Worker/Driver operator uses car to block traffic, assist downed motorcyclist

Worker/Driver operator Mike Babcock assisted a fellow Worker/Driver passenger who had been in a motorcycle accident on Dec. 15, 2023.

A Kitsap Transit Worker/Driver operator is being praised for his quick-thinking and willingness to intercede after using his personal vehicle to block traffic in front of a downed motorcyclist last month.

Mike Babcock, a tech at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard (PSNS) and Worker/Driver operator, was driving his daughter to a doctor’s appointment when he witnessed an accident involving another shipyard employee, Josh Coder, on the morning of December 15, 2023.  

Coder usually takes the Worker/Driver bus to the shipyard, but that morning, his regular route wasn’t operating. At home, his car battery was dead, so Coder chose option C – his motorcycle – to get to work. It was dark and foggy as he left his home in Port Orchard.

Stopped at the corner of Bethel Road and Sedgwick Road, Coder said he suddenly heard “the sound that everyone knows,” and felt himself flying through the air.

“If you’ve been in a crash or heard a crash, you hear that crunch, you know exactly what it is,” Coder said.

A small sedan had rear-ended Coder, sending him tumbling off his motorcycle and onto the pavement. Babcock, who was driving his own vehicle just behind the car that hit Coder, watched the whole scene unfold. He quickly angled his car to block traffic in front of Coder.

“I saw the rider up in the air, and there were cars behind me, and I was like, oh, no,” Babcock said. “I pulled my car across, so they'd have to go out (and around).”

Babcock got out of his car to check on Coder, who was lying on his back in the road. He also called 911. While not a medical professional, Babcock received some basic first-aid training while in the Navy and made sure the dazed Coder didn’t move or stand up.

It wasn’t apparent at first, but the pair actually knew each other – Babcock had driven Coder’s Worker/Driver bus several times in previous months.

“The first person who came, I saw someone standing over me, and that was Mike,” Coder said.

With the helmet on, Babcock couldn’t immediately tell who the rider was. He recalled Coder opening his visor and saying, “You’re a bus driver!”

“I was like, yeah, that’s weird,” Babcock laughed.

The scene became more chaotic: drivers, upset at Babcock’s car in the middle of the center lane, were honking angrily as they passed by. Meanwhile, the driver of the vehicle that hit Coder suffered a panic attack and had collapsed in road.

Thankfully, Coder suffered only minor injuries. When first responders arrived, they attended to the driver of the sedan first.

“(Babcock) made sure that I didn't get too excited, that I stayed calm, remained where I was, and then helped pick up some of the debris, get that off of the roadway,” Coder said. “It was very confusing and abrupt. I do appreciate Mike being the one to stop and make sure that everything was good.”

Kitsap Transit Worker/Driver Manager Cyndi Griffey also praised Babcock: “Mike is a responsible and compassionate driver who puts safety first, even when he is in his own vehicle. We are very proud to have him in the Kitsap Transit Worker/Driver Program.”

Babcock worked as a lead driver on the Ponderosa and Long Lake routes for several years before stepping back into a part-time operator role. He said he acted on “instinct” to block the road and to check on the victims of the accident.

“I literally just happened to be there, that’s kind of it,” Babcock said. “I’m very thankful Josh was okay.”

“Had he not been there and had the presence of mind to block the traffic, I could have been hit by another car,” Coder said. “I definitely feel that Mike's actions were instrumental in maintaining a safe situation.”