Son of cyclist left brain damaged in lorry crash urges people to respond to cycle lane consultation

The son of a cyclist who was left with brain damage after a lorry driver crashed into him is urging people to reply to a consultation and call for a safe cycle route in the area where his father sustained the life-changing injury.

Mark Bryan was put into an induced coma after the crash in December 2018, which happened as he cycled home from work on the Bay Gateway Heysham to M6 link road, and now needs 24-hour care reports ITV.com.

The broadcaster says that since his father’s injury, Joshua Brandwood has been campaigning for a segregated cycle lane on the older section of the route, which connects Lancaster, Morecambe and Heysham to the motorway.

There is already a shared use path on the more recent section of the Bay Gateway road, covering 4.8 kilometres, with the link road which cost £140 million opening amid much fanfare in November 2016.

More than 2,500 local residents signed a petition calling for safer cycling infrastructure to be put into place along the entire route, and in the meantime Lancashire County Council has been running a consultation into its Local Cycling and Walking Infrastructure Plans.

“More and more people are choosing to walk and cycle for everyday journeys, and the serious incident involving Mr Brandwood’s father highlights that there is a real need to provide better options for vulnerable road users,” the council said.

“We're committed to improving walking and cycling, and would encourage people to take part in our consultation.”

Urging people to participate in the consultation, which closes next Thursday 5 May, Mr Brandwood said: “This chance won’t come again. My plea to locals in the area is to get behind my campaign and fill out the survey.

“We don’t want other families to go through what we did because it’s not pleasant at all,” he added.