Vigil for Ardian Zagani The Sixth London Person Killed While Cycling This Year
For the sixth time this year, Stop Killing Cyclists (SKC), the direct action pressure group, will be remembering a person who has died after being involved in an incident with the driver of a motor vehicle, while they were riding their bicycle. This commemoration will be with a Vigil and Die-In at the scene of the incident.
The person being remembered is Ardian Zagani, known to his friends as “Sam” and in his 30s, who died as a result of his bicycle being hit by a van being driven along Camden Road at the junction with Hilldrop Crescent just after 6am on Tuesday 29th August. Ardian was commuting to his first day
back at work at the College of Haringey, Enfield and North East London in Tottenham where he worked as a caretaker.
Stop Killing Cyclists will begin gathering from 5.30pm on Monday 4th September at the junction of Camden Road and Hilldrop Crescent and the vigil will formally start after 6pm. In this sadly increasingly familiar sight on the streets of London, short speeches will be given, candles lit, and flowers laid around a ghost bike in memory of Mr Zagani, before
hundreds of people will lay on the road, many with their bikes.
Traffic will be brought to a standstill for ten minutes, and all will be given a space to contemplate the terrible price paid by Ardian Zagani, and by cyclists and pedestrians killed and seriously injured on the streets of London.
To date, Islington Council and Transport for London (TfL) have so far failed to provide cycling provision along a busy corridor connecting North and Central London, and must take responsibility for this latest tragedy.
Both TfL and Islington Council seem content with allowing with buses, HGVs and motor traffic sharing space with people on bicycles, which will only lead to more tragedies like this. TfL has identified that more than 50% of collisions involving cyclists take place at junctions and have acknowledged
Camden Road as an area of high potential for cycling in their Strategic Cycling Analysis.
Stop Killing Cyclists are calling for Islington Council to tackle its shocking failure to date, and work with TfL to improve safety on its roads. Both authorities are complicit in Ardian’s death for failing to build safe segregated cycle lanes along A503 Camden Road. We also call upon the Metropolitan Police to strictly enforce the 20mph Borough wide speed limit
in Islington, which has been in place for more than a year, to help reduce road danger for all road users.
SKC Co-organiser Nicola Branch said “We are calling for TfL and Islington Council to provide protected infrastructure on Camden Road, like the bike lanes you see on Blackfriars Bridge. It also needs traffic calming measures. Pedestrians need protection too, with proper crossings. When I was at the scene of the incident, I saw two people trying to cross the road and standing in the middle of the traffic island. I am horrified at the speed people drive along there”
Ends.
Release Dated: 31 August 2017
Event Listings (including feeder rides info):
https://www.facebook.com/events/https://www.facebook.com/events/113481649335294/??ti=ia
contact Nicola Branch 07710 827041