11 August 2023 , 09:31
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A young cyclist has died in a crash with a lorry on a bridge over the River Thames in central London.
Emergency crews were called to the scene at 7.55am yesterday to reports of a collision between a lorry and a cyclist on the north side of Battersea Bridge. The cyclist, a 27-year-old woman from Battersea, south London, was pronounced dead at the scene.
Her family have been informed. Metropolitan Police say the lorry did not stop at the scene, but was subsequently located by officers in the Fulham area of the capital.
A spokesperson said: "The driver of the lorry has been spoken to by police. He has not been arrested and inquiries continue." The investigation is being led by officers from the Met's Serious Collison Investigation Unit who are appealing for witnesses or anyone with information or dash-cam footage to come forward.
People have paid their respects to the woman online. "Bless her and her family," one comment reads on Facebook. Another person said: "It's such a sad news to wake up to."
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SImon Munk, of London Cycling Campaign, said: “We’re bitterly disappointed with the lack of progress on the Battersea Bridge improvement scheme [delayed for years, still not started]. We’re also bitterly disappointed with how weak the scheme is on the southern approach to the bridge.
“We need to make sure that fast moving vehicles aren’t mixing with people cycling wherever possible. This bridge has got enough of a collision history and particularly the northern side…that the scheme that was proposed here should have been done years ago.”
Mr Munk said if the bridge is too narrow for cycle lanes then a bus gate [bus access only] could be considered, or “levering out the edge of the bridge so that you can add on extra space for a cycle track and pavement. It’s a lurching sense of inevitability at the moment. It’s yet another life lost, needlessly.”