Raceview crash: Mobility scooter rider dies after collision with car
Ipswich residents have recounted shocking scenes following an elderly mobility scooter rider’s death in a horror crash yesterday afternoon. Locals fear it may be “just a matter of time” before the “dangerous” road claims another life. VIDEO
Ipswich
Don't miss out on the headlines from Ipswich. Followed categories will be added to My News.
Ipswich residents have recounted the shocking scenes after a mobility scooter rider collided with a car yesterday, January 4.
The 80-year-old scooter sadly died at the scene, on Robertson Rd, Raceview in Ipswich, after the crash around 1pm.
Meanwhile the 86-year-old woman driving the car was taken to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
A police spokesman said investigations into the incident were ongoing the following afternoon, January 5.
No charges have been laid.
Robertson Rd resident Berise Jones said she had heard a “big bang” that sounded like a load dropping off a truck around the time of the incident.
She said she came down to her letterbox and saw a man lying on the road.
“I was a bit upset seeing that,” Ms Jones said.
Her daughter came out and helped direct traffic, while she found a blanket to give to the people on the road.
Another resident said the loud noise outside the property had woken him up.
His neighbour said he had called ambulances after hearing the bang, and was told emergency services received multiple calls from other neighbours.
The man said he often heard cars speeding on Robertson Rd at night, at estimated speeds of “100km/h at least, sometimes more” on the 60km/h stretch of road
“It’s just a matter of time before it happens again,” he said.
Ms Jones had been living in the area since 1967, and said she had noticed drivers becoming more aggressive in recent years.
There’s no suggestion of wrongdoing by the driver involved in the current incident.
Ms Jones said people would often speed along Robertson Rd and turn nearby corners off Wildey and Cooinda streets without looking.
She said her daughter had suggested to council that the speed limit should be reduced to 50km/h.
Ms Jones said the road was “dangerous” because it was too narrow.
She believed the best solution would be to install traffic lights at Wildey St, towards the nearby Brothers Leagues Club.
Other residents suggested a clearly marked zebra, or lined, crossing or a speed camera.
Wildey St resident Richele Shepherd, 29, said she believed “a pedestrian crossing, at the very least, is required to make this road safer for the whole community”.
Earlier, an 80-year-old man died following a serious crash at Ipswich on Thursday afternoon.
The man was riding a mobility scooter when he was struck by a Toyota RAV4 near a pedestrian refuge island at Raceview about 1pm.
Multiple paramedics were at the scene on Robertson Rd, just metres from Brothers Leagues Club, with the elderly man believed to have sustained critical head, chest and abdominal injuries. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
The driver of the RAV4, an 86-year-old Eastern Heights woman, was taken to Ipswich Hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
It is understood the drivers did not know each other.
Residents said the section of road where the incident occurred was designed for pedestrians to cross, however the crossing was not a marked zebra crossing.
One person said he had been waiting for “something like this to happen” as he had recently noticed more people going across that stretch on e-scooters at night.
He said a proper zebra crossing should be installed for safety.
Forensic crash investigators could be seen taking photos at the scene after ambulances left.
They photographed a white SUV, which appeared damaged on the bonnet and underside.
Police investigations into the incident continue.
It’s a disaster: Damning report exposes how system let Qld down
Jaw-dropping tales of failures in disaster communications – including one in which a stranded group had to phone relatives in Scotland for help – have been laid bare.
Queensland Rugby League player charged with rape, sexual assault
A QRL player who returned to the state after a stint in NSW was charged with serious sexual offences less than two months after signing for his hometown club.