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Bicyclist struck, killed near Monon Trail and 86th Street

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — A man is dead after being struck by a vehicle on the city’s north side.

The Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department responded to 86th Street and Monon Trail Thursday just before 8:30 a.m. Police said the victim, a bicyclist, died after being transported to a hospital.

“I feel terrible for that family that’s lost a loved one,” said Ryan Bowen, an Indianapolis resident.

Police say the driver stayed on scene and is cooperating with investigators, but police say they’re still trying to figure out exactly what happened. Some people say this intersection can be dangerous for bikers and walkers.

“This is the worst just because you have two lanes of traffic going on both ways. It’s an east-west thoroughfare. It’s always pretty busy, especially with the mall down the street,” Bowen said.

The Monon Trail goes through this area, and bikers and walkers have to cross the busy street.

“It’s really a great trail and this is really one of the more crowded intersections — probably one of the more dangerous intersections. They’re not all this fraught with the potential for danger,” said Aaron Alsmeyer, an Indianapolis resident.

Bowen rides his bike twice a week on the Monon Trail. He says he would like to see safety improvements at the intersection.

“I don’t think we’ll ever see it, but having a tunnel would be ideal, like there are in other areas of the city — like over Keesler Boulevard and then farther up north in Hamilton County — that would be ideal, but the costs would be too prohibitive, I’m sure,” Bowen said.