At 6:30 a.m. on Wednesday, like so many mornings before, Michael Schenkman, 78, was doing what he loved: riding his bike near his home in Queens.

Mr. Schenkman pedaled east on Northern Boulevard, maneuvering alongside traffic with the same care as he would drive a motor vehicle. An avid cyclist, he also taught driver’s education for several years; he knew the rules of the road, his sons said.

When he was near 223rd Street, and one turn away from the Cross Island Parkway bike trail in Bayside, he began to merge from the center lane onto the left. Suddenly, a black Chevrolet Impala struck him, dragging him about 25 feet and leaving him fatally injured.

For cycling enthusiasts, Mr. Schenkman’s death was particularly unsettling because it was the 15th cyclist fatality caused by a motor vehicle so far this year, exceeding the total number of bike deaths reported in New York City during all of 2015, according to data provided by the Transportation Department. Last year, the city reported 11 cycling fatalities by Aug. 24.