Cyclist suffers "life-changing injuries" after driver smashes through cycle path protective barrier

A dad-of-four suffered "severe, life-changing" injuries after a driver crashed into a protective barrier, sending their car flying over the segregation and into a west London cycle route.

The Evening Standard reports Mark Thomas was cycling along the shared-use path running alongside the A40 near his home in Ealing just before 8am on January 29 when he was struck and rushed to hospital by air ambulance for five hours of emergency surgery to save his life.

He lost the equivalent of all the blood in his body, needed skin grafts on his legs and was left with "severe, life-changing injuries" to his legs, hips and shoulder.

Having spent a week in intensive care Mr Thomas has been moved to a trauma ward where he remains in a stable condition, but it is feared he may never cycle again and may not be able to resume his career as a plumber.

"His legs and hips are fragmented and open with muscle and skin gone, his shoulder is dislocated and broken in multiple areas," the family explained, with 34-year-old daughter Gemma saying they are all trying to remain "positive".

"It's unlikely he will be able to continue his job as a plumber. Things are definitely going to have to alter," she told the daily newspaper. "I think it has impacted him a lot, the mental sort of worry of how things are going to change.

"His passion is cycling and he's got a grandchild as well, so I think it's going to be a long journey."

The family explained how Mr Thomas' cycling passion stemmed from raising thousands of pounds for the British Heart Foundation through charity rides, having suffered a stroke and a number of heart attacks.

"What happened to Mark is life-changing and devastating for the whole family," wife Andrea said. "Mark is doing the very best he can, but it is unlikely he'll be able to return to his job as a plumbing and gas engineer and will have to rethink his future because of the severe injuries to his leg and shoulder.

"He's a fighter, though, and extremely strong-willed so I know he'll be determined to recover as best he can. We're so grateful to the emergency services and the hospital who saved his life – and his leg. We've been raising funds for the air ambulance for many years and they came to his rescue."

The section of the A40 where Mr Thomas was hit, opposite Vanguard's Greenford premises, is a shared-use path segregated from the dual carriageway by a protective barrier and a narrow grass verge.

Nearby sections, closer to Acton and passing Park Royal tube station have, admittedly far from perfect, dedicated segregated cycling infrastructure as part of Cycleway 34, but the section the driver smashed into was after it had returned to a shared-use route.

A spokesperson from Scotland Yard confirmed the investigation into the crash is ongoing and the "male driver of the car stopped at the scene", but no arrests have been made.

"His actions will form part of the ongoing police investigation," they said, while a solicitor confirmed she is in contact with the insurers of the driver and both parties are "working together to get Mark the rehabilitation he needs to prepare for the future".

The family has launched a fundraiser to support with his ongoing care and adapting their house for when he is fit enough to return home.

Anyone with information has been asked to contact the authorities via 101 and quote CAD 1766/29Jan.