair SHOULD have had reflective tape on it. The operator bears some responsibility here. The proof is in the photo. You can see it as well in news video. Tragic about the injuries, but apathy does not remove personal responsiblity.
I think that it is time to place a ban on all Toyota Corollas. They are dangerous in some peoples hands.
 @Ogresrule Nobody really "needs" a Toyota Corolla, and ownership should be limited to those in law enforcement (or protecting celebrities).Â
People treat 30th Avenue like an on-ramp to the freeway! This street borders a neighborhood elementary school, yet is not a school zone. Every single day, families with strollers, bikes, and disabilities are having to dart across 4 lanes of traffic going 45 mph, just to get their kids to school! This is totally negligent of the city! Â
I see this man in the wheelchair crossing 30th Ave often, from his neighborhood to the bus stop. I am very sorry that this happened to him and hope for a full recovery.
I also hope that this will open peoples eyes to the dangers of  30th Avenue. People need to cross this street and there is not enough safe crossing! Drivers should realize that pedestrians and bikers HAVE to be aggressive to cross the street or they will NEVER cross!Â
 @mamabear Yeah, I agree. People do treat it as a freeway on-ramp. And also, going west toward Hilyard, a freeway off-ramp. When I do slow down to 45 around the corner near Spring Blvd on 30th, and then to 35 mph a few blocks later, other drivers seem to get upset with me for not going faster. Going toward the freeways, people are in such crazy hurries to get to Springfield, I-5, whatever. It seems like their minds are already in that other place they need to be and they don't think about what's happening in front of them.Â
If you read the report it says this happened at NIGHT! I have to drive home in rush hour traffic every night through Eugene and people constantly ride their bikes right out in front of the cars or they just walk into the cross walks when it says not too, forcing drivers like myself to damn near have a heart attack!! during heavy traffic I'm sorry but pedestrians need to pay attention to us in the cars as well!!Â
 @Kiesha Rucker They also need reflective clothing or devices so drivers can see them
 @Whitehawk Yes I agree!! We have to have our headlights on so people can see us coming but they wear nothing allowing us to see them!!
To the victim, their family and friends: I'm sorry that this happened and I hope that there is a speedy, and complete recovery. I also wish you all a Happy Holiday.
I don't know why people place blame before any of the info gets out. By all anyone knows, the motorized wheelchair went out into traffic. I have almost been run down more than once by people on motorized scooters on the sidewalk.
This is a particularly horrible incident. Camas Ridge school is on the corner of 30th and University. We have been trying for years to get the city to install crosswalks at that intersection and at 30th and Harris. 1/3 of our students come from the south side of 30th and need to cross it every day to get to school. People with wheelchairs, strollers and the elderly cannot cross over the pedestrian bridge, which is the ONLY safe solution at this point.
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A side note - this occurred right at the beginning of a school function. Luckily, most students and parents were inside the school, so I hope that no child witnessed the crash.
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My deepest thoughts are with the man in the wheelchair. I'm sorry he had to make such a tough choice to cross such a busy street.
 @SAB17 My nine-year-old grandson witnessed the whole thing...just a few feet in front of him, he is deeply traumatized! The driver never even slowed down!
 @sidnee37  @SAB17 I was in the car, and she didn't slow down because the car in front of her was blocking her view from him, and when he swerved out of the way a car on the other side of the street flashed his brights at her. We were still gaining momentum to get up to the speed limit and didn't see him until we felt the impact. I was pretty traumatized too, but I'm 7 years older than him. I'm sorry he had to witness something like that.
 @sidnee37 I'm sorry that your grandson saw such a horrible incident. Hopefully he can keep his Christmas spirit and not let this linger in any negative way.Â
 @XoztedMama Thank you. He is still distraught over what happened. I suggested that he make the man a get well card. I thought it would help for him to feel like he could do something for him.Â
 @sidnee37  @SAB17 Oh no! I'm so sorry.Â
It would appear this happened in the evening? I'm no expert but I don't believe wheelchairs are equipped with lights or even reflectors and this looks to be in the middle of a road.Â
Then of course, you have to factor in not only the possibility of alcohol, but one or both vehicle operators may be carrying a "medical" marijuana card. Ahhh yess....the plot thickens.
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Odds are the driver of the car was drunk- or the guy in the motorized wheel chair was - or both....
 @LifeisGOOD007 Dude... She wasn't drunk. She just picked me up from practice... By 'intoxicants' they meant the car smelt like marijuana and the car had some in it. She hasn't drinken alcohol in years.
 @LifeisGOOD007 It's been reported that she was arrested on suspicion of being under the influence of drugs and/or alcohol. It totaled her car.
The plate on the truck in the picture FOX TV. That's not a KVAL vehicle. LOL
 @8203432 The truck belongs to one of the first people on the scene. There weren't any "official" news crew people there.
 @8203432 KVAL-TV produces a live 10 P.M. newscast for KLSR entitled Fox News @ 10, on weekdays and KVAL News @10 on Fox a repeat of the evening news on weekends. In September, 2010 KVAL started producing a live morning newscast for KLSR called "Fox News Mornings," which was later dropped and replaced by a replay of KVAL's 6am hour of morning news. KVAL's newscasts on KLSR started broadcasting in 16:9 widescreen in late September, 2010.
Third one in a two week period..and for those who say Eugene has safe drivers..Think again!
I feel for this person and their family!!! People need to slow down and watch for pedestrians!! Especially with a school near by!! Hope the recovery goes well!!
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@Whitehawk You are unfortunately correct! I can't even pull into or out of a Costco parking lot >in my truck< without someone glaring at me and wanting to hit me, and I'm talking BIG truck! At the mall, with my son trying to cross, all too often people whiz on by and not at a slow speed either!