This story was last updated 10:15, Feb. 20.
The Santa Clara County Coroner’s Office released the identity and cause of death of a female bicyclist who died last week after she was struck by a vehicle on southbound Foothill Expressway near Old Oak Court in Los Altos Hills.
Los Altos resident Maria Elise Jabon, 38 years old, died Feb. 13 from blunt force trauma and cervical spine injuries. Her manner of death was deemed an accident by the Coroner’s office.
The Sheriff’s office and Santa Clara County Fire Department responded to the 10:43 a.m. call, and Jabon was pronounced dead by fire officials at the scene. According to the Sheriff’s office, the involved vehicle was a gray Nissan sedan. The motorist is currently cooperating with the investigation, which was under control of the Sheriff’s Traffic Accident Reconstruction Specialist Team.
The incident also prompted conversations about safety and sharing the road. Motorists and bicyclists alike who navigate the strip of road where the collision occurred took to Nextdoor and noted how perilous Foothill Expressway can be for bicyclists.
“That is a dangerous place, I almost hit two bikes there,” wrote motorist Chris Adams. “Unfortunately, drivers and bikers do not always deem themselves on the lookout for one another.”
Comments the Town Crier received from the public on its website have centered on the county’s neglect of road shoulders and bicycle lanes post-storm.
One Los Altos Online user noted that he blew out a tire while traveling down Foothill because of debris.
“I had my first ever tire blowout on this segment of road a few weeks back due to hitting debris (and I ride A LOT),” he commented. “I’ve been avoiding this segment of Foothill since and riding on Fremont to Hillview.”
Chris Hoeber, an avid bicyclist who previously wrote a biking column for the Town Crier and former Los Altos resident who moved to Oregon in October 2023, said while he can’t comment on current conditions, similar issues happened the year prior after major storms.
“It is blatantly obvious that the county needs to maintain its streets better for bicyclists,” Hoeber said in an email. “A year ago when there were heavy winds and rain, the bike lanes on Foothill were not touched for at least a month and in some places, trees which had fallen down were cut into pieces and left lying in the bike lane for a month. The response that it is someone else’s responsibility to call them and tell them there is debris in the roadway is absurd.”
While little is being released related to the circumstances of the collision by authorities, Hoeber said the conditions between Page Mill Road and Arastradero are clear; he noted the Arastradero intersection is also easily navigable. He believes the accident may be related to either complete motorist inattention or Jabon trying to avoid debris.
“Likewise, Foothill ‘near’ Old Altos Court is clear – and the shoulder widens right at the intersection of Old Altos. If the accident occurred in this section where the shoulder is wide, someone was really not paying attention (or) either the cyclist was on the roadway (which is not illegal, especially if the cyclist had to do so to avoid debris in the bike lane).”
Hoeber noted that while cycling in Los Altos and Los Altos Hills is generally safe, sometimes preserving the safety of cyclists is more than just following the laws.
“I have written extensively about the need for both drivers and cyclists to be observant and follow safety practices that go beyond simply obeying the law, and there is certainly much that can be done to improve cycling infrastructure to make the world safer,” he said.
