A Royal Marine has told a court that he has been put off cycling for life after being hit by a turning delivery driver while waiting on his bike to join a main road.
Devon Live reports that Adam Fradley was at the junction of Nutwell Road waiting to turn right towards Exmouth on July 19 last year when Mark Bettridge, driving a Vauxhall Zafira, turned right off the main road and smashed into him.
“He was sat in the middle of the junction when the defendant turned right and for reasons unknown failed to see the cyclist and collided with him,” said Lyndsey Baker, prosecuting.
“He caused the cyclist to be thrown into the air onto the windscreen and onto the ground. He suffered multiple fractures including ribs and clavicle.
“He was taken to the Royal Devon & Exeter hospital then taken to Derriford, spending eight days in total, four of those in the intensive care unit.”
Fradley said he didn't notice the van until it crossed the central white line and cut across the corner of the designated turning area. “I could hear the motor revving as he came at me, making no attempt to stop,” he said.
Bettridge said he did not see Fradley until he heard a “massive bang” and saw him go over his front window.
Fradley, who tended to cycle five or six times a week during the summer months, said he would never be able to ride on the road again.
"It is a void I'm going to struggle to fill – it’s put me off cycling for life," he said.
Bettridge pleaded guilty at Exeter Magistrates' Court to one charge of driving without due care and attention. He was handed six penalty points and fined £350 with £120 in costs.
District Judge Stephen Nicholls said the incident had been serious but was the result of a momentary lapse in concentration.
"The effect was that you collided with a cyclist, causing him severe injuries which have had a long-lasting impact."
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