INDIANAPOLIS — With six weeks remaining in the year, at least 39 pedestrians and bicyclists have been killed in crashes in Indianapolis in 2023.
Sunday, Nov. 19, a group of bicyclists gathered to remember them and push for change.
The group read the names of some of the victims – names the group said should never be forgotten.
"These are individual lives that we lost and can't get back," one speaker said.
The group also lit candles in their honor and reflected on the lives lost.
Chris Holcomb with Bike Indianapolis said in the past five years in Indianapolis, more than 500 people have died in road traffic incidents. He said the number of people who die in those incidents each year is increasing.
"We are seeing people die everywhere across the city. It's not just one specific location," Holcomb said.
This issue hit close to home for many people in the crowd, some of whom are members of different biking organizations.
For some, the pain was hard to describe.
Holcomb said the City of Indianapolis has taken steps in the right direction to make the roads safer for pedestrians and cyclist, but he's calling on Indianapolis leaders to do more. He said that starts with enacting a "vision zero" police to prevent situations like that from happening in the future.
"It's basically just saying our goal as a city is to have zero traffic fatalities and we are going to commit resources and planning to design our streets to reduce the risk of that occurring," Holcomb said.