Moment driver realises he'd gone over a bridge for bikes and pedestrians
Thursday 10th January, 2013
Cyclists and motorists are well known for their mutual dislike of each other, with both parties accusing the other of hogging the road.
And this unfortunate Jaguar driver certainly hasn't helped relations.
Cyclists were stunned to see the motorist driving his car on a narrow cycle bridge over a railway line.
Tight spot! The unfortunate driver kept apologising and telling cyclists he had made a terrible mistake
Cyclists watched in disbelief as the motorist drove his car over the £2m bridge reserved for pedestrians and cyclists in Cambridge
They heard the £2 million bridge 'creaking and cracking' as the driver squeezed onto the famous covered bike bridge in Cambridge city centre.
The man, who was in his late 50s, eventually realised his mistake, profusely apologised, and reversed all the way back down the bridge at the north end of Cambridge station.
Cyclist Ruth Platt, 43, did a double-take when she spotted the driver on the way home from her yoga class.
She cycled past him, then went back and asked him if he knew what he was doing.
'A lot of cyclists were giving him a really hard time, but he kept saying he was really sorry and had made a terrible mistake,' said Mrs Platt, who photographed the car.
'I could hear a bit of creaking and cracking, so I hope the engineers made the bridge strong enough for a car, as it's much heavier than a bike.
'He wasn't trying to take a short cut, he really had made a big mistake and I actually felt quite sorry for him.'
After realising his mistake, the motorist reversed - but not in time to stop the bridge groaning under the weight of the car
The bridge was built 23 years ago and has a red path for cyclists on the left and a slightly raised one for pedestrians on the right.
It was designed to be a quick and safe off main-roads-route from the city centre to the south-eastern suburbs of the city for cyclists, so they could avoid cars.
The bridge was given a £500,000 face lift seven years ago, when the floor was replaced.
Councillor Kevin Blencowe, from the city council, said: 'I think he needs to get his eyes tested.
'How someone can mistake what is clearly a narrow cycle path and footbridge for a road bridge is beyond my imagination.
'I have never heard of this happening before and the bridge has been there for more than 20 years.
'If he had got to the end of the bridge he would have got stuck as the path gets even more narrow and there are bollards to stop cars.'
A view of the cycle path from the end of the bridge where it is believed the driver entered
