Great Bookham cyclist death

[clockman]

http://www.getsurrey.co.uk/news/surrey-news/tributes-paid-cyclist-killed-great-7251075

R.I.P.

This brings things too close to home. I ride this section of lower road regularly. It's a minutes ride from my front door.
I missed the traffic problems it caused, I'd left home to go to Woking for the Tour series races. My wife however got caught in the congestion at 6pm.
I'm not surprised it's happened however. The road narrows opposite the church, the junction has restricted visibility and I've lost count of the number of times I've seen people just pull out of the junction onto lower road without stopping or indeed looking.
The driving standard on lower road itself is appalling. The road is used to by-pass the A246, people come down off the main road on several linking roads. Then emerge onto lower road too quick, with little regard for others, in their impatience to avoid traffic on the main road.
Four times, on three rides along lower road last week, I personally had near misses with impatient car drivers.

My condolences to the Ian Jobsons family and friends.

 

[babytiger]

r.i.p

 

[Beebo]

This is tragic.

My brother when to school with Ian Jobson's son.
The tragic things is that his son died of meningitis, then a few years ago, Ian's first wife died, he has since remarried and now this happens.
His daughter has now lost both parents and her brother!

 

[Pedalismo]

It's so tragic and my thoughts are with Ian's daughter, family and friends.

I totally agree with clockman and share similar experiences. I've often been put in similar peril travelling along Lower Road near the junction of East Road - exactly the location of yesterday's incident.

For cyclists, unless they take the primary road position (which takes a lots of guts and confidence, because of badly placed traffic island) they are not visible to drivers pulling out from East Road until the very last second. While I don't know the details of this tragic accident, I suspect that the road layout contributed. And no doubt the speed of drivers along the road is notorious rat-run. I've regularly had cars whistle past me doing 40-50mph.

I have written to the local councillor Clare Curran and the department in charge of road maintenance/safety measures, to let me know urgently whether or how they plan to improve cyclist safety at this junction. As a minimum, I would expect there to be an assessment of the problems faced by road users along Lower Road.

The road surface in places is very bad too, particularly near the kerbs and road humps. The layout causes unnecessary confusion and I've nearly come a cropper on a few occasions in and around these many junctions. It should be a much better designed.

With hindsight, I too am afraid to say that a serious accident or fatality was somewhat inevitable along this stretch of road.

I hope that something good comes from this tragic event.