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Breakstone, White & Gluck was pleased to participate in Boston’s Bike to Work Festival on May 18, 2018. The City of Boston organizes this event each year to encourage and celebrate cycling. Cyclists can ride right into City Hall Plaza and enjoy a free breakfast and vendor tables. Our attorneys have participated in this event for the past few years and it’s always a fun way to close out Bay State Bike Week and Bike Month. This year, we set up our Project KidSafe tent and fit 70 free bicycle helmets for cyclists who needed one.

If you missed this year’s event, you can learn more on the City of Boston’s website. Read more about our Project KidSafe campaign on our website.

Here are a few photos from the event:

Attorney David W. White, Becca Wolfson, Executive Director of the Boston Cyclists Union and Attorney Marc L. Breakstone.
Blue Bikes. By year’s end, the public bike sharing system is gearing up to be 3,000 bikes strong.
Attorney David W. White fitting helmets.
The line for our Project KidSafe bike helmets!
Many cyclists rode in on group convoys.
Attorney David W. White and Attorney Marc L. Breakstone
Attorney Marc L. Breakstone with a cyclist at our Project KidSafe tent.

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As National Bike Month ends, we finish a busy May for our Project KidSafe campaign. Six years have passed since we began our campaign and each year, Bike Month and Bay State Bike Week, get better and engage more people in Massachusetts. A few of our donations:

Framingham Earth Day. This event was held on April 28th. But it’s always the unofficial start of Bike Month for us. This was our fifth year participating in Framingham Earth Day and donating bicycle helmets from our Project KidSafe campaign to the kids. Attorney David W. White and Framingham Police Officer Garrett Coffin fit 150 helmets over the first two hours of the event. The rain stayed away so this year, we got to enjoy being out on the Framingham Center Common. Dozens of vendors came out, including several organizations for cyclists. We have to add: this is always a worthwhile event for cyclists. Friends of the Natick Trails, the Natick Cochituate Rail Trail and the Friends of the Bruce Freeman Rail Trail participated, giving cyclists a way to learn about the latest developments before riding.

We want to offer a special thanks to Officer Coffin of the Framingham Police Department. Garrett comes out each year. He is patient, good with people and has to be one of the best bicycle helmet fitters in Massachusetts.

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Clinton Community Safety Rodeo. On May 5th, we were pleased to donate bicycle helmets at the Community Safety Rode in Clinton. This is the second year the town of Clinton Park & Recreation Department has organized the event. We are told last year, many children showed up with bikes, but were unable to participate because they didn’t have helmets. In Massachusetts, it’s not just good sense to wear a helmet. It’s required under the law for children (up to age 16). And as we said, it is important and good sense for all cyclists.

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Boston's National Bike to Work Festival at Boston City Hall Plaza in May 2017.

Boston’s National Bike to Work Festival at Boston City Hall Plaza in May 2017.

One of our favorite events is Boston’s National Bike to Work Festival, when cyclists ride into City Hall Plaza in convoys, bright and early, ready to start a fun morning. Breakstone, White & Gluck is pleased to participate again this Friday morning. Our attorneys will be out at our Project KidSafe tent, greeting cyclists and workers who come out to celebrate and learn about cycling in Boston.

Please come say hello. Our attorneys can inspect your bike helmet and we are offering our Project KidSafe helmets free to cyclists who need one (available on a first-come basis, while supplies last). In addition, cyclists can sign up for free breakfast and other freebies, plus learn more about the new Blue Bikes.

Boston’s Bike to Work Festival Details: Register by Wednesday, May 16th

If you are interested, please read the City of Boston’s e-mail announcement. Cyclists can sign up to ride into the festival on one of the many convoys coming in from all over the area or just ride in on your own. You must register by Wednesday to receive an event t-shirt and take advantage of the free offerings.

WHAT: Boston’s Bike to Work Day Festival

DATE: Friday, May 18

TIME: 7 a.m.- 9 a.m.

WHERE: Boston City Hall Plaza

LEARN MORE: www.boston.gov/bike-to-work-day

Bike Activities in May
Before we continue, we want to mention all the activities being offered to cyclists this week and month. May is National Bike Month, sponsored by the American League of Bicyclists. As part of National Bike Month, National Bike to Work Day will be celebrated in Boston and communities across the U.S. Here in Massachusetts, MassBike is also presenting Bay State Bike Week from May 12th to May 20th. Check out the Bay State Bike Week calendar and the MassCommute Bicycling Challenge 2018.

Blue Bikes
Expect to see lots of blue as the City of Boston celebrates the rebranding of the public bike share system at Friday’s event. The metro-Boston’s public bike share system is owned by the municipalities of Boston, Brookline, Cambridge and Somerville and operated by Motivate. The green Hubway bikes will be phased out, as Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Massachusetts becomes the new title sponsor.

New Balance was the original title sponsor for the system, which launched back in 2011 with 600 bikes. The system has since tripled in size. Blue Cross and Blue Shield plans further expansion, and the system could reach 3,000 bikes by year’s end.

According to the City of Boston, Blue Cross and Blue Shield will offer free rentals on Friday. Read this announcement to learn more. You can also visit www.bluebikes.com and download the app if you are interested.

About Breakstone, White & Gluck and Project KidSafe: Over 20,000 Bicycle Helmets for Children
Project KidSafe - Breakstone, White & Gluck's Project KidSafe campaignBreakstone, White & Gluck is a Boston personal injury and medical malpractice law firm representing plaintiffs. With more than 100 years combined experience, our lawyers fight for justice for those who have been injured by the negligence or wrongdoing of others.

Our law firm is committed to bike safety and preventing head injuries through our Project KidSafe campaign. Wearing a helmet is required by law for cyclists who are 16 and younger in Massachusetts, though it is critical for cyclists of all ages. Please commit to wear a helmet every time you ride.

Over the past six years, Breakstone, White & Gluck has donated over 20,000 bicycle helmets to children, families and other cyclists through our Project KidSafe campaign. We partner with local bike committees, police departments, schools and non-profit organizations to make these donations, including these organizations in Boston:

  • City of Boston, Boston Bikes Roll It Forward
  • City of Boston, Youth Cycling Program
  • Boston Police Department
  • Massachusetts Safe Routes to School Partnership
  • CommonWheels Bicycle Collective
  • Boston Cyclists Union
  • Bikes Not Bombs
  • Bicyclecentro of East Boston
  • Mattapan on Wheels
  • Tierney Learning Center of South Boston
  • The Home for Little Wanderers

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Cyclist after a hit and run crashNational Bike Month is a time to celebrate and champion cycling. If you live in Massachusetts, you know the cycling spirit is stronger than ever. But that doesn’t mean conditions are always safe.

In fact, cyclists and pedestrians are at a higher risk now than ever. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reports cycling deaths increased 11 percent from 2015 to 2016. Pedestrian deaths rose 9 percent. The AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety recently weighed in with a report on hit and run crashes. The numbers show the toll on pedestrians and cyclists, as well as others on the road.

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Boston Attorney Ronald E. Gluck specializes in personal injury cases.

Attorney Ronald E. Gluck was interviewed by Boston Magazine about the truck crash that killed his client, the late Dr. Anita Kurmann. Gluck said he had to wait 20 months after the truck’s collision with the cyclist to obtain the video surveillance from the Boston Police Department. While the Boston Police Department found the truck driver was not responsible, Gluck said his investigation found the truck driver caused his client’s death. Gluck negotiated a financial settlement with the truck driver and his insurance company on behalf of Kurmann’s estate in June 2017.

Attorney Ronald E. Gluck is speaking about the video footage of the 2015 truck crash that killed his client, Dr. Anita Kurmann.

Twenty months after the fatality occurred, the Boston Police Department completed its investigation and concluded that the truck driver was not responsible for the cyclist’s death. The video footage, which came from a traffic camera at the intersection where the tragedy occurred, was in the hands of the police the day the incident occurred.  Yet, the Kurmann family and their attorney had to wait twenty months to see the video and to obtain any witness information from the police department, Gluck said.  Multiple subpoenas sent to the police were met with a refusal to produce the information until the police concluded it investigation.

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High school students on bikes

Students from Career Academy in Lowell riding new bikes and wearing new helmets.

Though snow fell this week, students from Career Academy in Lowell still managed to make the most of school vacation, fitting in a bike ride to Heart Pond in Chelmsford. This was a special ride because students were pedaling new bikes – and wearing new helmets. Breakstone, White & Gluck was pleased to donate the helmets from our Project KidSafe campaign.

The idea for the bike ride began with Bernice Chandler-Petrovick, who teaches biology. Some of her students needed bikes to get to school and travel more independently. She began teaching students about bicycle safety while also setting out on another goal: finding bikes for her students.

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Boston is in the middle of a mighty building boom, with no sign of a slowdown ahead. As new condos, college dorms and office buildings go up, the companies making a financial profit must protect construction workers.

Workers are not always protected. As ribbons are cut on new buildings, the number of workers killed on the job stands at a 10-year high in Massachusetts, according to MassCOSH. During the past month, construction accidents have injured two workers and killed one in the Boston area.

A 56-year-old Seekonk man was found dead last week at the Wynn Boston Harbor resort in Everett. According to WBZ, the worker was in the cab of an excavator, taking apart a trench box when he was struck. The cause of the impact was not reported and the accident remains under investigation by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). The man worked for J. Derenzo Companies of Brockton. The company is a subcontractor of Suffolk Construction of Boston, which is building the casino.

The Boston Globe reported that OSHA has conducted previous inspections at the Wynn construction site. One involved an employee who was hit by an excavator bucket. Another worker was injured when he fell down a shaft. A third employee was injured by a scissor lift.

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Attorney Marc L. Breakstone helped deliver new bicycle helmets to Arlington fifth graders this week. He asked them to make a promise: to ride safely and always wear their helmets when riding to prevent head injuries.

“Now I’m not here to scare you. I’m here to inspire you, okay? … I want you all to be safe bicyclists,” Breakstone said.

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Kidde Smoke Alarm Recall 2018

Kidde recalled nearly a half million smoke alarms which may have a dangerous yellow cap left inside. (Recall date: March 21, 2018; Photo: CPSC website)

Please check your smoke alarms when you get home. Kidde has recalled nearly half a million smoke alarms, urging consumers to check devices for yellow caps potentially left on during the manufacturing process. According to the company’s recall notice, the cap would be on one of two sensors inside the smoke detector, compromising the device. Consumers have to do this inspection carefully. You will be looking for the yellow cap through the opening on the side of the device, as shown in the photo. Be careful not to open the smoke alarm or take it apart.

Because Kidde is one of the largest manufacturers, every consumer should check their smoke alarm.  If you have a Kidde device, you will need to take it off the wall or ceiling to check the date code on the back. The recalled smoke alarms were dated September 10, 2016 through October 13, 2017. They were sold through January 2018 at Home Depot, Walmart and other retailers. They were manufactured in China, by Fyrnetics Limited, of Hong Kong.

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