Susan Watson

Dr. Susan Watson was run over by a truck driver while on her daily commute home from the ferry in Oakland.

A ghost bike was installed for her at the place she was killed as part of a memorial ride in her honor. There is also a memorial webpage.

Taken from I Love Biking SF & OAK Blog

“I had the privilege and honor to be very close to Dr. Watson for a
number of years beginning soon after she arrived at NIH in the mid 1970s
as a post-doc fellow. I had not heard from her since last Nov, and was
stunned a couple of days ago to learn of her death. I do not recall ever
being as stunned as I am by this. I want those who knew her only
recently and were moved by her untimely death to see her as I saw her
all those years ago. I have attached a photo I took of her in those
early years after she arrived in the US.  She was the most penetrating
personality I have ever known, intense, deep, having endured much,
having overcome much, and having accomplished much by force of her own
will and intellect, yet, like so many long time “performers” she had an
easiness about it all. Some of the comments seeking to characterize her
are so very accurate. You are welcome to post this photo on your
memorial to her.”

Read also:

Video: Susan Watson Memorial Ferry & Bike Ride

Truck drivers and traffic engineers need to rethink bicycle safety

Update: 12/27/13

I went back to the location of Susan’s
collision (Market and 5th St. in Oakland) to investigate and I saw that
a ghost bike was placed there for her. Below are the photos I took of
it.

Going there again along with info
from recent news reports, I got more insight into how the collision
happened and will be writing my thoughts about it in an upcoming post.

Susan’s ghost bike at Market and 5th St.

Susan’s ghost bike.

Here are some news articles with more info:

KTVU.com – Cycling community grieves for woman killed

SFGate.com – Bicyclist killed by big-rig was from El Cerrito

San Jose Mercury News – Friends mourn scientist killed by truck while riding in West Oakland

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Posted on December 18, 2013:

In my last post, I talked about how nice the ferry ride is. Part of
what makes the ride nice is that you get to ride with other bicycle
commuters. We all commute from different parts of Oakland but join at
the ferry terminal. We all know when it is time to get off the ferry by
seeing others put on their helmets and gloves. That is when you know
that the ferry is about to land at the pier. Then, we would line up to
get off the ferry after all the non-bike passengers exit first. That’s
our routine every day. Bike helmets on, then gloves, turn on our bike
lights, and wait in line patiently.

There was this one lady in her 50s (62 y.o.) whose bike
was decked out with lights – MonkeyLectric lights on the wheels, lights
on her backpack, and both front and rear bike lights. We all recognized
her by the Stegosaurus-like spikes that decorated her helmet and she
liked to wear a red jacket. She was always smiling and chatting with
everyone of us. Her name was Susan Watson. She’s a scientist that worked
at a small biotech in South San Francisco. That is the little info I
know about her. Well, today she wasn’t on the ferry. I had read the
horrible news
this morning and had a thought it might have been her, but I wasn’t
certain. The mystery of this lasted until this evening when we waited to
get off the ferry- this gentleman told me and the rest of us that Susan
just got into a bicycle collision with a truck driver. It’s
heartbreaking. She had all the lights and safety measures correct and
was even riding in the bike lane on Market St. The truck driver still
didn’t see her and killed her. What else can bicyclists do to stay
safe?! It’s up to the city and the drivers out there to look out for us!

Ride safe out there.

I will update if I find more info about her.

Rest in Peace, Susan… We will miss you.