Family of man knocked down by e-bike feel 'unsafe'

The daughter of a 91-year-old army veteran who was knocked down by an electric bike while taking his recycling out has said she does not "feel safe" on pavements.

Jim Blackwood died from internal injuries three months after the incident on the pavement outside his home in Rochester, Kent, on 6 July.

Speaking to BBC South East, Christine White, 66, said his death had "completely turned our family's whole life around the wrong way".

Kent Police has interviewed the cyclist under caution and said the incident remained under investigation.

"I don't feel safe on pavements any more, too many bikes on the pavements, too many e-scooters whizzing around," said Ms White.

"One place we're supposed to feel safe is on the pavement."

She described Mr Blackwood, a great-grandfather who served in the British Army for 26 years, as "healthy" prior to the collision.

"I fully expected him to get to 100. He'd only ever been in hospital for two hip replacements in my lifetime," she added.

Ms White said her mother Hanna, to whom Mr Blackwood had been married for 69 years, was "absolutely devastated".

But she argued there should be a "dangerous cycling law" to beef up sentencing for deaths caused by cyclists.

In 2022, then-Transport Secretary Grant Shapps proposed to create a death by dangerous cycling law, closing a legal loophole meaning cyclists who kill pedestrians can only be jailed for two years.

Ms White said her father's death had been officially recorded as being from serious injuries, as opposed to a fatality from a cycling incident.

A Government spokesperson said: “We want all road users, including pedestrians, to feel safe which is why we have strict laws in place for e-cycles, including a 15.5mph (24.9km/h) speed limit for electrical assistance. Anybody found breaking these rules will be prosecuted by the police.”

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