PEORIA, Ariz. — Peoria police have released additional details after a motorcyclist was killed Monday afternoon in a crash with another vehicle in Peoria.
According to police, the motorcycle crashed into a Dodge Caravan turning through the intersection of 75th and Northern avenues.
The motorcyclist, later identified as 52-year-old Brian Radford from Sun City, Arizona, died on the scene of the crash. Police said he was wearing a helmet.
The driver of the Caravan wasn't injured and stayed on scene throughout the investigation, police said. The incident is still being investigated, and police thanked the people who stopped to help after the crash.
The intersection at 75th and Northern avenues was closed for several hours during the investigation but reopened shortly after 5 p.m. that day.
>> Download the 12News app for the latest local breaking news straight to your phone.
12News on YouTube
Catch up on the latest news and stories on the 12News YouTube channel. Subscribe today.
What is the Valley?:
“The Valley” is what locals call the Phoenix Metropolitan Area. It is considered the largest metropolitan area in the Southwest.
The Valley is made up of various major cities other than Phoenix, including:
- Mesa
- Chandler
- Scottsdale
- Tempe
- Glendale
- Surprise
- Peoria
- Gilbert
- El Mirage
- Avondale
- Litchfield Park
- Goodyear
- Buckeye
Whether a city is in the “East Valley” or “West Valley” depends on where it is in relation to Phoenix.
The cities of the Valley have a combined population of 4,845,832 people, according to the 2020 United States Census. This makes it the 11th largest metropolitan area in the country right behind the Boston and Atlanta areas.
How big is Maricopa County?
Maricopa County is the United States’ 4th largest county in terms of population with 4,485,414 people, according to the 2020 Census.
The county contains around 63% of Arizona’s population and is 9,224 square miles. That makes the county larger than seven U.S. states (Rhode Island, Delaware, Connecticut, Hawaii, New Jersey, Massachusetts and New Hampshire).
One of the largest park systems in the nation is also located in Maricopa County. The county has an estimated 120,000 acres of open space parks that includes hundreds of miles of trails, nature centers and campgrounds.
The county’s seat is located in Phoenix, which is also the state capital and the census-designated 5th most populous city in the United States.
The county was named after the Maricopa, or Piipaash, Native American Tribe.
