Cyclist killed in Waldo Road crash
August 24, 2026
Staff report
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – A 38-year-old Gainesville woman was killed on Sunday when she was hit by a cargo van while crossing NE Waldo Road on a bicycle.
According to information provided by the Gainesville Police Department, at about 11:20 a.m. on August 23, the woman was trying to cross NE Waldo Road from east to west near NE 12th Avenue, going east to west; she was in the crosswalk but was crossing against a stop indicator.
A full-size cargo van driven by a 54-year-old Gainesville man was moving southbound on NE Waldo Road when the van hit the bicyclist, who succumbed to her injuries.
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The driver, who stayed at the scene, was not injured, and two passengers in the van were uninjured.
Horrible story for all involved!
Pedestrians and bicyclists also do this all of the time just down Waldo Road at the intersection with 441. It seems to be happening progressively more often too. I’ve almost hit someone before and they’ll just stare at you like a zombie.
It seems the only way people actually start to obey the law is when law enforcement officers start enforcing those laws aggressively. Why does it take aggressive enforcement for people to be considerate of the traffic laws? I hate seeing these very avoidable events taking place. Praying for her family tonight. 🙏🙏🙏
Terrible for all involved…but…if you are crossing a road on a bike or foot, regardless of crosswalk or whatever, you need to be looking for traffic. If there is a vehicle close enough to hit you and you go out in front of it, that can be avoided very easily. It doesn’t take much common sense to wait an extra 10 seconds to cross, never expect vehicles to be looking for you. Unless she was hit standing on the side of the road and not in a traffic lane, I would suffice it to say the cyclist wasn’t paying attention and didn’t look both ways before crossing like we tell our kids. Not being mean or vindictive, but working on UF Campus for 20 years has made me realize people do not pay attention to traffic like they should.
She also rode her bike across instead of walking it and against the light.
if u have ever traveled on waldo rd it is a race way people driving with seat way back and flying on the road cutting in and out to get to the red light they don’t stop for
Terrible situation the driver has to live with. No indication he could have done anything to prevent it. And, out of the blue, such grief for her family.
We witnessed the scene right after the accident with the victim lying in the street. We did not see any white van with a 54-year-old man around the scene before the police got there. People raced down down Waldo Road Waldo run red lights and we never see any Gainesville police officers monitoring that area. Gainesville PD’s traffic policies are inept and should be completely overhauled for the safety of bicyclist and pardestrians
GPD doesn’t have enough officers to have a functional traffic unit. The politicians (all DEM) have been reelected, proudly led by the radical spendthrift mayor. Mostly, they are the same group that have made GPD short 40+ officers short. They don’t even have enough to investigate accidents. Usually, it is a unsworn field tech. But voters have spoken, either by voting, or not.
Whether bicyclists or motor vehicle operators, situational awareness is critical.