WSDOT to pay $8 million over Montlake Bridge bike accident

The state Transportation Department has agreed to pay $8 million to a bicyclist who was paralyzed after his tire got caught in a gap between two steel grates on the Montlake Bridge.

Environmental lawyer Mickey Gendler was thrown over the handlebars, and his head slammed against the roadway in the Oct. 28, 2007 accident. The impact split his helmet and paralyzed him from the neck down.

Gendler sued over the design of the bridge, citing a gap between two steel panels on the bridge deck. At more than the half-inch width called for in the design, the gap was wide enough to catch his bike tire. The lawsuit uncovered another accident eight years earlier involving a bicyclist that resulted in less serious injuries.

The two sides settled in Thurston County Superior Court with neither side having to admit fault.

"They stepped up to the plate. While they don't admit fault, if they're going to pay out $8 million, there is something wrong," said Keith Kessler, the lawyer who represented Gendler.

Through the lawsuit, Gendler discovered the engineer and bridge inspectors were aware of the gap after another bicyclist's tire got snagged in 1999, just after the iconic drawbridge's deck was replaced during a seismic retrofit.

On the day of the accident, Gendler was riding with a friend. As they headed south across the bridge, they entered the left-hand lane headed toward the Washington Park Arboretum, where Gendler hit the seam.

John Milton, WSDOT's director of risk management, said state officials thought the gap was within an acceptable tolerance range of the design specifications.

"These are very large metal plates. There is some variance when they put those plates into place during construction," he said. The gap was similar in size to the flange gap in light rail or streetcar tracks, Milton said.

Officials also assumed it wouldn't be a problem since most bicyclists use the sidewalk or the right lane when crossing the bridge, Milton said.

Cyclists are legally entitled to travel in the bridge lanes unless a sign prohibits them, Kessler said.

The bridge, which carries Montlake Boulevard over the Ship Canal, feeds state Route 520 and is considered part of state Route 513. The state transportation department, and not the city of Seattle, operates and maintains the bridge, unlike the other three city drawbridges, in Ballard, Fremont and the University District.

WSDOT has since filled the gap with an epoxy to prevent more accidents, Milton said.

Gendler is making progress in physical therapy and is able to use a walker, his lawyer said.

"Mickey is an amazing individual and an amazing attorney who has really pushed hard through therapy."

The settlement will cover Gendler's medical costs, but not the pain and life changes caused by his disability. He can no longer use stairs and get around his home.

"How do you come from being this really active guy -- a kayaker, a bicyclist who has gone through courses in Europe -- and to not be able to do that anymore," Kessler said. "One thing he has going for him is his great sense of humor. But that doesn't change the fact that he's going through a great deal of pain."

Before filing the lawsuit over the accident, Gendler battled the State Patrol and WSDOT in a lawsuit over a year's worth of accident reports from the bridge. Gendler sought the reports to see how many other bicyclists had been injured. The agencies originally balked under an exemption that protects data collected for traffic safety analysis, a requirement in order to obtain federal highway money.

A Thurston County judge sided with Gendler in early 2009 by ruling that accident reports are public records and must be released. The reports were turned over to Gendler but the State Patrol has appealed the judge's decision, Kessler said.