Police issue cycle route safety alert after crash

Cyclists have been urged to ride extremely carefully on the B6265 Greenhow Hill, outside Pateley Bridge, after a rider was involved in a head-on smash with a car on Saturday.

The incident was the latest of three serious accidents involving cyclists on the 1.2km stretch of road this year. All careered out of control while tearing down the steep hill. The injured were airlifted to hospital.

The increasingly notorious black spot is part of the Way of the Roses, a 170-mile rural cycle route from Morecambe to Bridlington that was opened earlier this year.

And while keen not to deter cyclists from using the popular route, Acting Inspector Robert Thorpe, from Harrogate Police, is determined emphasise the dangers.

He said: “We think the Way of the Roses is fantastic, it brings a lot of cyclists into Nidderdale. Our concern is there are a lot of inexperienced cyclists in terms of handling hills. The route is almost alpine in its make up – it is steep, has a series of sharp bends and is subject to high winds.

“From April this year three cyclists have been involved in accidents and the air ambulance has been called out in all three cases. I attended the latest accident involving a 31-year-old cyclist from Cheshire and he was very lucky to be alive. The last thing we want is any cyclists to be killed. We want to get the message out to keep using the Way of the Roses and visit our area, but to be extremely careful on dangerous sections of the route like this.”

Acting Insp Thorpe believes all three accidents were caused by the cyclists, not the motorists.

“To have three accidents in a short space of time within one stretch involving cyclists is a major concern, which is why we want to highlight it,” he said.

Acting Insp Thorpe said he had contacted Sustrans and the organisation had agreed to add a warning to its map of the route.