A cyclist died in Belfast after he appeared to misjudge a lorry driver's intentions to turn left as he tried to ride cross to the other side of a road when a pedestrian crossing light was red for crossing.
An inquest into the death in Belfast of Gary McMahon was told he tried to take evasive action when he realised the truck driver was turning left, and so into his path, but it was too late.
Mr McMahon (58) - described as "gentle and caring" - was riding to work at the time of the crash. He suffered serious injuries to his chest and abdomen and died at the scene despite efforts to save him.
The East Belfast man, who worked for ASDA and the BBC, was trying to use a pedestrian crossing on Clifton Street on November 21st, 2024, when he was fatally struck by the driver in the lorry.
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The inquest was told the truck driver needed to use two lanes to position the vehicle to take the left turn onto the Westlink. Coroner Anne-Louise Toal said, because the lorry driver needed the wider turning circle, Mr McMahon appeared to have "misinterpreted" what was happening.
He may have believed the lorry was going straight at the junction but, as he tried to cross the road, the driver began turning left. The truck hit Mr McMahon, who had no time to take evasive action, even though he realised what was happening.
The driver was traveling at 8mph at the time and the inquest heard the driver made all the checks required, with witness evidence stating the indicator for turning left was engaged.
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However, a warning system that broadcast a message, from the exterior of the truck, to pedestrians and cyclists when the vehicle was turning was not working properly.
Though the driver did not realise the system was faulty, when it was inspected after the crash the message was being broadcast but was "very faint and barely audible" and was ineffective.
The driver was also on a hands free phone at the time, though evidence from the PSNI said the driver's use of the phone did not seem to result in her being "distracted".
The inquest heard the driver saw Mr McMahon to the left waiting to cross the road at the crossing. However, Mr McMahon then moved into the road and the truck turned left. The victim may have been in the vehicle's blind spot at that point, the inquest was told.
A witness waiting to cross the street, beside Mr McMahon, said the victim made it about three-quarters way across the road when the truck began turning left into his path. He added when the truck hit Mr McMahon it stopped and the driver got out, clearly upset, and said: "Where did he come from?"
The coroner said the driver "was making the appropriate number of checks" during the turn and the vehicle had indicated in advance but the cyclist had been in a "blind spot".
She added Mr McMahon's death underlined the dangers of blind spots in driver vision lines and how vulnerable cyclists were on the roads.
While cyclists needed to take safety precautions - so they were seen and protected - drivers needed to be very aware of the vulnerability of cyclists and pedestrians. They also needed to ensure the safety systems on vehicles were working properly.
