Tragic Telford cyclist may have hit lamp post, inquest told

Lindsey Jones, 43, from Telford, fell off her bike just after the junction with Queensway Business Park, on the A442 Queensway, after 11pm on November 2. She died in hospital six days later.

But there were no witnesses to the accident and Shropshire, Telford & Wrekin coroner Mr John Ellery heard at an inquest in Wellington yesterday that the family may never know exactly what happened.

Police have also spoken to officers at Telford & Wrekin Council after the inquest heard one of the two lamp posts Ms Jones could have hit was switched off as part of the council's policy of switching off street lights for five hours during the night.

The lamps are supposed to black out between midnight and 5am but, just a week after the clocks had changed, one light on that footpath was out of synchronisation and had already gone off by the time Ms Jones was cycling on her way back from working at The Fallow Field pub.

The lamp posts are also in the middle of the footpath on that particular stretch.

Constable Ian Edwards of West Mercia Police's collision investigation unit could not say whether the blackout had caused the incident but said he had contacted Telford & Wrekin Council about the light and requested florescent bands be fitted around the lamp posts.

Constable Edwards said significant head injuries to both the left and right hand sides of Ms Jones's skull, however, suggested she had struck something as well as the pavement when she landed. He said: "That could have been a lamp post or handle bars.

"The fact she had two injuries to the head makes it more than likely she collided with the street lamps.

We will never know exactly which lamp post it was or how she struck it."

Constable Edwards said it was unknown what caused Ms Jones to lose control of the bike. He said she could have temporarily lost control, could have cycled and not seen the lamp post, an item of clothing could have been caught in her bike or an animal could have run out in front of her and startled her.

Mr Ellery said: "There were no witnesses so we do not know what happened. We know the scene as a witness found it. It is more likely than not Ms Jones suffered a loss of control of her bike and collided with one of the two lamp posts, probably suffered injuries in that impact and another when she hit the ground. What caused the loss of control we do not know.

"The loss of control is unexplained but we can exclude that it was caused by any other person or vehicle.

"For an unknown reason Ms Jones has lost control of her bike and collided with a lamppost with fatal consequences. Whether the light was working or not is a matter for the local authority and their lighting policy.

"It would be a freak coincidence that the hour that Ms Jones was cycling was when there was a delay of the lampposts catching up with the clocks changing. The lamp posts were in the middle of the road because the path had been extended, the police have raised the issue of marking with the local authority."

Mr Ellery concluded Ms Jones died as the result of an accident.