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Cyclist calling for protected bike lanes after close call with semi

SEATTLE — A cyclist is calling for protected bike lanes on a busy road after he had a close call with a semi-truck Wednesday morning.

John Graham said he was riding his bike to work on East Marginal Way when a trucker moved into the bike lane.

"It's a scary feeling when you are moving that fast and it didn't look like the truck was going to move over in that lane, but when it does, it's kind of fight or flight. Do I brake now and potentially skid and come off the road or do I keep going?  Will I have enough room?  Is he going to keep pulling over?" said Graham.

The incident was caught on Graham’s front-facing camera.

Graham emailed Seattle’s Department of Transportation, mayor and other government officials about the incident and the dangers he’s faced while riding as a call for more to be done to make cycling in the area safer.

Protected bike lanes are being promised in a planned improvement project along East Marginal Way.

“I hope images like this that come out on social media can help provide some impetus for getting that done as quickly as possible,” said Graham.

The East Marginal Way Corridor Improvement Project is currently scheduled to begin next year and finish in 2021.

KIRO 7 also spoke to Graham two years ago, when he got video of an SUV using the bike lane on the same road to pass about 20 vehicles.

See John Graham's video from Wednesday's incident below.

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