Work on the new cycle route began this month. Photo: Transport for London.
Transport for London have promised to consider options to extend the new ‘Cycle Superhighway’ into Lewisham town centre following the death of a cyclist on Monday.
Father-of-two Paul Hutcheson, 41, from Lee, south east London suffered serious injuries in a collision with a red Audi at Loampit Vale in Lewisham and died after being taken to a south London hospital.
The car involved did not initially stop at the scene but was located a short distance away. Police said the 28-year-old driver was arrested and has since been bailed to return in August pending further enquiries.
The location of the accident was in an area that was once planned as part of Cycle Superhighway 5, which is currently being created from the Oval to New Cross. Cycling campaigners want the route extended into Lewisham town centre because of the heavy traffic in the area.
“We are now looking at options to extend Cycle Superhighway 5 to Lewisham town centre. Discussions are at an early stage,” TfL said in an email to the local cyclist campaign group Lewisham Cyclists.
Jane Davis, coordinator of Lewisham Cyclists said: “The junction near the incident links to LCN 21 and one of our concerns has been inadequate signs and unsafe links to these quiet, safe routes.
“Some of us took a look at the area and took some photos of the hazards we could see. It’s a pretty confusing area for cyclists.”
In a moving tribute at the scene of the crash in Loampit Vale, Hutcheson’s wife, Mandie, wrote: “‘Morning Treacle’ so wish I could hear you say that to me again. It feels like my lungs have no air and my heart has no beat.”
A friend and fellow Millwall FC supporter also left Millwall FC’s flag at the scene and wrote: “Sleep tight Paul”.
The incident at Lewisham raises concerns again about the safety and welfare of London’s cyclists. The uncle of 17-year old Olatunji “TJ” Johnson Adeyanju, who was killed in a similar incident last year, was quoted in News Shopper saying that if any good was to come from the tragic death of his nephew then more needed to be done to promote safer cycling in the capital. His nephew was the unfortunate victim of a hit-and-run incident in Deptford, Lewisham in 2012.
TfL’s Chief Operating Officer, Surface Transport, Garrett Emmerson said in a statement: “We [are] extremely sorry to hear of the death of a cyclist on Lewisham High Street earlier this week and our thoughts go out to his friends and family.”
Police from the Road Death Investigation Unit are still appealing for information. If you can help call 020 8285 1574 or call Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
Sorry, but there are no dangerous roads, just dangerous drivers and negligent highway engineers. And the only things that link TJ’s death to Paul Hutcheson are the borough and a same car make of hit-and-run driver. Anyone who cycles in London will know which vehicles have the most dangerous drivers.
My deepest sympathy to Mandie, their children and Paul’s parents.
Sorry @Marmoset but it’s simply not true there are “no dangerous roads”.
Although dangerous driving might have been a key factor in these fatal crashes, there’s buckets of evidence that it’s possible to dramatically reduce risk to cycling and walking by designing roads, particularly junctions, in a much better way.
You only have to spend a day cycling in the Netherlands to see how safer their streets are than ours. Encouraging walking and cycling benefits motorists and public transport users hugely too, because it reduces congestion and over-crowding.
As a Lewisham resident, I see evidence every day that Transport for London and Lewisham Council need to do much more to allow people to cycle safely in the borough. Mr Hutcheson’s death shouldn’t be in vain.
Mike Cavenett
London Cycling Campaign
Unfortunately neither TfL nor Lewisham Council seems to be concerned that the Lewisham Gateway road scheme will meet current cycling standards. See this response from TfL about whether they will put this junction through their junction review process – where junctions are looked at specifically for cycle (and pedestrian) safety. https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/lewisham_gateway#incoming-392225 It seems that as its a developers scheme (on theier road) they can do little to this almost 4 year old scheme. The same is true for the current road changes for the bus staiotn (being built now). I have been told Lewisham had no imput to this and have not consulted local groups/residents. It seems pretty poor as designed. Does anyone care?