Father and child on bike in 'dreadful' collision

Calls are growing for safety measures at a "very dangerous" crossing after footage emerged of a car hitting a cyclist and his son.

The collision took place at the Barton Park pelican crossing on the A40 junction in Headington, Oxford, on Wednesday morning.

In footage sent to the BBC, the rider, with the child sat on the back of the bicycle, was navigating the crossing when they were struck. They received minor injuries, with the father taken to the John Radcliffe Hospital.

Oxfordshire County Council said it would address safety concerns.

The camera was set up by a concerned Barton resident, who does not wish to be named, because of the number of crashes at the location.

The footage shows the bike exiting Barton Park via the cycle lane, but the lights turn green to traffic as it reaches the second carriageway.

Dr Arian Beqiri, another Barton resident, told the BBC: "It's just very dangerous. We've been trying to get this fixed for quite a long time now.

"Cars are going by, often above the speed limit. Really often they run the red, they can't stop in time, or they just go for it which obviously adds to the danger."

He called for more enforcement and a reduction of speed limits.

Dr Beqiri added: "It's very upsetting, it's very stressful. It's frustrating nothing happens. It must be very expensive, many of them have destroyed parts of the crossing.

"You constantly feel threatened. You cross that road and your heart's pumping immediately as you approach it."

Fred Colman, who runs in the area, said the green lights changed quickly at the high-speed junction.

"You've got to have your wits about you when you're crossing," he said.

"I appreciate the drivers just want to get where they're going, and I think they see it as a main road, they don't expect pedestrians about."

Bryony McCraw, the headteacher of Barton Park Primary School, said: "We have our first cohort of Year 6s going to secondary [school] in September and a lot of them will cross that road.

"I'm planning on taking the school council to a council meeting in April as my fear remains that it will take the death or serious injury of a child before anything is done."

Danny Yee, who is from Cyclox and leads Oxfordshire Liveable Streets, called for a "complete rethink" of how the junction works "before someone is killed, but also to stop the ring road severing Barton Park from the rest of Oxford".

Oxfordshire County Council called the incident on Wednesday morning a "dreadful collision" and said it would assist police in any investigation.

It pointed out that the traffic signal timings were "performing optimally and without error" at the time.

"We are aware of safety concerns in this area and are working with the police and other partners to address them," it added.

The council said it had committed to providing the funding for red light safety cameras at the junction, and would review the speed limit as part of a countywide review.

It is also investigating options to "reduce the number of drivers carrying out illegal U-turns".

In June a car crash damaged the traffic lights, leaving no safe way to cross the 50mph (80km/h) road for two days.

Residents have also provided the BBC with images stretching back years, of severe crashes at the location and of damaged traffic lights.

Barton Park is a major new housing development in Oxford, which is still in the process of construction.

Work started in 2015 and it will eventually include 885 homes.

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