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“The kindest soul” – Family pay tribute to cyclist killed in Cambridge yesterday

Fatal crash happened close to Addenbrooke’s Hospital on Thursday morning

*PLEASE NOTE* An earlier version of this article published on Thursday 7 October incorrectly stated that the fatal crash happened at Cambridge’s Dutch roundabout. We apologise for the error.

A cyclist killed in Cambridge yesterday morning has been named as hospital worker Anna Garratt-Quinton, aged 22 and from Denham, near Bedford.

The driver of the petrol tanker lorry involved in the fatal crash, a 27-year-old man from Hertford, was arrested on  suspicion of causing death by careless or inconsiderate driving and has been released under investigation.

Cambridge Constabulary said that the fatal crash happened just before 8am at the junction of the A1307 with Fendon Road, close to the city’s Addenbrooke’s Hospital, where Ms Garratt-Quinton worked.

In a statement released via police, her family said: 

Today, Anna’s family released the following statement: “Our dear Anna, taken from us too soon, a waste of a truly special individual.

“The kindest soul, gentle and caring to the core. Her giggles, smile and sarcastic wit would light up a room. She was dedicated and hardworking, would never take a day off, but if she did you could be sure to find her in her pink spotty dressing gown.

“Effortlessly bright, her patients were lucky to have her. She is and always will be the best daughter, partner, auntie, sister, granddaughter, niece and so much more. The list could go on because she was truly beloved by all. Anyone who got to meet our Anna Spanner is truly blessed.”

Officers have appealed for anyone who saw the collision or who may have dashcam footage to get in touch via 101 or by webchat quoting incident 66 of 7 October.

Yesterday’s incident was the second serious collision involving a cyclist in Cambridge this week.

 

On Monday, a woman aged in her 60s was taken to Addenbrooke’s Hospital with serious injuries following a hit-and-run crash at around 10pm at the junction of Gilbert Road and Milton Road.

Police have urged the driver of the vehicle, believed to be a black BMW 1 Series, and who fled the scene afterwards, to come forward.

They have also appealed for anyone who saw the crash or who has information or dashcam footage to come forward, quoting incident 491 of 4 October.

Simon joined road.cc as news editor in 2009 and is now the site’s community editor, acting as a link between the team producing the content and our readers. A law and languages graduate, published translator and former retail analyst, he has reported on issues as diverse as cycling-related court cases, anti-doping investigations, the latest developments in the bike industry and the sport’s biggest races. Now back in London full-time after 15 years living in Oxford and Cambridge, he loves cycling along the Thames but misses having his former riding buddy, Elodie the miniature schnauzer, in the basket in front of him.

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5 comments

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eburtthebike | 3 years ago
13 likes

When are these victim statements going to be pinned up at driving schools?  When are people going to be taught not just how to steer their mechanical monster, but about the death and devastation they bring.  When are all people taking their driving tests going to have to do a week in Accident and Emergency to see the effects of a single moment's inattention?

When are we going to be more concerned about lives than licences?

Avatar
Runningwolf replied to eburtthebike | 3 years ago
3 likes

Totally agreed and well said.  My condolences to the family of Ms Garratt-Quinton.

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Captain Badger replied to eburtthebike | 3 years ago
2 likes

eburtthebike wrote:

When are these victim statements going to be pinned up at driving schools? 

When driving instructors start giving a f*** about what they teach to learners....

Avatar
TheBillder replied to eburtthebike | 3 years ago
10 likes

Society has to stop treating driving as a special case, with the utility outweighing the danger. Lessons should be taken from training for things like aviation, industrial machinery and weapons handling.

When I was in the air cadets and learning to shoot, it was drummed into us that failing to concentrate or failing to follow procedures could mean that people died. This needs to be right at the heart of driver training - the first responsibility is to prevent harm to others.

At the moment it seems that the first priority for every driver is to assert their inalienable right to get ahead of their inferiors and join the next queue a second earlier.

Avatar
brooksby replied to TheBillder | 3 years ago
5 likes

And yet the news has been full of how the Govt wants to make it easier to drive HGVs, rather than making it difficult. Removing the requirements for special driving tests etc. And lifting the driving/working hours limits.

Utility outweighs safety.  And hang the so-called vulnerable road users, they probably all support XR and hate Britain anyway.

Or something like that.

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