A 70-year-old Arlington woman died last night after being hit by a cyclist on the Four Mile Run Trail yesterday morning, ARLnow reports. Probably the most tragic element of the accident is not only that she died, but that the cyclist, who came up from behind the woman, had told her that he was passing on her left:

The incident happened around 7:15 [yesterday] morning on the trail near the intersection of Columbia Pike and Four Mile Run Drive. According to police, an adult male cyclist was coming down a hill when he called out “on your left, on your left,” to the victim, who was walking on trail.

The victim turned around, moving into the path of the cyclist, and said “what?” — at which time she and the cyclist collided, according to Arlington County Police spokesman Dustin Sternbeck. The woman fell backwards and her head hit the pavement, causing significant trauma.

The cyclist suffered minor injuries and wasn’t charged, likely because it seems that he followed standard protocol in announcing his intentions to pass. The incident has provoked some discussion on the Bike Arlington Forum, with some saying that cyclists should use bells instead of saying “on your left,” others pushing for fully segregated bike paths and yet others saying that riders need to slow down as much as possible.

In 2008, Maryland imposed a 15 mile-per-hour speed limit on its segment of the shared Capital Crescent Trail as a means to increase cyclist-pedestrian safety. The move provoked the ire of cycling advocates, who said no similar actions were being taken against other dangerous acts, whether unleashed dogs or runners with iPods.

Earlier this year a Washington, D.C. woman was killed by a cyclist running a red light in San Francisco, while last June a cyclist died after hitting a pedestrian and being thrown from his bike.

Accidents of this sort are relatively rare across the country. An official in New York City reported last year that seven pedestrians were killed between 2001 and 2010 after being hit by cyclists.

UPDATE, 12:20 p.m.: ARLnow has some new info, including that the victim was 80 years old and that the cyclist also rang a bell:

According to a witness and the bicyclist, the 62 year old man was heading downhill on his Next Powerclimber bike when he saw the victim ahead of him and attempted to warn her by yelling “to your left” and ringing a bell. This is when the 80 year old woman stepped to her left and turned around to be struck head-on, causing her to fall backwards to the ground.