Call for lights on Bristol cycle path

A cyclist is calling for better lighting on the Bristol to Bath cycle path after she was injured while using it at night.

Rose Adkins, 24, was cycling from her home in Fishponds to her boyfriends house in Totterdown at about 9pm when she came off her bike.

She had hit a section of tarmac that had been dug up by workmen, but said she had not been able to see the barrier due to the lack of lighting.

Miss Adkins, a mental health assistant, had her bike lights and helmet on, said she was not cycling fast.

She said: "Around the Fishponds part of the Bristol to Bath track there is a part that is pitch black at night, because there's no street lighting.

"There were all these strips across the cycle track where the tarmac had been dug up.

"The first of these was in the pitch black part of the track so I had no idea about the state of the tarmac until I was flying through the air.

"I felt like I hit the ground with my face but my crash helmet must have taken most of the impact because my face seems fine, I've just got a headache now.

"However, my knees are both really bruised, one of them is completely purple and doing anything like standing up or sitting down is agony."

Miss Adkins believes lights should have been on the barrier, and there should have been a sign stating there was an uneven surface.

Her bike needs fixing because the lights and reflector broke when she fell, and the wheel was slightly bent.

"My neck and one of my arms is really sore and there are little bruises all over me," she said.

"I'd be very surprised if I was the only person who fell off their bike there.

"The only kind of warning or sign was an orange barrier, that had been placed parallel to the track, on either side of the strip of torn-up tarmac.

"However, because it was so dark I couldn't see the barrier until it was too late.

"I'm not usually the sort of person to complain about things but I feel so angry that I'm in so much pain now, when it could've been avoided."

A Bristol City Council spokesman said: “We're sorry to hear about this accident and we are fully investigating.

“Contractor work has been taking place to remove tree roots.

“The contractors are obliged by the terms of their contract to leave the area safe at the close of each day's work.

“The council and the contractor are investigating to establish what happened.”