Rider on modified e-bike died after hitting pedestrian on York cycle path

A rider on a modified electric bike died after he hit a pedestrian on a York foot and cycle path.

Cash Anthony O’Dea lost consciousness immediately after being flung from his black e-bike and died soon afterwards, an inquest heard. He was 30 years old.

The collision happened on the Tang Hall Lane path, a route shared by pedestrians and cyclists, behind the Ebor Industrial Estate and close to Hallfield Road, on 3 February last year.

Witnesses said he was going at high speed and weaving from side to side when he struck the woman pedestrian, who was knocked unconscious. She later recovered with minor injuries.

Mr O’Dea lived in Cheltenham, but was a regular visitor to York to see his mother and brother who live in the city.

During this visit, he borrowed his brother’s Haibike e-bike and went to meet an old school friend at his house. Mr O’Dea told his friend he had already fallen off the bike and cut his knee.

The friend told the inquest in Northallerton that Mr O’Dea was “already a little bit drunk”. They then bought four cans of Stella lager which they shared by the River Foss near Huntington Road.

They parted company at about 2.50pm. Within 25 minutes Mr O’Dea was riding the e-bike on the Tang Hall cycle path. A witness, Thomas Bevan, who was walking towards York city centre saw Mr O’Dea approaching.

“The bike was weaving side to side across the path,” Mr Bevan said in a statement. “And it was going very fast – much faster than I have ever seen a bike travel.”

He stepped onto the grass to get out of the way. Straight after the rider went past, he heard a crash.

Behind Mr Bevan, two housemates, one man and one woman, were walking towards the city centre on their way to a supermarket. In a statement, the man said the cyclist “bumped into his friend and didn’t stop”.

“He didn’t look like he tried to avoid us. He didn’t slow down. He was going very fast – much faster than normal,” the witness said.

Members of the public performed CPR on Mr O’Dea until paramedics arrived. They tried in vain to save his life. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

A post mortem found that Mr O’Dea died as a result of a severe skull fracture caused by the fall.

Toxicology tests found he had 361 milligrams of alcohol in a litre of blood – about four and a half times the drink drive limit.

Forensic investigation

PC Richard Barker carried out a forensic collision investigation. He said the visibility on that stretch of the shared foot and cycle path was good, and the surface was in good condition.

While the e-bike was mechanically sound, PC Barker discovered it had been modified to allow it to go faster than the 15.5mph allowed by the manufacturer, which is the UK legal limit for electric cycles.

A magnet had been taped to the frame in such a way as to override the bike’s speed sensor. It would depend on how hard the rider was pedalling as to whether it went above the speed limit. It was not known whether Mr O’Dea was aware of the modification.

CCTV overlooking a resident’s garden and some of the path captured the collision, but there wasn’t enough evidence to calculate Mr O’Dea’s speed.

PC Barker told the inquest that the Highway Code says that, on a shared path, cyclists should always give way to pedestrians, be prepared to slow down and stop if necessary.

Assistant coroner for North Yorkshire Catherine Cundy told the inquest that when an e-bike is ridden at a higher speed than the 15.5mph limit, “it effectively becomes a quasi-motorbike and should be treated as such – in that the person riding it should be licensed, insured, registered, taxed and should be wearing a crash helmet”.

Recording a conclusion of accidental death, she said: “The combination of the modification of the bike, with the impact of the alcohol in Anthony’s system, were key contributing factors to this collision.”

Mr O’Dea wasn’t wearing a cycle helmet. “Helmets are an important safety precaution,” Ms Cundy said.

She added: “I certainly hope that this needless tragedy will serve to dissuade other people from trying to modify bikes in this way in future.”