Stop Killing Cyclists to hold vigil and die-in at Islington Town Hall next week

Campaigners in London will next week stage a vigil and die-in at Islington Town Hall after a cyclist died in hospital following a collision involving a lorry on Pentonville Road.

Jerome Roussel died seven weeks after the crash, which happened on 2 May this year as the 51-year-old commuted to his job as a trader in the City.

The vigil and die-in, organised by the group Stop Killing Cyclists, will start at 5.30pm outside the town hall on Upper Street on Wednesday 8 November, the same day the inquest into Mr Roussel’s death is due to open.

The campaign group’s co-founder, Donnachadh McCarthy, told the London Evening Standard: “Islington desperately needs a protected cycling network to allow its children, adults and pensioners to be able to cycle in the borough, without fear of death."

He also called on Mayor of London Sadiq Khan to make it compulsory for lorries being driven on the capital’s streets to be equipped with CCTV.

“No lethal trucks should be blindly driven on London’s streets,” he said. “This carnage needs to end.”

Even for experienced cyclists, Pentonville Road can be intimidating, especially if riding the uphill drag from King’s Cross to Angel.

Bus drivers making close passes just yards before pulling into a stop are a regular occurrence on the busy road.

It is also seeing higher than usual levels of construction traffic as the development known as the King’s Cross Quarter, which is located on Pentonville Road, is built.

The Metropolitan Police is continuing to investigate the circumstances surrounding Mr Roussel’s death. To date, no arrests have been made.