CHOP doctor struck and killed by speeding driver as she biked near Rittenhouse Square

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Barbara Friedes’ life and career were always driven by altruism, those who knew her said.

From the moment her husband-to-be, Cole, sat behind her in organic chemistry class at Florida State University, he said, he knew she was special. She was magnetic, he said, always brimming with kindness and illuminating any room she walked into with her boundless energy.

Friedes’ devotion to others led her to become a medical resident at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, where she specialized in pediatric oncology.

It was what she always wanted to do, her husband said. To help children.

Friedes’ life was cut short Wednesday evening, when she was struck by a speeding vehicle as she rode her bicycle in the bike lane on the 1800 block of Spruce Street about 6:55 p.m., police said. The impact was so great that Friedes, 30, was flung more than 20 feet into the air, police said.

Her death has devastated her family and her friends in the medical community.

“She was the kindest person I’ve ever met in my entire life,” said Cole Friedes, her husband of three years. “She taught me the true meaning of kindness. She taught me how to put others in front of yourself.”

Friedes was riding westbound in the bike lane on the 1800 block of Spruce Street when she was struck from behind by a Volkswagen whose driver had veered into the bike lane, police said.

Friedes and her husband were at an event together, said Cole Friedes, and she left early to ride back home.

Friedes, who was wearing a helmet, sustained severe head injuries and was taken to Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, where she was pronounced dead at 7:20 p.m., police said.

The driver of the Volkswagen, a 68-year-old man, also hit a Nissan, Toyota, and Lexus that were parked on the street, police said. The driver, whom police did not identify, was taken to Jefferson to be treated for pain after his airbag activated, police said. He has not been charged with any crimes.

Friedes and the driver both lived in the neighborhood, according to police. The cause of the crash was under investigation.

Friedes was in her third year of residency at CHOP, where she specialized in pediatric care and internal medicine. She received her medical degree from the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and had just been selected as a chief resident at the hospital for the upcoming academic year.

Friedes had also applied for a fellowship to continue her work in pediatric oncology, said her husband, a medical resident in radiation oncology at University of Pennsylvania’s Perelman School of Medicine.

Her colleagues in the medical community mourned Friedes’ death, remembering her just as her husband did: a person with deep kindness.

“She was loved by so many and embodied kindness, strength and a deep compassion for all who crossed her path,” Jeanine Ronan, the program director of CHOP’s Pediatrics Residency Program, said in a statement. “This morning, the CHOP community is in mourning following her tragic loss and keeping her family, friends and loved ones in our hearts.”

Bike and urbanist advocacy groups lamented Friedes’ death as something that they say could have been prevented with better safety measures for cyclists and pedestrians.

In a statement, Steph Davis, the chair of 5th Square, an urbanist political action committee, said the group was “heartbroken and furious.”

“Make no mistake, these deaths, these critical injuries, are fully preventable,” said Davis. “These crashes are a grim reminder of how our streets give priority to the convenience of motorists over the safety of people biking and walking, the most vulnerable road users.”

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The stretch of Spruce Street where Friedes was killed is heavily trafficked and reckless drivers often speed through the area, said Caleb Holtmeyer, cofounder of Philly Bike Action, a safety advocacy group. The plastic flex posts that separate the bike lane from the area in which cars travel is not enough to keep bike riders safe, he said.

Since its founding in 2023, the group has called on city officials to put in place safety measures such as concrete bollards or concrete curbs that would prevent cars from being able to drive in the bike lane, said Holtmeyer.

“It’s not protected,” said Holtmeyer. “It’s incredibly unsafe.”

Some elected officials joined in that call for stepped-up safety for cyclists. State Sen. Nikil Saval, whose district includes the crash site, wrote that Friedes’ death was a “murder.” Councilmember Isaiah Thomas described her death, along with that of a pedestrian killed by a driver in Kensington on Wednesday night, as “preventable.”

Council President Kenyatta Johnson, whose Center City district includes Spruce Street, expressed condolences to Friedes’ family and said he had asked the city’s Office of Transportation and Infrastructure Systems to recommend safety measures on the thoroughfare to prevent similar crashes.

Saval and Thomas called for greater investment in Vision Zero, a traffic safety program that had its funding cut in Mayor Cherelle L. Parker’s first budget. City officials have said the budget did not cut funding, but instead reallocated it for other traffic safety programs.

In a statement Thursday afternoon, Parker said she was “deeply saddened” by the crashes and emphasized the city’s work to improve traffic safety.

At least 28 bicyclists have been killed in crashes with vehicles in Philadelphia since 2019, according to police data. Last year, 10 bicyclists were killed in the city, a record since 2019.

Among Northeast cities, Philadelphia averages about three times as many traffic deaths per 100,000 people than New York City and more than twice as many as Boston, according to the city’s Vision Zero traffic-safety program

The crash that killed Friedes was one of three major crashes in the city in a span of as many hours.

Shortly after Friedes was killed, a man in his 50s, whom police did not identify, was struck by a Toyota while he stood on the corner of Frankford and East Allegheny Avenues shortly after 7 p.m., police said. He was pronounced dead at the scene minutes later, at 7:15 p.m.

The driver of the Toyota stayed at the scene. No arrests have been made, police said.

A 26-year-old woman was hit by a Cadillac while she was crossing the street at 5800 Chew Ave. just after 4:30 p.m., police said. The woman was taken to Einstein Medical Center , where she was in critical condition, according to police. The driver of the car fled the scene, police said.

The vehicle was found later at 5600 Sprague St. and the driver, a woman whom police did not identify, was taken into custody, police said.

“We need our city government to respond with real change and real investment in roadway safety. We want everyone to be safe whether they are riding a bike lane in Rittenhouse, standing on a corner in Kensington, or crossing a street in Germantown,” said Davis.

A vigil for Friedes organized by Philly Bike Action is scheduled for Sunday morning, in the area where she was killed.

Cole Friedes, meanwhile, is planning a funeral and mourning the loss of his best friend, a woman who loved children, devoted her career to them, and longed to be a mother.

“That’s all she wanted to do,” said Cole Friedes. “Live on Earth to be there for other people.”