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Broken bike (CC licensed image by garryknight, www.flickr.com)Two cyclists dead and two seriously injured on a grim day on Britain's roads
Two cyclists today lost their lives on a grim day, in what is turning out to be a grim month for cycling casualties on UK roads. Two other cyclists were seriously injured in other incidents too.
The first reported fatality of the day occurred as the result of a collision involving a cyclist and a bus in Croydon, the second happened a short time later when another cyclist was killed in a hit and run incident involving a lorry in Nantwich, Cheshire. Police have issued a witness appeal to try and track down the driver of the lorry involved.
Earlier in the day two more cyclists were seriously injured, one when in collision with a bus in Kennington, South London; and the other in an incident involving a car on the A362 in Radstock, Somerset.
The unnamed 40-year-old man involved in the Croydon incident is the 11th London cyclist to die this year. Yesterday it was announced that architect Francis Golding had become the 10 cyclist to die in London in 2013 succumbing to the injuries he received when in collision with a coach. On the same day Mr Golding received his fatal injuries 62 year old Brian Holt became the 9th cyclist to die in London this year when he was killed by a tipper truck as he cycled along Barclays Cycle Superhighway CS2 on Mile End Road.
All three cyclists killed in London in the past week died as a result of collisions with much larger vehicles, and three out of four of today’s serious incidents involved cyclists and either buses or lorries.
Croydon
The incident that led to the cyclist’s death in Croydon happened at the junction of Cherry Orchard Road and Addiscombe Road at around noon today and involved a 410 bus.
The location, outside East Croydon railway station, has tram tracks but it is not known whether they were a factor in the incident.
London Ambulance Service attended the scene, as did firefighters and police as well as the Helicopter Emergency Medical Service. The man was taken by ambulance to St George’s Hospital, Tooting, at 1pm but was pronounced dead at 1.20pm, reports the Croydon Guardian.
In a statement, London Ambulance Service said:
We were called just before midday to reports of a road traffic collision involving a bus and cyclist at Station Approach, Croydon.
Our staff treated three patients. The cyclist, a man, was in cardiac arrest. Extensive efforts were made to resuscitate him at the scene before he was taken to St George's Hospital escorted by the doctor from the air ambulance.
Our staff treated two further female patients, one of who was taken unwell and was taken to Croydon University Hospital.
The other female patient was treated for shock but was not taken to hospital.
The driver of the bus is believed to be one of the women who was treated.
It is unclear whether the cyclist’s cardiac arrest was a contributory factor to the incident, or whether it arose as a result of the collision.
One eyewitness named Matthew, who was travelling on a tram, told the Croydon Guardian: “I saw the bike cut in front of the bus and it didn’t stop in time so the bike went under the bus.
“The bus stopped quickly but the cyclist was under it. I feel really sorry for those involved. I could hear the tram driver in his cabin saying ‘why did you do that’ when the cyclist cut across.
“There have been quite a few incidents recently with people getting hit by buses, it is not nice at all.”
Another witness, motorist Darren Jones, told the Croydon Advertiser: “I turned the corner and saw the bus go over the cyclist, I've never seen anything like it.
"Almost as soon as it happened a load of police officers ran out of a nearby building.
"A man driving a van behind me called for an ambulance driver.
"A woman, who looked like the driver of the bus, got out of the bus. She looked in total shock, really panicked.
"The bike rider looked in a very bad way."
Earlier, the Metropolitan Police had issued a statement in relation to the cyclist involved in the collision with a bus in Kennington this morning, which read:
A 46-year-old male cyclist is now in a serious but stable condition in hospital following a serious road traffic collision this morning.
Police were called by London Ambulance Service at 0845hrs on Tuesday, 12 November to reports of a bus in collision with a cyclist in Kennington Park Road junction with Kennington Road, SE11. The cyclist, a 46-year-old man, was been taken to a south London hospital in a critical condition.
His condition is now serious but stable. The bus stopped at the scene. The driver has not been arrested. Local road closures are in place. Enquiries are continuing.
Nantwich hit and run
Cheshire Police have issued a witness appeal to try and track down the driver of a lorry involved in a lunchtime collision that left a cyclist dead.
Cheshire Today reports that the fatal collision took place at 1.40pm close to Baddeley Bridge on the A530 Whitchurch Road in Aston, as both the lorry and the cyclist headed towards Whitchurch.
The rider died at the scene, however the driver of the lorry – described by Cheshire Constabulary as light coloured with blue or green markings on the side – failed to stop.
Anyone witnessing the incident, or who has information regarding it, is requested to call Cheshire Police on 101 quoting incident number 453 of 12 November, or the charity Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.
While the benefits of cycling continue to significantly outweigh the risks the catalogue of cycling deaths an injuries of the last few days comes just dayss after Department for Transport casualty statistics showed that cycling casualties have started to rise both nationally and in London despite a significant downward trend for other types of transport, and for motorists in particular. The prevalence of large vehicles in all of these fatal incidents can only lead to further calls for action to improve road layouts, driver and cycling education, and the designs of lorries and buses.
Simon joined road.cc as news editor in 2009 and is now the site’s community editor, acting as a link between the team producing the content and our readers. A law and languages graduate, published translator and former retail analyst, he has reported on issues as diverse as cycling-related court cases, anti-doping investigations, the latest developments in the bike industry and the sport’s biggest races. Now back in London full-time after 15 years living in Oxford and Cambridge, he loves cycling along the Thames but misses having his former riding buddy, Elodie the miniature schnauzer, in the basket in front of him.
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24 comments
I read these articles I get more worried about cycling, luckily so far of three years & 15,000 miles loads of lights and high viz I've survived but it frightens me loads reading this.
Regarding bus drivers I can say the vast majority in Plymouth are thicko nutters driving aggressively tail gating me and squeezing by so close I couldn't squeeze a fart in the gaps. Now I cycle more defensively when they are around. Gotta be done.
http://nantwich-news.co.uk/wordpress/2013/11/13/cyclist-killed-on-a530-n...
Further info on the Nantwich tragedy.
Very sad to read these recent tragic events (again). I commute via Bow westbound each morning and until very recently, always used the Flyover to avoid the roundabout. Now that the (crap filled, water filled, narrowing) segregated lanes are in place from Stratford to Bow, its almost impossible to get safely onto the Flyover and we're herded like lemmings into the roundabout in its current dangerous state. A joined up, well thought out cycling infrastructure (even for a couple of miles for christsake) just seems to be beyond the will of this Government.
Be careful out there people...
The Bow roundabout accident appears to have happened in low winter sun with a Tipper lorry, all known risk factors.
Regarding clothing, in this case ( http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-hampshire-24905080 ) high-viz was actually cited as a reason why the man wasn't seen by the driver...
"An accident investigator, who visited the crash scene, experienced how the bright sun had the effect of "blending in" with the colour of a colleague's high visibility jacket, similar to that worn by Mr Elsmore at the time of the accident."
RIP to both....
I realise the incidents in London bring matters closer to home for many on here but I can't believe anyone has commented on the truly dreadful events in Nantwich. How can someone get away with a hit and run for gods sake? It's your worst nightmare.
I hope that the driver has reflected on his cowardly and criminal actions and realises what he or she's done. Jesus, what kind of world are we living in?
This time of year always seems to be worst in terms of accidents. Is there any evidence to back up this hunch? Fading light? People not geared up in terms of clothing and lights yet? Bad weather arriving?
Stay safe everyone.
>Shamblesuk wrote:
>
> My view if you take any risk on a bike you need to be > prepared to pay the consequences.
Funny thing is, car drivers, lots of them are a burden on the NHS. They don't excersize and get frustrated and angry in queues. They unknowingly pay the consequences, most of them, with heart conditions, cancers and obseity related diseases. They should pay about ten times the current VED to cover their expensive lifestyles. I just wish, like other high health risk groups, like alcholoics and drug addicts, they would not endanger my life. Car drivers really are scum.
Of course I'm sad for the victims and all those close to them.
But the other tragedy is the people who will read stories like this and perfectly understandably feel that cycling (to work, or wherever) is not for them. The people who will choose to stop (or not start) cycling; who will therefore be deprived of the fun convenient healthy economical mode of transport they could otherwise have enjoyed.
And, to be clear, I certainly don't think this means we should suppress this kind of news. It made me angry to read that Shane Snow (DfT Cycling Strategy Facilitator) recently argued that these kind of headlines are unhelpful:
No Mr Snow, the answer is to make the roads safer (and subjectively safer) for people who aren't in metal boxes. That's your job. Do that, and the deaths, and the headlines, will stop.
I hate reading about accidents of any sort; especially where there's been a loss of life. This kind of news affects me even more when there's a cyclist involved. We are a family of cyclists; and would like to see safer roads for everyone, but especially for cyclists and pedestrians; after all, they are more vulnerable than other road users. Life is precious; please respect it; and the lives of others. Take care, stay safe.
I fear its another tipper
http://www.flickr.com/photos/rsstephenson/10834512846/
There has been a cyclist hit by a bus on Vauxhall Bridge and another on Millbank within a few hours this morning.
Also just hearing that the met have confirmed a cyclist has died at Bow roundabout.
Accidents are usually the result of a number of factors.
The incident involving the unnamed 40-year-old in Croydon sounds as if he fell ill, in which case it was a genuine accident. But most "accidents" are not accidents. They are events contrived by the rules and design of the road. Most "accidents" occur at junctions controlled by traffic lights. Traffic lights symbolise the dysfunctional system of priority, aka inequality - the root of most of our evils on the road. The solution? Equality Streets
Get Gervais on the case?
Always shoulder check...
Time to realise that these big, heavy vehicles should be the exception rather than the rule in urban settings.
More very sad news.
I would think the number of people killed taking a risk on a bike is very few, given the potential consciences to you as the cyclist. Given how the incident has been described I would assume it was a miscalculation or simply not seeing the bus until it was too late.
Be safe out there everybody
When I read something like 'he cut in front of the bus' it worries me. I'd never do that but see so many cyclists taking risks like this. My view if you take any risk on a bike you need to be prepared to pay the consequences.
And I'm a devoted cyclist.
I know nothing of the circumstances other than reading this here but I guess there's a line dividing assertive riding and maintaining hard-won momentum, and just tipping over that line into hazardous.
Maybe a momentary lapse, or maybe he'd played the odds one time too many, who knows. Nobody deserves to lose their life doing something as mundane and everyday as cycling though.
A bad week to be a cyclist in london. Very bad week.
OK, we shouldn't speculate but there are tram tracks there. It could be that he was in one of the places along there where the left rail veers close to the pavement and decided to move to in between the tracks, turning sharply for safety crossing the track. As I say, speculation but it is a horrible bit of road. And the buses don't hang around along there.
That's right. Blame the victim instead of the appalling infrastructure that put him in harm's way.
There was loads more victim blaming this morning from other self-professed 'cyclists' on the ES report on the latest fatality Bow roundabout. Before ES pulled the comments thread.
Makes me sick.
I cycled past the near aftermath of the Kennington accident this morning (the ambulance overtook me just beforehand) - it looked like an awful incident. Hopefully "serious but stable" means he will pull through.
RIP...
Yet another enters the big velodrome in the sky
Very sad.
I have mentioned several times on this website that the junction at Kennington Road/Kennington Park Road is very danerous. I used to use it very frequently as it was part of my daily commute. I still go that way on a regular basis.
The current layout increases the risk for all vulnerable road users, and I include motorcyclists and pedestrians as well as cyclists. The Cycle Superhighway through that junction is very poor, both in north and south directions.
All so veery sad