Cyclist death witness plea

8:30am Saturday 10th May 2008

POLICE investigating a fatal York cycle accident have interviewed dozens of cyclists and pedestrians in a bid to find witnesses.

An 18-year-old woman died on Thursday afternoon when her cycle collided with a lorry at the Bustardthorpe car park, off Bishopthorpe Road, near York Racecourse.

The lorry was a Shepherd vehicle carrying Portaloos, apparently heading towards the racecourse, which holds its first meeting of the season next week.

Two Police Community Support Officers spent an hour at the location yesterday afternoon, at about the time of the accident the previous day.

One of the officers said they spoke to several dozen cyclists and pedestrians, with the aim of finding witnesses who may have seen something of the accident.

He was unable to say whether anyone came forward with information which could prove helpful to police as they investigate the circumstances surrounding the accident. Officers have already appealed for anyone with information to come forward and phone them on 0845 6060245.

Floral tributes have been laid at the scene of the tragedy but the cyclist has not yet been identified. Police said they hoped to be able to release details of her identity today. The Sustrans cycle path from York to Selby runs through the site of the accident, and cycling expert Paul Hepworth has warned against speculating too much on the cause of the accident until the full circumstances are known. He said the whole purpose of the Sustrans route was to encourage people to cycle.

The young woman is the second cyclist to have died in an accident in York in less than four months.

A young Polish man, Adam Lapinski, 22, from near Bishopthorpe Road, died after his bike collided with a car at Holgate Bridge in January.