Saturday over 50 people came out to dedicate a Ghost Bike to memorialize cycling advocate Merrill Cassell who was killed Nov 6th by a Bee-line bus in Greenburgh. Cassell’s family and friends were joined by area cyclists on what should have been his 67th birthday at the site of his death on Route 119 and Aqueduct Road. David Wilson, co-founder of the Westchester Putnam Biking and Walking Allaince and President of the Westchester Cycle Club, began the rally welcoming the family and local government officials who were there to announce their sponsorship of “Merrill’s Law” which would require motorists to allow a minimum of three-feet of space between them and the bike rider.
“Today would be his 67th birthday. I’ll bet he would have taken a bike ride. But he isn’t with us for that celebration. Instead, his friends from the cycling community will gather here at the site of his death to erect a memorial in his honor and pledge to carry on his legacy, to keep his spirit alive,” Wilson said.  Merrill was a man who dreamed of a community where children rode bikes to school and their parents rode bikes for recreation, to run errands and commute to work.”
Wilson pointed out that the county and the company that runs the Bee-lines bus service have not called or offered condolences to the Cassell family. “They want to make believe the incident never happened. They want to move on. We are not going to let them. Today at the spot of his death, at a major bus stop for several Bee-line routes, we are dedicating the ghost bike as one way to remind our community that cyclists have a right to the road, and motorists need to respect it.
Merrill’s law is now being proposed by two area legislators, State Senator Andrea Stewart-Cousins and Assemblywoman Amy Paulin. Both spoke first to the Cassell family and how tragic the accident was, adding that it should have happened. Both were moved to action and learned of the three-foot law that 14 other states have, including our neighbor Connecticut. Paulin shared, “We don’t want people to fear for their lives while bike riding. It’s common sense that we pass bills that encourage cycling, an act that encourages good health and helps the environment.”
Paulin quoted, Jennifer Clunie, Executive Director of the NY Bicycling Coalition, “Nearly 25% of all highway fatalities in New York are people walking or bicycling and New York’s bicycle and pedestrian death rate is almost twice the national average. Pedestrian and bicyclist vulnerability makes them suffer a disproportionate share of the carnage, and nearly three times as likely as a motorist to be killed.”
Stewart-Cousin’s connection to the Cassell family was moving as she held Merrill’s widow, Maximilla, throughout the rally. She called for further investigation into the accident and asked for support as she works to protect cyclists and pass Merrill’s law.
During the dedication Maximilla knelt down and sobbed next to the ghost bike while the others sang Amazing Grace. I dropped into photojournalist mode at this time. The camera becomes a time warp device during these emotional moments. My mind reacting to the composition, light, action of the subjects, as I seek the key moment to convey this event to those not able to attend. Tania then joined her mother, to comfort her next to the white bike; in the background stood Paulin and Stewart-Cousins signing. The key elements came together for a few seconds, and I had the frames I needed to tell the story. Maximilla was still crying as I stood and walked away from the scene. I’m a little rusty in these situations since becoming a photo editor over 20 years ago. But lucky for me shooting in these moments for a photojournalist is like riding a bike, you don’t forget. It’s not that you don’t feel the emotions, the tears, the anger, and the hope that Merrill’s death will effect change for safer cycling, but you partition it to complete the task. The partition held my emotions for about an hour. As I was driving home on the Taconic Parkway I thought about the event and the Cassell family.  I put my wife Julia in the place of Maximilla.  Maybe it was Maximilla and daughter Tania in tears in front of the ghost bike, or watching his eight-year-old grandson Christopher take photos of the bike. Tania his mother had told me what joy it was for her father to teach him how to ride his bike, and that his grandchildren meant the world to her father. I had to pull off the road for five minutes and cry, letting my own emotions out privately in my car. It’s what some photojournalists do after capturing such moments in the lives of others, we may seem unaffected at the time, but we carry these moments. For more photos please click here.
I also spoke with Andy Katell of White Plains who commutes to Stanford, CT every day. How he will pass this spot most days and the bike will remind him of the danger. “I’m not going to let that deter me from riding,” he said.
Maximilla also told me that she would like to see further investigation into the accident that killed “my Merrill”. She shared that it took her multiple calls and stops at the Greenburgh Police department before they released his wallet and house keys to her. The keys were still covered in his blood. They still have other personal items she still hopes to receive. She and her family are overwhelmed by the support of the cycling community. They hope his advocacy stays alive with the passing of the three-foot law.
These are Merrill’s words that Wilson shared at the end of his comments. “Bicycling is a great sport,” he wrote. “it enables you to see your neighborhood in ways that you cannot see by automobile, running or walking. You may realize beyond your wildest dreams that you can have a great vacation on your bicycle in places right in your own backyard.”

Merrill was my cousin. My mother and his father were brother and sister.
Merrill was not just my cousin; he was my baby brother,a beautiful, precious soul.
As children and in our younger days, before life’s journey took us in different directions to different countries, our families were very close and we grew up together. His journey took him to America and mine to Australia.

Merrill, being such a little fellow, was always our baby brother. He was special and he was precious.
My family and I are still trying to cope with the shock of his sudden passing. Every day I think: “No, it can’t be. The little fellow can’t be gone.”
I am deeply touched by the love and respect shown to him by his friends in America, and would like to say a simple Thank You.
Lorenz Fretz