A man who was cycling a bicycle was airlifted to hospital yesterday afternoon after a collision with a car driver on the main road between Ballina and Killala in Co Mayo.
Sergeant Margaret Flanagan of the garda press office said: “A road traffic collision occurred at 16.45 on the R134 at Rathroeen. A pedal cyclist was in collision with a car and was taken via air ambulance to Mayo University Hospital with critical injuries. The matter is under investigation.”
Midwest Radio reported this morning: “Male cyclist airlifted to hospital following road traffic accident yesterday in Ballina, the main Killala to Ballina road just reopened to traffic this morning.”
“A pedal cyclist was in collision with a car and was taken via air ambulance to Mayo University Hospital with critical injuries. The matter is under investigation.”
The Garda press office and media generally should take a lot more care in reporting these avoidable impacts where the person who was cycling will always come off worst, as in this impact.
The impression is given by the description that the rider was the active actor in the collision and that the vehicle was ‘driverless’.
Riders surely don’t fling themselves at vehicles!