http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-edinburgh-east-fife-16424932
CityCyclingEdinburgh Forum » Commuting
Cyclist dies after crash in Edinburgh
(82 posts)-
Posted 12 years ago #
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Nasty. And strange to hit a parked car, but really could have been anything that pushed him into it (car, pothole, gust of wind).
Thoughts are with the family.
Posted 12 years ago # -
or a car was involved
with my crash
if I had died,and no helmet may have made it so
it would most likely have been stated I had hit a pothole and fell offPosted 12 years ago # -
I've done it, head down into the wind and didn't notice the parked car in the cycle lane until too late. Caused a crease in the bumper and a sweaty forehead print on the roof.
*blushes*
A friend once heard a crash outside his home, so went out to investigate and found a roadie inside a parked car.
He'd gone through the rear window and his flight was arrested by the headrests - he was wedged by his shoulders. Fortunately he was persuaded to keep still until the paramedics arrived...
Robert
Posted 12 years ago # -
@custard, that was first in my list. Although you can't say for certain that if you'd died they would have said it was a pothole; nor is it stated anywhere in this story that a helmet was or wasn't worn.
It may have been a car; it may have been a pothole; it may may have been a gust of wind; it may have been a puncture; it may have been an unseen speedbump (a la Kim); it may have been his handlebars snapping (as mine did once at 20mph); he may have been wearing a helmet and died from massive chest injuries; he may have not been wearing a helmet and died from head injuries; he may have been wearing a helmet and died from head injuries anyway; he may have not been wearing a helmet and died from massive chest injuries.
As cyclists we do tend to immediately jump to the 'must have been a car and the driver must have been at fault' conclusion. On the basis of the news report on this there's simply nothing to say that that was or wasn't the case.
Thoughts, as mentioned, are with the family, and not with who to blame.
Posted 12 years ago # -
On a touring holiday when I was 15, my mate cycled straight into the back of a brand new Fiesta on a bright sunny day. Fortunately the hatch was up so he wasn't too battered but the bike was written off and rear windscreen knocked out (in one piece). We didn't get much sympathy from the owner.
Posted 12 years ago # -
I'm sure Dave has a video of him headbutting a bus. Admittedly the bus had been moving and had then stopped (legitimately). Just shows, it can be done.
Posted 12 years ago # -
"man has been detained for questioning"
http://www.lbp.police.uk/information/latest_news/january_2012/fatal_road_collision-1.aspx
Posted 12 years ago # -
Ah.
Pretty much disregard most of what I said above. Still not clearcut, but it does sound like the police have an idea (and a mere witness wouldn't be detained).
Posted 12 years ago # -
I crashed into a parked car once. However I was 13, and going downhill. Swerved by accident and didn't brake in time.
Bike and me were both fine. Never done it since though (touch wood). Once bitten, etc.
Posted 12 years ago # -
North carriage way is that up or down the hill? I'm presuming its down and that he was doing a lick when it all happened. I know I always am about there.
Tragic and very sad.
Posted 12 years ago # -
What a tragedy :( Another needless death in
From the L&B statement;
In particular, we want to speak to anyone who noticed an articulated lorry with a white cab and a red flat-bed trailer being driven in the area at the time
Posted 12 years ago # -
From STV News, Man detained after death of cyclist who crashed into parked car
The 43-year-old man may have been hit by a lorry prior to colliding with a parked car in Edinburgh.
Posted 12 years ago # -
Hmm, not good. At least cycling into the back of a car is something that we can all avoid (I was going to bring up the example of a time triallist who apparently rode full-tilt into a stationary vehicle as an illustration!) but it turns out he was hit by a lorry, like the majority of urban cycling deaths.
Anyone want to bet that, like the other two cycling / large vehicle deaths of recent years, we'll hear no more about it?
Posted 12 years ago # -
Also indicative of the BBC's editorial policy. STV pick up the L&B Police's detail about possibly being hit by a truck. The BBC ignores that completely, essentially suggesting the cyclist simply went into the back of the car.
Posted 12 years ago # -
Oh dear. Another HGV incident, by the looks of it.
In fairness to the Beeb, their site was updated twice: initially it just said a collision with a car, and gave the location. No further details were added until later, and now they've added in the lorry and man detained bits.
Posted 12 years ago # -
I'm not doing well on this story. I'm going to shut up now.
Posted 12 years ago # -
ADMIN EDIT
I have decided to remove this post as it contains too much information (literally) about the circumstances.
Posted 12 years ago # -
Yes Liz... all very sad. Hear the incident flagged on Radio Scotland this morning.
Posted 12 years ago # -
Sad news indeed. Without wishing to fuel speculation, a google streetview of the approach to the site gives a very different picture from the zoomed in views in previous links, or the description of the road as wide. (if my link hasn't worked, the view from near Kingsknowe Drive shows the site to be just beyond a set of central islands with narrow lanes, at least in 2008)
Posted 12 years ago # -
Photo on Scotsman story shows that bike ended up opposite Dovecot Grove.
Anyone confirm if road layout is same as on Google?
Posted 12 years ago # -
"The incident was not being described as a hit-and-run by the police, who said they were still looking for witnesses."
and
"The accident caused major traffic disruption yesterday, as the road is the main one linking a number of suburbs on the west of the city with Slateford."
Posted 12 years ago # -
"However Grace Hughes, secretary of Longstone Community Council, which covers the area, said: “I heard about the accident this morning and was quite surprised to hear it was a fatality as it is a pretty wide road and accidents are very unusual there. It’s a busy road as it is the main one into the city through the area, but you don’t see accidents like this very often.”"
Why does the width of the road mean it's surprising it's a fatality after you've heard there has been an accident? And it's not that wide a road once there are cars parked blocking one of the lanes...
I'm not sure why she's rabbiting on about there not being 'accidents' like this more often as if that makes less serious...
We really do just shrug off death on the roads don't we?
Posted 12 years ago # -
RIP
Posted 12 years ago # -
Hi
I have followed this forum for sometime but have never posted. However, I am tired of the endless speculation that takes place on this forum when a cycling death is reported in the media. Do posters not stop to think about how in sensitive their comments and speculation can be to those who maybe directly affected by the tragedy. Whilst I do not know the cyclist involved, I would be very upset if I did and read some of this speculation. Perhaps, energies would be better spent on a campaign for safer cycling routes, once a police investigation has been fully concluded and the full facts are known!
Posted 12 years ago # -
agree, was dissapointed the thread went the way it did.
Condolences to those concerned.Posted 12 years ago # -
Welcome CDM
Thanks for your comments.
I share your concerns, and, perhaps, am at fault for not intervening/moderating.
I think one element is a degree of 'it could have been me' - or someone I know. There is therefore a heightened desire to try to find out what happened - and why.
This goes further to 'responsibility', blame and legal consequences which are a bit inappropriate so close to an event.
Slightly wider are issues - often raised on here - of how to get more people cycling and perceptions of 'danger'.
All that said, yes, some restraint and sensitivity are required.
Posted 12 years ago # -
Hence "Thoughts, as mentioned, are with the family, and not with who to blame" from above.
Have to say though this, "once a police investigation has been fully concluded and the full facts are known" is usually an optimistic hope. All too often the story disappears after the first reporting and so all that can be left is speculation. As is mentioned above there's a little of the it could have been me feeling as well, and we've all been in situations where, with 6 inches either way, it could have been.
From a purely personal point of view, as a note to everyone on the forum, if I get killed by someone on the road feel free to speculate and get angry.
Should defend this forum as well. I've posted on ACF, YACF, CycleChat, the old uk.rec.cycling, LFGSS, CTC and a few others over the years and the sort of speculation above is replicated on all of those, it's not a malaise that is particular to this forum alone. It's a human condition, and I think with a more localised forum such as this, where most of us will know the location, and many will have ridden the route, that condition is heightened.
The name not being used (and I don't think it would be used even if the police had released the name, though I might be wrong) means it would also take a determined search on the internet to find this thread, and is a grieving family going to be doing that?
A brief Google search using the main terms in this thread and there's no result pointing to the forum in the first 6 pages of results.
The only solution to speculation such as this is not to allow threads to be started with links to news stories about cyclists being killed. Possibly one for admin to consider.
Posted 12 years ago # -
"From a purely personal point of view, as a note to everyone on the forum, if I get killed by someone on the road feel free to speculate and get angry."
I was about to post something similar but had to do some work whilst my manager was wandering about behind me.
If I die on the road I'd much rather people were speculating about what might have happened than politely avoiding mentioning it. Speculation/consideration hopefully raises awareness which would hopefully be of some use on the roads to the still-living in avoiding accident and/or injury through one of the considered/speculative mechanisms.
Posted 12 years ago #
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