The motorist who was filmed passing cyclists participating in the 4 May memorial ride for Per Undheim has been warned for intended prosecution for dangerous driving, the Royal Cayman Islands Police Service said on Friday.
Approximately 130 cyclists took part in the organised event in memory of Per Undheim, who was killed in a hit-and-run collision while riding a bicycle on Easter Monday, 21 April.
With a large group of cyclists riding in the left lane on 4 May, the driver passed the group to the right, with another vehicle approaching in the right lane from the opposite direction.
The offending motorist, who has not been identified by police, proceeded to use the right shoulder to pass the cyclists and the oncoming car. A video of the incident was circulated on social media.
The news of the intended prosecution follows a meeting between the police and board members of Cayman Cycling on 2 May to discuss the growing concern for the safety of bicyclists on Grand Cayman.
Less than a week after Undheim’s death, another cyclist was severely injured by a hit-and-run driver on South Church Street. That cyclist was still in the hospital in critical condition as of last Friday.
Police arrested a 33-year-old man from Bodden Town on the day of the collision involving Undheim, and a 20-year-old woman from West Bay in relation to the incident on South Church Street. Neither has been charged yet.
“The file is currently with the [director of public prosecutions] for ruling and we await a charging decision,” the police said in a statement on Friday.
With respect to the second hit-and-run accident, the police said the case file and evidence is being prepared for submission to the director of public prosecutions for charging advice.
Video tips on poor driving
The police and the Cayman Cycling board members agreed to several measures to make Grand Cayman’s roads safer for those on bicycles.
“The RCIPS agreed that cyclists who film poor driving behaviour will be able to upload video evidence via the RCIPS website ‘submit a tip’ page,” the police said in Friday’s statement, adding that those videos will then be reviewed and investigated by traffic officers.
“We will also work with Cayman Cycling to support public awareness campaigns that inform the community about how to safely share the road.”
The police said they would work with other government agencies to conduct community education initiatives to raise awareness of road safety matters.
“We will meet regularly with Cayman Cycling to continue the dialogue and work together to improve safety for cyclists and all road users,” the RCIPS said.
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Sadly recent tragic events on our roads emphasizes and highlights my opinion (and the opinion of many residents) that there seems to be a lawlessness on our roads. I do hope the Traffic Department of the RCIPS can get funding to have more presence on the roads and curb excessive speeding and dangerous driving. Driving with due care and attention seems to have been forgotten.
The UK Highway Code (rule 163) says the following about overtaking cyclists, motorcyclists and pedestrians:
give motorcyclists, cyclists and horse riders and horse drawn vehicles at least as much room as you would when overtaking a car (see Rules 211 to 215). As a guide:
leave at least 1.5 metres (about 5 ft) when overtaking cyclists at speeds of up to 30mph, and give them more space when overtaking at higher speeds
allow at least 2 metres of space and keep to a low speed when passing a pedestrian who is walking in the road (for example, where there is no pavement)
take extra care and give more space when overtaking motorcyclists, cyclists, horse riders, horse drawn vehicles and pedestrians in bad weather (including high winds) and at night
you should wait behind the motorcyclist, cyclist, horse rider, horse drawn vehicle or pedestrian and not overtake if it is unsafe or not possible to meet these clearances.