Calls for restrictions on heavy trucks in Dublin

There have been calls for access for heavy goods vehicles to be restricted in Dublin city centre following a spate of fatal accidents involving cyclists.

Figures compiled by Dublin Corporation show that heavy goods vehicles contribute to the vast majority of fatal accidents involving cyclists in the capital.

Of 20 cyclists killed in Dublin in the past six years, 15 were in collision with such a vehicle. One accident involved a bus, and four involved cars.

Ms Tanya Christina Holst, a 32-year-old German, will be buried near Frankfurt tomorrow, a week after she died in a rush-hour collision between her bicycle and a truck. Last June, another cyclist was killed in a similar accident near O'Connell Bridge.

Ms Holst was crossing from Burgh Quay to Aston Quay when her bicycle hit a bump in the road. She hit off a moped, lurched back and was sucked under a passing lorry.

Ms Holst, who had been living in Ireland for the past six years, worked as a computer consultant in the Irish Financial Services Centre.

Last June, another cyclist, Ms Olivia Potterton (36), was killed when a truck turned into her path at the junction of Westmoreland Street and Aston Quay.

Following Ms Holst's death, Dublin Corporation promised that cycle lanes would eventually be opened on the roads where the accidents occurred.

However, cycling campaigners say that serious injuries and fatalities among cyclists can only be minimised by dealing with the heavy goods vehicles that contribute to the death toll.

"If you allow lorries continuous use of the city's streets, you'll continuously have cyclist deaths," said Mr David Maher, chairman of the Dublin Cycling Campaign.

Mr Maher said Dublin's quays are "a deathtrap" for cyclists, with motor traffic reaching speeds of up to 60 m.p.h. on some stretches. There are no traffic cameras on the stretch, and road redesign has meant that lorries are "virtually up on the pavement".

Mr Maher said there should be a ban on left turns by heavy trucks because of the danger to cyclists and pedestrians. In many German cities, heavy goods vehicles are prohibited, goods being transferred to smaller trucks outside urban areas.

The cycling campaign has suggested that heavy goods vehicles should be banned from the city during rush hours, and deliveries made during off-peak times.