The son of former Bristol Lord Mayor Peter Abraham died as he cycled across a dual carriageway into the path of an oncoming car, an inquest heard.

Nicholas Abraham, who was 29, was killed instantly when he was hit by a Seat Ibiza on the A4 Portway between Clifton and Shirehampton at about 5.45pm on January 6, 2009.

The car's driver told yesterday's hearing at Flax Bourton Coroner's Court that Mr Abraham had been looking away from him before the accident, and that police said his "inattention" had caused the collision.

But Mr Abraham's father said afterwards that the lack of witnesses to the accident meant the family still had "many unanswered questions" about what happened.

Mr Abraham, a rock climbing instructor who lived with his parents in Avonmouth, was cycling in the direction of the city centre on the pavement, which is on the outbound side of the road.

The hearing was told he then cycled across the inside lane in an attempt to cross the road in a gap in the central reservation to join the bus lane towards Bristol. He was hit side-on by a car driven by Andrew Walker, a student from East Harptree, who was driving back to university in Swansea after the Christmas holiday.

A post-mortem examination concluded that Mr Abraham, who had not been wearing a helmet, died from head injuries sustained in the collision.

Mr Walker said it was cold and frosty on the evening of the accident. He was listening to a CD and driving at about 50mph and had just overtaken a line of cars.

He suddenly saw a cyclist to his left move towards the front of his car bonnet.

Mr Walker said: "I could see no lights or reflective clothing. I braked as hard as I could. He looked terrified. I reacted immediately but had no time to stop to avoid him."

Despite several appeals, no witnesses came forward to help police with their investigations.

Recording a verdict of accidental death, deputy coroner Brian Whitehouse said: "The view of the investigating officer is that the primary cause of this collision was inattention on the part of Nicholas. It is not the purpose of this inquest to blame anyone for his death."

Mr Abraham's father, his mother Pearl, brother Christopher and sister-in-law Melanie were at yesterday's inquest.

Afterwards, his father told the Bristol Evening Post: "I think that the lack of witnesses means that we still do not know exactly what happened. We appreciate that the police have done all they can to produce a report without witnesses.

"Nicholas was a very competent cyclist. We still have many unanswered questions."

Christopher added: "He was a very active person. He loved sport and he loved animals. He was quite a character."