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Witness appeal as 11-year-old Wiltshire cyclist killed in collision with road sweeper vehicle

Incident took place in yesterday evening as youngster rode with his father and brother

Wiltshire Police have appealed for witnesses after an 11-year-old boy was killed yesterday evening following a collision involving a road sweeping vehicle.

Police say the victim died at the scene of the incident which took place at around 7.18pm in the village of Purton, where he lived.

The fatal collision took place on Station Road near Bamford Close as the cyclist, together with his father and older brother, headed towards Cricklade, while the road sweeper was being driven in the direction of Hook.

Police collision investigator Scott Hill said: "This was a very tragic incident in which a young boy sadly lost his life.

“I would like to appeal to any witnesses, who have not already made contact with police, to contact us immediately.

“Any information may assist us in our investigation."

Acting Inspector Ben Huggins added: "The local policing team will continue to work with partner agencies to ensure that road safety is a priority in this area.

"Our thoughts remain with the family and friends of the victim at this extremely difficult time."

Anyone who has information is requested to call PC Lee Prince on 101, or the charity Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.

Simon joined road.cc as news editor in 2009 and is now the site’s community editor, acting as a link between the team producing the content and our readers. A law and languages graduate, published translator and former retail analyst, he has reported on issues as diverse as cycling-related court cases, anti-doping investigations, the latest developments in the bike industry and the sport’s biggest races. Now back in London full-time after 15 years living in Oxford and Cambridge, he loves cycling along the Thames but misses having his former riding buddy, Elodie the miniature schnauzer, in the basket in front of him.

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8 comments

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Manchestercyclist | 8 years ago
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That's terribly sad, and makes me all the more worried to take my children out and about. How can I ensure they're safety when I can't garantee that the pavement will be free, the bike lane is parked in and a hell of a lot of drivers aren't looking where they're going.

Although I have no evidence ofcourse it wouldn't suprise me one bit that the driver got bored of going about at 15mph and started checking facebook.

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smcc1879 | 8 years ago
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The vehicle may not have been sweeping at the time of the incident. Just like this idiot who almost mowed me down last week. The Met Police have yet to respond by the way. http://youtu.be/lEJhfhIasq4

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brooksby | 8 years ago
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How on earth did the bicycle and the road sweeper collide if they were travelling in opposite directions? Road sweepers aw not renowned for speed or manoeuvrability.

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farrell replied to brooksby | 8 years ago
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brooksby wrote:

How on earth did the bicycle and the road sweeper collide if they were travelling in opposite directions? Road sweepers aw not renowned for speed or manoeuvrability.

I was once on a job round the corner from a depot, used to see them racing each other back to their yard on a Friday afternoon, they can certainly shift once the brushes are up.

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Bob's Bikes | 8 years ago
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Condolences to his family, such a tragedy that someone with their whole life in front of them never gets the chance to fulfill their potential.

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SevenHills | 8 years ago
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This is awful. Condolences to his family. RIP.

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Jimbomitch | 8 years ago
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Very sad. RIP.

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PaulBox | 8 years ago
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RIP young man.

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