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Leicester teacher killed after taxi passenger opened door

Petition launched to allow cycling on nearby New Walk

An inquest has heard that a Leicester cyclist who was killed after being hit by a van was knocked into its path by a passenger opening a taxi door. Castle Rock High School teacher, Sam Boulton, was killed on July 27 – his 26th birthday.

The Leicester Mercury reports that Detective Sergeant Mark Partridge of the Leicestershire Police Serious Collision Investigation Unit told the inquest:

"At about 1320 hours on July 27 this year, outside the railway station on London Road, a collision occurred between a taxi that was parked at the side of the road, a pedal cycle being ridden by Sam Boulton and a Citroen van being driven in lane two of the A6.

"As the passenger in the taxi opened her door, this caused a collision with the cycle. It knocked the cyclist off, and he then collided with the van and unfortunately sustained fatal injuries. He was taken to Leicester Royal Infirmary where he passed away on the same day."

Lydia Brown, assistant coroner for Leicester, said a post-mortem examination had been held and that the pathologist was currently awaiting blood test results before reaching a conclusion about the exact cause of death.

A 49-year-old man was arrested shortly after the collision and subsequently released on police bail. The inquest will be put on hold while police and the Crown Prosecution Service decide whether to prosecute.

Around 80 Critical Mass cyclists stopped at the scene of the incident during a recent protest ride. Kevin Gorringe, who led the ride, said: "We rode up London Road past the site of the recent accident and did a bike lift there in commemoration of the chap that died. We were only there for a minute or two – it wasn't to disrupt traffic, but we did want to make the point that it is a dangerous spot. Taxis drop people off there instead of using the proper area."

A petition has been launched calling for cyclists to be allowed to use New Walk following Boulton’s death. The route is currently for pedestrians only. At the time of writing, it had attracted over 800 signatures.

Rebecca Pritchard, who started the petition, explained:

"London Road is up to five lanes of traffic past the chaos of the railway station and Regent's Road is busy and narrow. Both have now been the site of fatalities.

"We call on Leicester City Council to allow cycling on New Walk and to make this as comfortable as possible for pedestrians by designating a cycling lane.

"The objection to allowing cycling on New Walk as an historically traffic-free route is absurd. The history of the route was not deemed important enough to stop the council tearing up the cobbled surface for increased pedestrian convenience."

A spokesman for Leicester City Council spokesman said:

"We understand cyclists' concerns and our priority is minimising the dangers for cyclists along London Road.

"For some time, we've been working on drawing up plans for a cycle route on London Road similar to that on Welford Road, which segregates cyclists from traffic.

"We have already discussed our early thinking with our city cycle forum members and will continue to consult with them and others as the plans move forward."

Alex has written for more cricket publications than the rest of the road.cc team combined. Despite the apparent evidence of this picture, he doesn't especially like cake.

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13 comments

Avatar
tritecommentbot | 8 years ago
1 like

Always watch those doored videos on Youtube.

 

You start noticing though that some videos say, 'cyclist hits opening door', or refer to a 'door zone'.

 

It is a problem for rear seat passengers, they got no mirror, so I do have some sympathy there, even though the driver should do the recon on their behalf. American cycle lanes are scary. Seriously, I'd rather ride on the footpath and get abuse from pedestrians than risk an American cycle lane. They remind me of that school game where you'd line up on both sides of the corridor then get the kid everyone bullies to run through while you give him a booting.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eH7JssOWufE

Avatar
bigshape | 8 years ago
1 like

blood test results on the dead cyclist, seeing as it was his birthday they probably assume he'd had a drink and wish to exonerate the van driver or taxi passenger from any blame by proving he was pissed...

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Gus T | 8 years ago
3 likes

I thought that taxi drivers were legally responsible for their passengers entering and exiting their Hackney Carriage safely so why wasn't the driver prosecuted?

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srchar replied to Gus T | 8 years ago
1 like

Gus T wrote:

I thought that taxi drivers were legally responsible for their passengers entering and exiting their Hackney Carriage safely so why wasn't the driver prosecuted?

Correct. I was doored by a taxi passenger who decided they'd had enough of sitting in traffic. Driver gave me his contact details and his cab company reimbursed me for damage to my bicycle.

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Metaphor | 8 years ago
0 likes

Personally I never use taxis because of the disregard they show for other road users and the public in general. The fewer taxis there are the better. A surplus of taxis mean they have to compete with each other and race around.

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wycombewheeler | 8 years ago
3 likes

no arrest for the door opener? who opens the door and exits on the traffic side, rather than onto the pavement?

gross negligence manslaughter?

pretty much every vehicle that passes me is close enough that if I were too fall over there would be a collision.

There really needs to be a big drive about the door zone

No more cycle lanes painted in the door zone, all to be removed within the next month

Information campaign at drivers, to understand why cyclists should not ride in the door zone.

Legislation to make clear that dooring is an offence

Avatar
CygnusX1 replied to wycombewheeler | 8 years ago
0 likes
wycombewheeler wrote:

no arrest for the door opener?

The article says a man was arrested and bailed. It may have been the passenger, the cabbie or the van driver.

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Awavey replied to CygnusX1 | 8 years ago
1 like

CygnusX1 wrote:
wycombewheeler wrote:

no arrest for the door opener?

The article says a man was arrested and bailed. It may have been the passenger, the cabbie or the van driver.

 

the Leicester Mercury  reported the van driver didnt stop at the crash scene and the police arrested a 49 year old a while later...

 

but is it normal in inquests to do blood toxicology post mortems in cases like this to determine cause of death ?

 

 

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brooksby replied to Awavey | 8 years ago
3 likes

Awavey wrote:

but is it normal in inquests to do blood toxicology post mortems in cases like this to determine cause of death ?

Do car doors turn up on a toxicology test? I didn't see that on CSI.

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DrG82 replied to Awavey | 8 years ago
4 likes

Awavey wrote:

the Leicester Mercury  reported the van driver didnt stop at the crash scene and the police arrested a 49 year old a while later...

I was going to express some sympathy with the van driver seeing as it must be pretty horrific  killing someone when it may not have been their fault but, reading that the driver didn't stop makes me hope that they rot in jail.

 

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wycombewheeler replied to DrG82 | 8 years ago
1 like
DrG82 wrote:

Awavey wrote:

the Leicester Mercury  reported the van driver didnt stop at the crash scene and the police arrested a 49 year old a while later...

I was going to express some sympathy with the van driver seeing as it must be pretty horrific  killing someone when it may not have been their fault ...

 

Other the by choosing to pass without giving as much room as a car, contrary to the highway code and thereby raising the stakes of any incident which affects the cyclist.

"I had no time to react" too often cited as a defence by drivers that put themselves in a position where they have no time to react.

Although it is possible in this case that the cyclist was passing the van.

Avatar
wycombewheeler replied to CygnusX1 | 8 years ago
1 like
CygnusX1 wrote:
wycombewheeler wrote:

no arrest for the door opener?

The article says a man was arrested and bailed. It may have been the passenger, the cabbie or the van driver.

The article also states "the passenger opened HER door." So the passenger is not the one arrested. It may well have been the cabbie.

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brooksby | 8 years ago
0 likes

Doored: bl**dy awful way to go.

Been doored by a taxi passenger myself one time, but was in a cycle lane and ended up on the footpath instead of under a van.

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