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news
Dan Walker (Twitter/Dan Walker)Dan Walker "glad to be alive" after being hit by a driver while cycling
Broadcaster and presenter Dan Walker was injured in a collision while cycling this morning, sharing pictures from the back of an ambulance.
The former BBC Breakfast host who now works for Channel 5 took up cycling last year, citing the faster commuting times in London versus hailing a cab, and said he had a "bit of an accident this morning" and was "glad to be alive after getting hit by a car on my bike".
Bit of an accident this morning.
Glad to be alive after getting hit by a car on my bike. Face is a mess but I don’t think anything is broken. Thanks to Shaun and Jamie for sorting me out and the lovely copper at the scene.
This is my smiling 😂
Thankful for our NHS ❤️ pic.twitter.com/jt4FdaQDUU— Dan Walker (@mrdanwalker) February 20, 2023
Walker shared pictures of his facial injuries, which he described as a "mess" but added that he does not think he suffered any broken bones in the collision.
It is unclear where the incident occurred, with the BBC reporting its former employee lives in Sheffield and the pictures were taken in a Yorkshire Ambulance Service vehicle
In previous interviews about cycling, Walker has talked about enjoying cycling through London to get to work.
Dan, so sorry to hear this. Looks really painful. Hoping for a good recovery. Sending love.
— Jeremy Vine (@theJeremyVine) February 20, 2023
I hope you recover quickly @mrdanwalker! Despite Dan’s injuries, he is actually very fortunate. 111 UK cyclist fatalities last year. We must never accept this. All relevant stakeholders must strive to reduce road danger and every single road user has a responsibility to be safe.
— Andy Cox (@AndyCoxDCS) February 20, 2023
Speaking to the Mirror about taking up cycling last year, Walker said: "It's an eco thing."
> Cycling celebrities — famous folk who love to ride their bikes
"'I've worked in London and taxis are a nightmare and I started to get around on the bike. I can go from Downing Street to St Pancras in about 15 minutes, and it's about 30 minutes in a taxi so although I feel like a bit of a geek sometimes, I'm very much enjoying it."
Minus 4 when I set off this morning 🥶⛄️
A day to take great care and wrap up warm pic.twitter.com/GXK7prN5tE— Dan Walker (@mrdanwalker) December 13, 2022
"Face is a mess but I don't think anything is broken," he told his Twitter followers after this morning's incident, attracting messages of support from Jeremy Vine and DCS Andy Cox among others.
Thanks for all your kindness. Jamie & Shaun were so great in the ambulance - not sure I was making much sense 😂Thanks to Conor the copper, Charlotte in x-ray & Hannah (below) for being so considerate & brilliant in such a busy A & E
2/3 pic.twitter.com/A3Cggqu4Lg— Dan Walker (@mrdanwalker) February 20, 2023
The helmet I was wearing saved my life today so - if you’re on a bike - get one on your head.
Smashed my watch & phone, ruined my trousers, my bike is a mess but I’m still here 🙏🏻
Currently eating soup through a straw and being looked after by this gorgeous, tired nurse ❤️
3/3 pic.twitter.com/slELcbFJdL— Dan Walker (@mrdanwalker) February 20, 2023
"Thanks to Shaun and Jamie for sorting me out and the lovely copper at the scene. This is my [sic] smiling. Thankful for our NHS"
The BBC's reporting of the incident has attracted criticism from some. BBC South East said Walker had suffered his injuries after "colliding with a car while cycling" despite him saying he had been "hit by a car [driver]".
Him: "Glad to be alive after getting hit by a car on my bike"
You: "colliding with a car"Can't you see how your choice of language changes perceptions?
— LukeB_MTB @mastodon.social (@LukeB_MTB) February 20, 2023
Another reply added: "Who edits this stuff? Unless you think 'BBC breakfast host eats chicken' is the same as 'chicken eats BBC breakfast host' the words you choose matter. Try replacing 'car' with 'driver' too".
I presume by the headline this was a stationary correctly parked car with no occupants? 🚲 💥 🚙
— Edouard Lapaglie (@EDFROG) February 20, 2023
Dan is the road.cc news editor and joined in 2020 having previously written about nearly every other sport under the sun for the Express, and the weird and wonderful world of non-league football for The Non-League Paper. Dan has been at road.cc for four years and mainly writes news and tech articles as well as the occasional feature. He has hopefully kept you entertained on the live blog too.
Never fast enough to take things on the bike too seriously, when he's not working you'll find him exploring the south of England by two wheels at a leisurely weekend pace, or enjoying his favourite Scottish roads when visiting family. Sometimes he'll even load up the bags and ride up the whole way, he's a bit strange like that.
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71 comments
I wouldn't want to drive on that roundabout never mind cycle.
Wanted one of these (A) but didn't even get something that would at least be safer for drivers (B) at what looks like a "high capacity" spot...
(Hint - if "capacity" is an issue on your inner ring road "more road for more vehicles" is not going to be your solution).
its not even the worst roundabout in Sheffield is it ? theres one near the university, thats just like being the Griswolds trying to get off it
https://youtu.be/_TkxDa4rKnI
I wouldn't know...apart from a few hazy nights out there I don't really know Sheffield
Then there are the roundabouts that aren't really roundabouts, they are just really complicated ways of making a junction. Sheffield is one of those places where you can't drive in it unless you've already driven there for 5 years to learn the roads. It should be compulsory for everyone to have a Groundhog Day experience and they don't get out of that until they've driven the whole Sheffield network in the correct lane - which is unlikely ever to happen due to the heaps of cars parked just where you are supposed to be on most roads.
Are we still doing the old dullard's EC1V 3QJ in 2023? Christ.
Yup. Still boiling the pot.
Oh well, maybe when I'm thinking of retiring, I'll be at the stage where I'm really keen on the flat... and they'll have me a bit over a hundred miles east ... where I hope they still won't have taken up the sport of arguing about this.
https://bicycledutch.wordpress.com/2011/10/13/safe-cycling-for-8-to-80-y...
On the other hand, it seems that the rest of the world are still keen to take their argument with them, and Dutch folks are quite happy not to back down if someone else starts an argument...
https://bicycledutch.wordpress.com/2019/08/05/bicycle-helmets-the-dutch-...
Let's see how the BBC decided to report a driver hitting a cyclist... Having been the subject of a very close pass this morning while on the school run with two kids on the bike, which the driver explained when I inevitably caught up was due to my not riding in the gutter, I'm just done with this shit.
"While massive coverage is given to a news person's comments on helmets, this is what really should be grabbing the attention of people genuinely concerned with the safety of cyclists."
"I'm done, exhausted, worn down, 15 reports to Essex Police since the start of the year, 8 warning letters, 2 nfa, just 5 courses/conditional offers. The latest were 3 I reported from my ride on Sunday all warning letters. 1/"
"And that's based on me just reporting the worst ones, there were plenty of others that I didn't bother with knowing Essex wouldn't do a thing. I just can't see the benefit anymore, the time and effort it takes to report each one for Essex to just do nothing. 2/"
https://twitter.com/CHAIRRDRF/status/1628036349528879105
Looks like Dan is happy to wear a helmet, but not too fussed about segregated cycling infrastructure:
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11775165/Busy-stretch-road-ex-B...
https://goo.gl/maps/tYpHLX1fhu4FBvRq7
Whilst I'll defend anybody's right to choose to not use either, I'd place segregated infrastructure above a helmet when it comes to safety advice.
(oh, and not sure where the DM are getting 40 bike crashes, cyclestreets only has 13 incidents from 1999-2021)
Had a look - on the side you show (west) the infra's... not great. I might be tempted to give it a miss - except the roundabout just looks unsuitable for cycling.
On the east side - ooh - cycle paths either side (albeit narrow, and on the inside of pedestrians...)! And then after about 100 metres back to normal a couple of feet of "advisory cycle lane"!
oh yep, it's rubbish infra, but it does offer a way to negotiate that horrendous looking roundabout without having to worry about drivers.
As usual with rubbish cycling infra, you trade speed for safety, it's a lot slower with a level change and several 90 degree turns. I suspect I would be tempted to avoid it too and dice with the drivers on the roundabout.
I wonder if he was attempting to go ahead from the left-turn lane, which you are allowed to do on a bicycle, but I'm sure many drivers wouldn't know that.(edit: nope, just seen the dashcam footage, he was in a lane marked for the direction he wished to travel - although it looks like the undertaking driver might have used the left-turn lane to go ahead).
If you want to wear a helmet, then wear one. If you don't, no problem, then don't.
But people need to stop losing their minds whenever somebody mentions wearing a helmet....FFS
Repeat for hi-viz, daytime lights usage, tyre widths, tubeless, choice & availability of various brake types, frame materials, etc.
I just wanted to make the 60th comment on this story and say I'm going out on my bike later this evening.
I hope you wore a plant pot on your head.
Okay, I'm just going to back slowly away from the keyboard.
‘Helmet saved my life’, says Dan Walker after bike collided with car
"Bike collided with car"?
Focussing on PPE rather than the cause of the collision?
I'm gonna get my bingo card out
Can't remember anything, but it's a good job he was wearing a helmet.
You couldn't make it up!
Are you insinuating the helmet made Dan's injury worse?
Surely OBE's point is that if Mr Walker cannot remember anything about the collision, how does he know that it was the helmet that saved his life?
You're kidding, right?
Not at all. I'm open to alternative opinions, but I'm not sure that someone with no memory of an incident counts as a good witness to that incident...
He might be able to piece it together. Given how his face looks, and I expect his helmet doesn't look as pristine as that lovely 'before' photo we have in the article, accounts from others and input from medical professionals, I think he might have a good idea that his helmet was a benefit in this incident.
Note how the upper sections of his head (which would have been covered by a helmet) look rather different to the lower sections (not covered by a helmet). It doesn't take a rocket surgeon.
And he seems confident, so good for him.
The reality is it is far more likely that the helmet prevented scalp + forehead injuries comparable to the other injuries he received (both to his face and hand). Yet we get proclaimations all over the media about how it saved his life and everyone should wear one (and why do we need to do anything else to make cycling safer...)
Wow, an eye witness! You should contact Dan and let him know that you saw his collision first-hand. He might need your support for insurance purposes.
Having no memory of it sounds like he suffered some concussion, so maybe a better position would be to implore cyclists and drivers to take more care on the roads to avoid collisions.
It's annoying that the police seem to be uninterested in the incident too.
(I'm puzzled by the mention of a furry nurse)
Don't go looking that up on Pornhub. Or maybe do
I've got a sinking feeling I know where this is going...
Welcome to the cycling club, Dan. Get well soon!
Is that in fact a souped up e-roller skate you're riding???
Powered by solar panels me thinks....
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