Artur Piotr Ruszel, aged 45, was cycling on Upper Brook Street on the morning of Tuesday 13th January 2015 when he was involved in a collision with a car. He died from his injuries later the same day [1].
On Friday 13th February – a month after the day of his passing – a vigil will be held at the scene, where a ghost bike [2] is to be installed in his memory.
Upper Brook Street – a busy arterial route to and from Manchester city centre – was recently extensively refurbished but no dedicated cycling route was installed, an omission we feel must now be addressed.
As well as being an opportunity for people to pay their respects to Mr. Ruszel, the vigil will call on the responsible authorities in Greater Manchester to implement a Vision Zero policy [3] to adopt a target of zero for road traffic fatalities and serious injuries. Police records state that 656 people were killed or seriously injured on Greater Manchester’s roads in 2013 [4]. We believe this is 656 people too many.
Regional figures [5] highlight that 1,144 (42%) of the 2,697 people killed or seriously injured on the North West’s roads in 2013 were people walking or cycling; an unacceptable proportion, especially given the lack of danger these vulnerable road users present to others. Within Greater Manchester this proportion is even higher, reaching 54% in 2010 – the highest proportion in the country [6].