The reporter "S" says:
I was heading out on stokes croft, had turned right and was in picton street when the incident happened, so didnt see it. I did see that the vehicle in the front of the left turn lane was the orange truck involved. I think there may have been a bike in the ASL, but my memory is vague as I do that route too often. If I am correct, that bike was somebody else anyway.
The lorry was turning left from cheltenham road and the arches, but as it wasn't moving I could catch the green light first and turn into ashley road, then left into picton street, where I was busy feeling smug that I had cleared the junction so easily today. Suddenly there is really load screaming, that doesn't stop. Everyone nearby starts rushing up, saying whats happened?, looking around.
There's a woman on the floor screaming, not much blood. A PCSO runs up and starts to look after her, and calls for support. The nearby shop brings out a blanket and everyone comfort the cyclist until the paramedics and then the ambulance turn up. I'm not giving you any photos of her -the lorry driver is the man in orange to the left of the photo.
The ambulances came fast(ed: 6-minutes from the first photo to the one with two ambulances)
The ambulance took her off, there was some suspicion of a broken leg/ankle. The bike is toast. By comparison, the cyclist seemed fairly uninjuredThere we have it then, three bike/lorry collisions in a week -one on Park Row, one outside the Evening Post, this one. We all hope that everyone involved recovers rapidly.
It's too early to assign blame here; the reality is that in any bike/lorry collision, its the person on the bike who loses. What is obvious, when you look back at the route they were using is that the bike lane leads people on bikes into exactly the wrong place -inside vehicles on the left turn lane. We've been here before, praising vehicles for blocking it out of safety concerns, and here you have evidence that it really is something to avoid. This is a pretty hazardous junction all round, its where the same reporter had their A&M Motor Road Rage incident, heading the other way.
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8 comments:
That bike lane arrangement has been condemned many times by many people over many years, yet the council refuse to accept that it needs modifying. That is the measure of the problem we have with attitude of the council "cycling" officers.
Bristol council are locked into the idea that cycle lanes are the way to accommodate cyclists when there is little evidence to support it and substantial evidence to question it. Cyclists objected to the proliferation of sub-standard cycle lanes from the outset back in the late 80s but the officers ignored this.
Check also this timely post by Crap Cycling in Waltham Forest http://bit.ly/1XKgqb
Sorry link to Crap waltham Forest should have been http://bit.ly/X1oQ5
Amazingly, BEP website headlines currently include:
"Cyclist run over by lorry in Bristol"
"Cyclist dies in hospital after Bristol road crash"
"Third cyclist hit by lorry in Bristol"
"Bristol MPs: Bus fares must come down"
"Wanted: Supremo to fix Bristol's congestion problems"
Call me stupid but is the current Bristol traffic situation not suggesting a few obvious solutions itself? I'm sure there's a link in there somewhere. Hmmm, let me see... expensive buses, lots of people in cars, cyclists being run over, more people driving etc. erm.
Julie suggested that, "Bristol council are locked into the idea that cycle lanes are the way to accommodate cyclists.."
Views are changing.
Some cycle lanes, such as the one on Cheltenham Road leading down to the traffic lights with Ashley Road don't necessarily make cycling safer, as they might encourage poor lane positioning.
Adult cycle training has made a big difference to my perception, my road positioning and my observation (especially looking behind properly). I no longer try to fit close to the kerb in the mistaken belief that I am "keeping out of the way of cars".
I now cycle where it is safest, away from the kerb, clearly visible to cars, away from car doors and some way away from kerbs at left turns. I think that I am safer as a result.
If we can increase the number of cyclists on our roads, especially cyclists that are trained, then it will be safer for all.
Introducing 20mph across the city, with exceptions only for designated main roads is another way to improve safety. The Council is producing information for residents and businesses in the next week, and we will be seeking feedback before we formally consult in the Autumn
Jon
-Julies comments were deleted as they were part of a cut and paste blog spam. I have noted the surveyors on stokes croft today.
IMO it should be made law that lorries have mirrors that enable the kerbside to be seen. It's also one of the golden rules of being a cyclist - don't put yourself near a lorry where you can't be seen.
There was an article on the BBC about this kind of accident recently. Unfortunately all too common.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/8296971.stm
I hope the victim is back on her bike now.
Accidentally deleted this by hitting reject over publish.
driver was proved innocent in this case..cyclists fault..no one asked if the driver was ok..went to court he had to take time off..cyclist women's fault this time..pick on lorries it seems in Bristol..who delivers the goods and who delivers biles to shop..stupid bristol road in the centre not made good enough ..lord mayor at that time wanted bikes an only bikes..so judged others...shame no one thought of taking photo of woman and not man..all pointed towards driver victims again..proved was not his fault..shame no updates were made on this to show that before..dated 15th feb 2018
mummyandalfiebristol .b d:
* Where is the accusation in this post that it is the lorry's fault?
* There is a fault in the road, namely that the cycle lane is up the left side of a left only lane. So if you go up there while the lights are red, when they go green, you end up under those vehicles
* And with tipper trucks having little or no visibility, the rider didn't stand a chance of being seen.
Lane hasn't been fixed yet.
The main thing I'll remember from the incident? the scream she made. People don't normally make noises like that.
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