Cairns athlete calls for more road safety awareness after terrifying hit-and-run

A Cairns cyclist has recalled the terrifying moment he was struck by a car and left in agony on the roadside.

A Cairns cyclist has recalled the moment he was struck by a car in a hit-and-run.

A professional athlete has spoken about the terrifying moment he was struck by a car and left in agony on the roadside.

The man, who asked to remain anonymous, was hit while stopped at traffic lights at Trinity Park on Thursday.

Two weeks out from competing at an international triathlon, he said the vehicle failed to indicate, and when it turned it crashed into him from behind.

His friend, popular cyclist Tanya Roneberg, was tragically killed by a drunk-driver while she was changing a bike tyre in 2013, and he is now calling for greater awareness of riders on the road.

“The front wheel hit the back of the turning vehicle, which didn’t have its indicator on,” he said.

“My helmet saved my brain, it took a big hit.”

Pro cyclist said cyclists are almost hit daily and it’s common practice to need “360 sort of vision”. Picture: Supplied.

The athlete said he was thrown from his bike and landed “hard on the road”.

Only one bystander stopped to offer help and the rider was taken to hospital. “The driver just drove off,” he said. “People need to understand the consequences, don’t do a runner, they don’t think about how it would affect their life if they kill someone.”

After being discharged from hospital Thursday afternoon, he said training for the upcoming triathlon would now “look different” because of the injuries.

“I’m full of cuts down one side, swelling throughout my hip and back, I’ll have to stay out of the pool until the wounds heal,” he said. “I’ll also need to play by ear if there’s any concussion symptoms, but I came off pretty lucky to be honest.”

The long-time Cairns resident said it was a powerful reminder of the daily “dangers cyclists face”, and tragically reminded him of his friend’s death. “A friend of mine was killed many years ago, she was out riding her bike and a car came up behind her and killed her,” he said.

In response, the Queensland government launched the highly-publicised Share the Road campaign, centred around reminding drivers of their responsibilities in keeping cyclists safe.

“It was a strong campaign up here for a bit, but unfortunately after a couple of years, all the hype of it starts to die off and no one really thinks about it anymore until someone else is killed,” he said. .

Pro cyclist survives Cairns hit-and-run, and is now advocating for a revival of Queensland's 'Share the Road' campaigns. Picture: Supplied.

“It’s really important as a cyclist to have really good awareness around you.

“It’s religiously built into me to always, always, check first, even it it’s my right of way.”

The athlete said he would like to see proactive measures being taken to keep road safety campaigns in the public eye, instead of a “knee-jerk” reaction when “someone is killed”.

“Having a shoulder on the road is really important for cyclists to ride on, but what we’re seeing a lot of at the moment is heaps of debris which cyclists are having to try and swerve,” he said.

“If you take a ride from the beaches into the town and back, just everywhere along the shoulder, there’s glass everywhere, rocks, timber, there’s tools, there’s just so much stuff out on the road.

“I’m not sure what the answer is, some people just don’t like cyclists, it comes down to attitude as well as creating awareness, that’s really important.”

Originally published as Cairns athlete calls for more road safety awareness after terrifying hit-and-run