2 Cyclist deaths after road traffic accidents in 24 hours sparks protest
February 9th, 2017
It’s been a very sad week for the cycling community as 2 cyclists have been knocked off their bikes and killed within 24 hours of each other in road traffic accidents and the tragedies have angered people, not just cyclists, who want to highlight the issue of cycling fatalities on our roads as the death toll continues to rise.
The first cyclist who died from her injuries was a recently married 30 year old woman, who was knocked off her bike on her way home from a late night shift at work, in the early hours, and it is suspected she was hit by a car which then drove off leaving her with critical injuries on the roadside. She later died from those injuries in hospital. Police have arrested two men, aged 19 and 22, on suspicion of causing death by dangerous driving and failing to stop at the scene but are still appealing for witnesses to come forward.
The second cycling accident happened the following day when a 32 year old woman was knocked off her bike as she cycled on the Whitechapel cycle superhighway. She was pulled under the wheels of the coach and as a result suffered fatal crushing injuries and also died in hospital shortly afterwards.
These two tragic accidents are the first to occur in 2017 and follow two previous horrific deaths in October last year when 32 year old Lucia Cicciolo was hit and killed by a truck in Battersea and 21 year old Prince Filippo Corsini, who was killed after being hit and dragged under the wheels of an HGV in Knightsbridge.
Cycling activists and sympathisers have staged a “die-in” in the past to highlight that every death of a cyclist matters and can be avoided with extra care and attention from all road users. Another ‘Die-in’ protest is planned by a cycling group called Stop Killing Cyclists to pay tribute to the cyclists.
A Stop Killing Cyclists spokesman said:
“Road danger means most people do not feel safe cycling on UK roads, which means they lack life-saving physical exercise.”
“It is now crucial that our national cycling infrastructure gets its fair share of national infrastructure investment.”
A spokesman for the campaign group added: “We will be remembering both female cyclists on Saturday at our 10by2020 protest.”
If you or a loved one has been involved in a road traffic accident and you believe the fault is with the other road user then call us now on 01625 506 672 for an informal chat with one of our specialist cycle accident solicitors.
We are experts in accidents involving cyclists and can talk you through your cycling compensation claim.