Victims of cycling collisions
The Telegraph has highlighted the numerous cases where pedestrians have died or been seriously injured as a result of collisions with cyclists. It has also exposed the many failings in the way such collisions are treated in law and by the police, as well as recorded on official Government data.
Hilda Griffiths
Hilda Griffiths, 81, died after she was struck by Brian Fitzgerald, a city banker and club cyclist, who was part of a high-speed peloton travelling at up to 29mph in Regent’s Park where a 20mph speed limit is in place. Her son, Gerard, has campaigned for a change in the law.
She was crossing the road on the junction of the Outer Circle and Hanover Terrace on Saturday June 25, 2022. She died more than 50 days after the collision.
Mrs Griffiths’ inquest heard that cyclists are not legally required to obey speed limits. As a result, Mr Fitzgerald, who works for Credit Suisse, could not be prosecuted.
Diana Walker
Diana Walker, 76, died when a cyclist hit her in Pewsey, Wiltshire, in April 2016. Her husband, Peter Walker, 85, has also campaigned for a law change.
He told The Telegraph: “All we are asking is that if a cyclist causes a pedestrian’s death it should be treated in the same way as any other road accident with commensurate legislation.”
Kim Briggs
Kim Briggs, 44, was killed after Charlie Alliston, then 20, hit her as she crossed Old Street, East London while riding a fixed-gear bike with no front brake. Ms Briggs, a mother of two, who was on her lunch break, suffered “catastrophic” head injuries and died in hospital a week later.
Mrs Briggs’s husband, Matt, 54, has campaigned tirelessly on securing updated laws to try to deter dangerous cycling.
Alliston, who was cleared of manslaughter, was jailed for 18 months for causing bodily harm by “wanton and furious” riding.
Jim Blackwood
Jim Blackwood, 91, was hit by an e-bike being ridden on the pavement in Kent in 2023. The Army veteran was putting his bins outside his home in Rochester when a man riding an e-bike collided with him.
His daughter, Christine White, 65, has called for tougher laws to target cyclists who flout road rules.
Peter McCombie
Peter McCombie, 72, died after being hit by cyclist Ermir Loka, 23, who jumped a red light in London in July 2020.
Loka was jailed for two years. Mr McCombie’s sister, Christine Berridge, told The Telegraph: “How many more people will need to die before ministers change the law?”
Paola Dos Santos
Paola Dos Santos was left seriously injured by a cyclist riding on the wrong side of the road at the exact same location where Mrs Griffiths was hit in Regent’s Park.
Polly Friedhoff
Polly Friedhoff, 81, was killed after colliding with a cyclist as she walked along a canal towpath in Oxfordshire in 2022.
Ms Friedhoff, who retired from her job as St Antony’s College’s first public relations and development officer in the mid-2000s, died in hospital 12 days after being hit.
Edward Bressan, 56, was cleared of cycling “wanton or furiously” on his B’Twin bicycle. He told Oxford Crown Court he was travelling at 3mph.
Her family said her death arose from “an ungoverned shared space which she herself had warned about”.
Jane Stone
Jane Stone, 79, died after being hit by a cyclist riding on the pavement in Monmouth, South Wales in 2021Stewart McGinn, 30, was jailed for a year after it emerged his bike had only one working brake and was travelling at speed.
John Douglas
John Douglas, 75, suffered 15 broken ribs and two broken collarbones after being hit by an e-bike ridden on the pavement near his Birmingham home in 2024. He was taken to hospital with injuries that included 15 broken ribs, two broken collarbones and a broken ankle. After four weeks in an induced coma and a few weeks in intensive care he developed pneumonia and died on New Year’s Day.
Christopher Bushell, Mr Douglas’s nephew, said he was dismayed by how the Government promotes cycling, e-bikes and e-scooters but has failed to keep laws up to date.
Ian Gunn
Ian Gunn, 56, died in June 2020 in south Manchester, and the cyclist was cleared of wanton and furious driving. Cornelius De Bruin was cleared of causing bodily harm to Mr Gunn in 2022. The cyclist was wearing headphones when he hit Mr Gunn.
The Telegraph has highlighted the numerous cases where pedestrians have died or been seriously injured as a result of collisions with cyclists. It has also exposed the many failings in the way such collisions are treated in law and by the police, as well as recorded on official Government data.
Hilda Griffiths
Hilda Griffiths, 81, died after she was struck by Brian Fitzgerald, a city banker and club cyclist, who was part of a high-speed peloton travelling at up to 29mph in Regent’s Park where a 20mph speed limit is in place. Her son, Gerard, has campaigned for a change in the law.
She was crossing the road on the junction of the Outer Circle and Hanover Terrace on Saturday June 25, 2022. She died more than 50 days after the collision.
Mrs Griffiths’ inquest heard that cyclists are not legally required to obey speed limits. As a result, Mr Fitzgerald, who works for Credit Suisse, could not be prosecuted.
Diana Walker
Diana Walker, 76, died when a cyclist hit her in Pewsey, Wiltshire, in April 2016. Her husband, Peter Walker, 85, has also campaigned for a law change.
He told The Telegraph: “All we are asking is that if a cyclist causes a pedestrian’s death it should be treated in the same way as any other road accident with commensurate legislation.”
Kim Briggs
Kim Briggs, 44, was killed after Charlie Alliston, then 20, hit her as she crossed Old Street, East London while riding a fixed-gear bike with no front brake. Ms Briggs, a mother of two, who was on her lunch break, suffered “catastrophic” head injuries and died in hospital a week later.
Mrs Briggs’s husband, Matt, 54, has campaigned tirelessly on securing updated laws to try to deter dangerous cycling.
Alliston, who was cleared of manslaughter, was jailed for 18 months for causing bodily harm by “wanton and furious” riding.
Jim Blackwood
Jim Blackwood, 91, was hit by an e-bike being ridden on the pavement in Kent in 2023. The Army veteran was putting his bins outside his home in Rochester when a man riding an e-bike collided with him.
His daughter, Christine White, 65, has called for tougher laws to target cyclists who flout road rules.
Peter McCombie
Peter McCombie, 72, died after being hit by cyclist Ermir Loka, 23, who jumped a red light in London in July 2020.
Loka was jailed for two years. Mr McCombie’s sister, Christine Berridge, told The Telegraph: “How many more people will need to die before ministers change the law?”
Paola Dos Santos
Paola Dos Santos was left seriously injured by a cyclist riding on the wrong side of the road at the exact same location where Mrs Griffiths was hit in Regent’s Park.
Polly Friedhoff
Polly Friedhoff, 81, was killed after colliding with a cyclist as she walked along a canal towpath in Oxfordshire in 2022.
Ms Friedhoff, who retired from her job as St Antony’s College’s first public relations and development officer in the mid-2000s, died in hospital 12 days after being hit.
Edward Bressan, 56, was cleared of cycling “wanton or furiously” on his B’Twin bicycle. He told Oxford Crown Court he was travelling at 3mph.
Her family said her death arose from “an ungoverned shared space which she herself had warned about”.
Jane Stone
Jane Stone, 79, died after being hit by a cyclist riding on the pavement in Monmouth, South Wales in 2021Stewart McGinn, 30, was jailed for a year after it emerged his bike had only one working brake and was travelling at speed.
John Douglas
John Douglas, 75, suffered 15 broken ribs and two broken collarbones after being hit by an e-bike ridden on the pavement near his Birmingham home in 2024. He was taken to hospital with injuries that included 15 broken ribs, two broken collarbones and a broken ankle. After four weeks in an induced coma and a few weeks in intensive care he developed pneumonia and died on New Year’s Day.
Christopher Bushell, Mr Douglas’s nephew, said he was dismayed by how the Government promotes cycling, e-bikes and e-scooters but has failed to keep laws up to date.
Ian Gunn
Ian Gunn, 56, died in June 2020 in south Manchester, and the cyclist was cleared of wanton and furious driving. Cornelius De Bruin was cleared of causing bodily harm to Mr Gunn in 2022. The cyclist was wearing headphones when he hit Mr Gunn.
