“I just don't think there's enough being done about it”: Cyclist injured by hit-and-run driver calls for police action

A cyclist who was seriously injured by a hit-and-run driver last month has called on Greater Manchester Police to do more to deter dangerous and reckless drivers.

50-year-old teacher Andrew Holroyd was cycling home from work in Bury on 29 March when the driver of a Volkswagen Golf drove into him while turning right. The impact of the collision shunted the cyclist towards a nearby van, propelling him over the bonnet.

After bystanders rushed to help him, Andrew was taken to Salford Royal Hospital, where he spent a week receiving treatment after suffering a punctured left lung, a small bleed on the brain, fractured vertebrae, three broken ribs and four broken fingers.

The driver of the Golf, which was registered using ‘false details’, fled the scene in the aftermath of the crash and is yet to be traced by police.

Andrew, who says he has not received any further updates from officers about the hit-and-run driver, told the Manchester Evening News that the police should be doing more to prevent similar incidents. 

> Cyclist hit by drunk driver... police say wear hi-vis so motorists see you 

“Ultimately I just don't think there's enough being done about it,” he said. “You hear so many stories of cars being taken and involved in crashes. And the consequences aren't great enough. It's all great for them having fun at that time.

“But I don't think they realise the consequences for people like me are severe. I've had to take time off work, have missed out on a holiday, and it could have been worse than that.

“If there's one area when I'm riding I don't feel comfortable it is there. They've put speed cameras in that area but I don't think that's much deterrent.

“I'd like to see more of a police presence in the area, maybe that might make them think twice.”

Andrew’s comments come in the same week that Greater Manchester Police was criticised for sharing a video related to the national road safety campaign ‘2 Wheels’.

In the video, which has since been removed from Twitter, an officer describes an incident where a cyclist was struck by a drunk driver while riding on the pavement, resulting in life-threatening injuries. The officer, however, used that tragic incident to advise cyclists to “wear the protective clothing, wear the hi-vis, make yourself as visible as possible to everybody on the road”.