Taylorsville Bicycle Accident Lawyer

A lot of Taylorsville cycling is practical: students riding to Salt Lake Community College's Taylorsville Redwood Campus at 4600 South Redwood Road, commuters pedaling to a bus stop, and riders heading east to the Jordan River Parkway, which follows the river on the Murray side. UTA says all of its buses carry bike racks, and the Midvalley Express, which opened in 2026, runs in dedicated lanes on 4700 South, so bikes and buses meet at every station.

Most of those trips use wide arterial roads designed to move cars. When a driver hits a rider on one of them, the insurer's first move is to put the rider in the wrong place. Utah law says otherwise more often than people expect. For other injuries in the city, see our Taylorsville personal injury page.

How Utah Law Protects Taylorsville Cyclists

The bike is a vehicle. Utah Code § 41-6a-1102 gives riders all the rights of other vehicle operators and holds them to the same rules. No close passes. Section 41-6a-706.5 prohibits a motorist from knowingly, intentionally or recklessly driving within three feet of a cyclist, or trying to force one off the road; if the rider is hurt, it is a class C misdemeanor. On a multi-lane road like Redwood, there is usually room to give that space by changing lanes.

Right edge, with exceptions. Section 41-6a-1105 asks a slower cyclist to ride near the right edge when practicable, but allows moving over to pass, turn left, avoid a right-turn-only lane that conflicts with going straight, or avoid hazards like parked cars, debris and pedestrians. Turning and pulling out. A driver turning left must yield to oncoming traffic close enough to be an immediate hazard, and a driver entering the road from a parking lot or driveway must yield to vehicles approaching on it (§ 41-6a-903). A bicycle is one of those vehicles.

Sources of Payment

After a bike-and-car crash, look at:

• The at-fault driver's liability coverage, which answers for the harm that driver's negligence caused.
• Your own or a household member's auto policy: PIP may cover early medical bills and some wages depending on the policy, and uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage can apply if the driver drove off or carried too little.

PIP's minimum benefits are $3,000 in medical expenses and 85% of lost gross income, up to $250 a week for 52 weeks (§ 31A-22-307). Liability coverage on a policy issued or renewed since January 1, 2025 can be as low as $30,000 per person (§ 31A-22-304). If a UTA bus was involved, the claim runs against a government entity. Our bicycle claims guide goes further.

Fault, Helmets and Deadlines

Utah reduces a rider's recovery by the rider's percentage of fault and bars it at 50% or more (§ 78B-5-818). Pedal bicycles are outside Utah's helmet law; § 41-6a-1505 requires helmets only for riders under 21 on e-bikes and similar devices, and bars using a missing helmet as evidence of negligence. The usual injury deadline is four years, but a notice of claim against UTA, UDOT, Salt Lake County or Taylorsville City is due within one year. See the deadlines page.

Taylorsville Roads Where Riders Are Exposed

Redwood Road (SR-68). Multiple lanes, frequent driveways, bus stops and the SLCC campus entrances. 4700 South. Midvalley Express lanes and stations, with traffic from the I-215 interchange feeding into the corridor. 5400 South (SR-173). A retail strip from Bangerter to Redwood where drivers turn across riders' paths constantly. The I-215 interchanges at Redwood Road and 4700 South, where drivers leaving the freeway are looking for a gap, not a bicycle.

Riders who use the sidewalk on these roads, or cross in a crosswalk, take on a pedestrian's rights and duties under § 41-6a-1106, must yield to people on foot, and may not ride faster than is reasonable across driveways. That can matter when a driver leaving a lot hits a rider on the sidewalk. The Taylorsville Police Department, which the city formed in 2021 after leaving Unified Police, investigates crashes on city streets; the Utah Highway Patrol covers I-215.

Typical Taylorsville Bike Crashes

A driver exiting a shopping center on 5400 South who looks only left, a left turn across Redwood Road in front of an oncoming rider, a car turning right toward an I-215 ramp across a cyclist going straight, a close pass by a driver who would not change lanes, and a rider struck at dusk on a poorly lit stretch.

Injuries and Treatment

Head and brain injuries, broken wrists, elbows, collarbones and legs, spinal injuries and severe road rash. Seriously injured riders from Taylorsville are commonly taken to Intermountain Medical Center in Murray, a Level I trauma center. For a rider who has PIP, a bone fracture is one of the listed thresholds for a pain-and-suffering claim against the driver (§ 31A-22-309).

What You Can Recover

• Out-of-pocket losses: emergency care, surgery, therapy, tuition or work time lost, reduced earning ability, and a damaged bike or gear.
• General damages: physical pain, emotional strain and the independence a bike gave you.
• Permanent effects: ongoing treatment and support when an injury will not fully resolve.

What the Insurer Will Claim

That the cyclist was on the sidewalk, came out between parked cars, rode against traffic or wore dark clothes, and then an early low offer. Businesses along Redwood Road and 5400 South often have cameras, but recordings are overwritten quickly. Ride data, photos, witness names and the bike itself help fill the gaps. If you were driving, see our Taylorsville car accident page.