Solidarity ride for recently killed cyclist 10th August.

I've asked Charlie at LCC to say something...
Thanks MM. I hadn't seen this sorry thread until your email.

Obviously our web pages were written before the views of the family were known. We will look at the pages again to see what editing would improve them.

There are several important issues arising from Dan's death. If I were a family member I would be outraged at the acres of media coverage on the helmet nonsense. It is very sad that Wiggo was wrongfooted by the media after his massive victory. No grieving family should be subject to the kind of media storm we have seen in the last week.

In the literally hundreds of media contacts we have had over the past week we have tried to emphasize the factors which might have contributed to Dan's death. Primarily the road layout is an issue. Cyclists were directed to the point where Dan was hit, all traffic has to turn left, there is no indication that most of the Olympic buses are actually making a u-turn.

We have been complaining about the poor management of cycle routes through this junction throughout the Olympic construction phase. We recently told TfL officers that at many junctions in London the implementation of cycle access across the Olympic network was incompetent, warning of the likelihood of serious injury. We wrote to TfL's chief operating officer complaining about some of these junctions. Sadly we had not heard of the increased danger at this A12 junction where they put in the games lanes and scrubbed out the cycle lane and ASL.

Part of our job is to help make London a safer and more inviting place to cycle. In this case we failed to get enough action to prevent a fatality. We understand the concern of Dan's family but we think it essential to highlight the risks caused by poor road layout at this junction. I am sad that BQ sees this as trying to make political capital out of Dan's death. TfL have already made some changes and put in extra signage but it still does not work as a safe cycle route.

At LCC we have a strict policy of not chasing up or trying to make contact with victims' families apart from letting it be known that we are willing to help in any way we can. Some families do make contact and work very closely with us. Most commonly they want to help reduce the risk of similar crashes happening to other cyclists in London.

so most people, including the family seam to agree he should be forgotten as quickly as possible and
everybody should continue like nothing happened.
thread can be closed than.

Are you being needlessly obtuse?

There is a vast difference between not politicising some ones death and saying, "he should be forgotten as quickly as possible".

Are you being needlessly obtuse?

.

yes

Are you being needlessly obtuse?

There is a vast difference between not politicising some ones death and saying, "he should be forgotten as quickly as possible".

+1

Thanks Charlie for that.
I'm pretty thick-skinned, so if I felt unease at seeing that then maybe others felt more.
I don't know what the right course of action would be, but if it were me I would be sending strongly worded "we told you so" letters to TFL, LOCOG and Boris, but conspicuously refusing to say it in the press.

Thanks Charlie for that.
I'm pretty thick-skinned, so if I felt unease at seeing that then maybe others felt more.
I don't know what the right course of action would be, but if it were me I would be sending strongly worded "we told you so" letters to TFL, LOCOG and Boris, but conspicuously refusing to say it in the press.

You need the added pressure of media coverage.

http://www.movingtargetzine.com/article/4-years-ago-today-london-bicycle-messenger-sebastian-lukomski-died

Thanks Charlie for that.
I'm pretty thick-skinned, so if I felt unease at seeing that then maybe others felt more.
I don't know what the right course of action would be, but if it were me I would be sending strongly worded "we told you so" letters to TFL, LOCOG and Boris, but conspicuously refusing to say it in the press.
I guess the "we told you so" element came out of our anger than nothing had been done and also guilt that we had not pressed them hard enough about this junction.
In our letter to TfL yesterday we set out what we think are the problems with this junction, what some of the solutions might be and we suggested that we could do a site visit with the planners/engineers tasked with putting it right.

BB puts it very well. LCC pointing out that this is a dangerous junction and that they have pointed this out previously is far from 'crowing'. I do think a CM style ride as suggested by the OP was not appropriate and Veloccio pointed that out eloquently.

I have a problem with the underlying theme of some posters in this thread, which is that no lessons can be learnt & applied as a result of this death, and that there should not be pressure put on those responsible. I have some sympathy with the family with regards to the amount of media coverage of Wiggin's statement, which apparently endorsed helmet compulsion (although he insists that this was not his intention), especially as it seems the chap was wearing a helmet. In this context, I find it entirely appropriate that the LCC should be speaking out against such nonsense.

I also think that it is entirely appropriate that the changes to the road lay-out at that junction, which, in my estimation, was one of the most dangerous & confusing in London BEFORE the ORN changes, should be examined in detail.

I would have a problem with a memorial ride being turned into a PR stunt, but, in my experience these things really are (although I share the view that having a CM is a bit wierd), but wanting to be respectful of the family's feelings does not extend to not putting this poor fellow's death into the bigger picture of poor road design causing unnecessary deaths, if that is conclusion of the investigation (as seems likely, based on my knowledge of the junction, and what has been reported about the circumstances of the death).

this should be quoted on every page

Seems Police are already out in force @ Waterloo :(

Who would have thought?

Just saw 10 riot vans blazing east down southwark street. Hope it's not related.

does anyone know how many people turned up? The police were expecting around 30 I believe

does anybody know exactly what happened in this tragic incident? Could somebody please point me in the direction of the details . Thanks

aha, here is the met page on tonight - http://content.met.police.uk/Event/Cycle-Ride/1400010740627/1257246745828 .

clintsmoker - I'd take a look at the rider down thread for it.

Thread is here clintsmoker - https://www.lfgss.com/thread90554-5.html

I wonder where the Police got the figure of 30 from?

Like The Law, they make figures up as they go along...
They've been teaching Boris...

My partner, voleospeed, has just tweeted pictures of the vigil and the ghost bike in memory of Dan Harris.

Thanks MrD and MissMouse. I just read through that and most of the links and still am no wiser as to what actually happened.

^ Try this - http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/public/cyclesafety/article3494973.ece

I did see the witness account when the guy first posted it and it sounded horrific. Am just saddened that so many people seem so angry and seem to be eager to apportion blame when I'm struggling to see that anybody actually knows what happened. I sincerely hope his family are moved by the ghost bike gesture.

thanks again. that Times article mentions 'collision' and 'being hit' and that there is an investigation. Perhaps we should wait and see.

Indeed. Unwise to say anything until the inquest has taken place.

aha, here is the met page on tonight - http://content.met.police.uk/Event/Cycle-Ride/1400010740627/1257246745828 .

Now expired/deleted.

Content for posterity:

**                              Cycle Ride  **

            Start: Fri 10 August 2012, 18:00 PM         
    End: Fri 10 August 2012, 21:00 PM   
                        **Description**

    On Friday 10th August 2012 there will be a cycle ride and vigil.

The event will begin at 1800hrs from Waterloo Bridge and travel to the Olympic Park Stratford.
It is estimated that approximately 30 cyclists will be in attendance for the event.
The route is as follows:
Waterloo Bridge, Aldwych, Strand, Farringdon Street, Smithfields Market, Chartherhouse Street, St Johns Street , Old Street, Hackney Road, Cambridge Heath Road, Mare Street, Morning Lane, Homerton High Street, Homerton Road.
No roads closures are expected at this time.

Facebook page:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/2304619551/
This seems to be a summary:
**A nice gentle summer ride up to the vigil for Dan Harris tonight. Thanks Donnachadh McCarthy for organising and liaising with police so well!

On a less positive note, a taste of things to come for the upcoming Critical Mass ride... as well as 4 or 5 police cyclists riding with us (perfectly pleasant and friendly in fairness), there was also a police helicopter tracking us from Waterloo up to the Olympic Park, and 6 police motorcyclists riding a way ahead of us (discreetly, but not quite invisibly). (also apparently several vans were at Waterloo tucked away but I didn't see those)

Then when we reached the point of the vigil, no less than 13 police vans were waiting for us, with lines and lines of police officers lining all the routes around the park. After a bit of friendly negotiation from the organisers, most of them moved away for the vigil itself, though there were still a dozen or so looking on expecting at any minute for us to storm the olympic park. Practice run for them?**

Photos:
www.demotix.com/news/1381805/vigil-mark-olympic-park-cyclist-dan-harriss-death

Doesn't look like there were even 30 cyclists.