Cyclist dies on Battersea Bridge after collision with lorry
Firefighters from the London Fire Brigade[1] and Metropolitan Police were called to the bridge, which does not have cycle lanes, just before 8am.
A woman was pronounced dead at the scene.
The lorry driver did not stop at the scene but has since been tracked down by officers. Enquiries are ongoing.
Officers are working to inform the woman’s family.
Police cordons are in place and Battersea Bridge is closed at both ends, Metropolitan Police said.
Traffic disruption is reported as far as Clapham Junction. Nearby Wandsworth Bridge is currently closed for repairs.
Witness Richard Ollington told the Standard: “A lady had fallen off her bike, she was on the floor.
“The bike had been ruined, the front wheel was bent and… it was clear that the situation wasn’t good.”
Two men from a white van at the scene stopped and aided the woman, who had fallen on the northbound lane, before emergency services arrived, Mr Ollington said.
He said Battersea Bridge is “dangerous” and repeated calls for cycle lanes to be installed.
In May a man thought to be in his 20s died in Fitzrovia following a collision with a lorry[2].
Data published by Transport for London (TfL) in May[3] showed seven people were killed cycling in London in 2022, down from 10 in 2021.
But the total number of cyclists being killed or seriously injured is 39 per cent higher than the 2005-9 baseline used to measure TfL’s efforts to make the roads safer.
Between November and January 2023, TfL held a public consultation on proposals to make safety improvements to the Battersea Bridge area.
In June TfL announced plans to improve safety at the northern end, with work to begin in winter this year or 2024.
In the consultation report, TfL said: “Unfortunately, due to the physical constraints of this listed structure, it is not possible to provide cycle lanes on Battersea Bridge.
“The priority is to ensure cyclists can safely navigate the junctions as this is where collisions are most likely to occur.”
The safety improvements come after Jack Ryan was killed on Battersea Bridge in January 2021[4].
The marketing manager, 29, was thought to have been jogging when he was struck by a Range Rover near the northern end of the bridge.
References
- ^ London Fire Brigade (www.standard.co.uk)
- ^ died in Fitzrovia following a collision with a lorry (www.standard.co.uk)
- ^ published by Transport for London (TfL) in May (content.tfl.gov.uk)
- ^ Jack Ryan was killed on Battersea Bridge in January 2021 (www.standard.co.uk)