Male cyclist dies in Clontarf following hit-and-run

A cyclist has died following a hit-and-run incident on the Clontarf road in Dublin on Tuesday evening.

The 62-year-old man was seriously injured after he was struck by a car at about 6.30pm on Tuesday at the junction between the Clontarf Road and Howth Road in north Dublin.

The cyclist was taken by ambulance to Beaumont Hospital where he was later pronounced dead. A postmortem is due to be carried out on Wednesday.

The car involved in the collision, described as a silver coloured Volkswagen Golf, did not remain at the scene. Gardaí later recovered the car in Marino and it is currently undergoing a technical and forensic examination.

The road in Clontarf was temporarily closed to allow a Garda forensic collision investigation but has since reopened to traffic.

Gardaí are calling on the driver of the car to contact them at Clontarf Garda station on 01 6664800 or on the Garda Confidential Line on 1800 666 111.

Gardaí have also appealed to anyone who witnessed the incident, or who saw a silver Volkswagen Golf with an 05 D registration around Fairview, Marino and the Clontarf road area between 6.15pm and 6.45pm on Tuesday, to contact Clontarf Garda station.

Tuesday evening’s road death brings to three the number of cyclists who have lost their lives on Irish roads so far this year.

A 71-year-old male cyclist died near Castletownbere in west Cork in May after he fell off his bike while travelling with a group of colleagues.

A 67-year-old male cyclist died in January following a collision with a vehicle in Co Mayo.

According to the latest statistics from an Garda Síochána, 71 people died on Irish roads up to June 30th, 2015. This number includes 15 pedestrians, 35 drivers, 11 passengers, 8 motorcyclists and two cyclists. Tuesday's road death brings this total to 72 deaths on Irish roads so far in 2015.

A Bill introduced in February 2014 introduced tougher penalties and possible prison sentences for hit-and run-drivers.

A person who flees the scene of an incident and does not offer assistance, knowing injury has been caused, now faces a fine of € 10,000 and up to seven years imprisonment.

In the event of a death resulting from such an incident a fine of € 20,000 and/or ten years imprisonment applies.

The Road Safety Authority launched a new campaign in June to highlight the existence of blind spots around trucks on the road, particularly for cyclists. A truck has significant blind spots that present a danger to vulnerable road users and a driver's field of vision, within a cab, is limited.

Between 2007 and May 2015, 54 vulnerable road users - cyclists, pedestrians and motorcyclists - were killed in collisions involving trucks.