12 year-old cyclists suffers ‘life changing’ injuries

A 12-year-old school boy cyclist was seriously hurt after being hit by a car. The boy, who was believed to be on his way to school, was hit by a car at 7.43am while cycling across the junction between the A217 near St Dunstan's Hill and Gander Green Lane in Sutton.

He was rushed to hospital with head, pelvic and leg injuries which were described by police as 'life changing'. The road remains closed as traffic police investigate the cause of the accident which is not believed to be the fault of the car driver.

It’s inappropriate for the police to be instantly briefing journalists that it was the cyclist’s fault. The only information they need to release is whether or not the driver was arrested. That in itself supplies information from which conclusions can be drawn.

In any case, this poor child was probably the victim of a road network which lacks safe cycling infrastructure and which is designed for the convenience and speed of motor vehicles.

I am reminded of the case of the driver who killed four cyclists:

Chief Inspector Lyn Adams, from North Wales Police provided a knee-jerk response for the media:

there is nothing to suggest the driver did anything but lose control and on the face of it this seems to be a terrible accident.

At the inquest, the coroner took a quite different view:

North-east Wales coroner John Hughes said: "The evidence shows classic signs that Robert Harris was driving without due care and attention and to his credit he admitted his responsibility in going too fast. "I fail to understand why no proceedings were brought against him."