Bethesda resident Daniel Langenkamp told state lawmakers Thursday that he believes his wife, Sarah, was killed while riding her bicycle “all because a careless driver didn’t realize that a bike lane was something that you need to take care about.”
Langenkamp testified before the Maryland General Assembly Environment and Transportation Committee in Annapolis in support of a new bill that would impose harsher penalties on drivers who hit cyclists in hopes that drivers would be more careful when driving next to bike lanes. The proposed legislation is sponsored by Del. Sara Love (D-Dist. 16), who represents the Bethesda area.
HB377, known as The Sarah Debbink Langenkamp Memorial Act, would impose the same penalties for hitting a cyclist in a bike lane as for hitting a pedestrian or cyclist in a crosswalk – up to two months in jail, alongside a fine of up to $2,000. The legislation would amend existing state law 21-209, which requires drivers to leave a “three-foot buffer” between a cyclist or pedestrian but does not require drivers to fully yield. A complementary bill in the Senate is sponsored by Sen. Ariana Kelly (D-Dist. 16), who also represents the Bethesda area.
Sarah Langenkamp, a diplomat and mother of two young boys, was struck and killed by a flatbed truck on River Road in Bethesda while cycling home from a back-to-school event at her children’s elementary school in August 2022.
In October 2023, the driver of the truck, Santos Reyes Martinez, pleaded guilty to a traffic offense for causing serious injury or death to a vulnerable individual while operating a motor vehicle. He was fined $2,000 and sentenced to 150 hours of community service.
“On top of losing a wife, a mother, a diplomat, an already devastated family had to sit and watch as the driver of that trunk received a $2,000 fine and 150 hours of service,” Love said Thursday. “HB337 will send a message to other motorists that we care about cyclists like Sarah.”
Langenkamp, who has been seeking justice for his wife in part by advocating for harsher penalties for drivers who hit cyclists, said the bill is a common-sense measure.
“This is a principle that we have in law in Maryland. We are careful around school buses and there are penalties for running a school bus stop signal around school zones,” he said. “We have protected spaces around crosswalks because we say there should be people other than cars who should be able to use our streets.”
Langenkamp was joined by other family members of people killed while riding bicycles who also spoke in support of the bill.
Susan Cohen lost her son, Nathan, a Johns Hopkins University sophomore, in a similar collision in 2011 while he was riding his bike. She said she believes the driver who struck and killed him was not paying attention and didn’t care about the bike lanes.
“It is so important that drivers know that bike lanes exist. They don’t notice them. They don’t honor them. They don’t realize their lane of travel,” Cohen said, while holding up a photo of her son. “All of these lives are important.”
Nigel Samaroo, a board member of nonprofit advocacy organization Bike Maryland, shared his own experience losing a friend in a crash in 2020. He and six of his friends were cycling in Anne Arundel County when they were all hit by a car. One of his friends was killed instantly.
“In 2022, 11 bicyclists were killed. In 2023, that number increased to 15. And 30% of Maryland roadway deaths were vulnerable road users. Those numbers aren’t improving,” Samaroo told lawmakers. “These [laws] aren’t the only answer nor are they on their own sufficient, but they can serve as deterrence and motivator for drivers to exercise greater caution and vigilance.”
Langenkamp said passing the bill could help turn the tide on the trend of the rising number of cyclist and pedestrian deaths.
“Drivers are more distracted than ever, and drivers are driving bigger and heavier and more dangerous cars than ever with bigger blind spots, so we need to take action,” he told lawmakers.