A lorry driver has appeared in court accused of causing the fatal crash at The Plain.

Robert Whiting, 39, is said to have been behind the wheel of a DAF tipper truck on Tuesday, March 1, when he collided with cyclist Dr Suet Ling Felce outside the Ballroom Emporium clothes shop on the city centre roundabout.

Dr Felce, 35, died at the scene.

Appearing before Oxford Magistrates’ Court this afternoon, Whiting, of Brome Place, Barton, entered no pleas to charges of causing death by careless driving whilst unfit through drugs, causing death while driving unlicensed and causing death while driving without insurance.

The defendant, who stood in the dock wearing a grey tracksuit jumper and blue jeans, spoke only to confirm his name, date of birth and address. He pleaded not guilty to an unrelated charge of possession of a knife in Gurl Close, Oxford, on August 2, 2021.

Family members and friends were in the public gallery for the short hearing this afternoon.

District Judge Kamlesh Rana sent the case to Oxford Crown Court for a plea and trial preparation hearing on Thursday, March 28. Whiting was remanded in custody.

The fatal crash on Tuesday afternoon saw Oxford gridlocked as police shut St Clements, Cowley Road, Iffley Road, Magdalen Bridge and St Aldates.

Following the tragedy, campaign group Cyclox called for a ‘vision zero’, urging improvements to the road network and driver training that would prevent any deaths on the roads in future. Dr Alison Hill, the group’s chairman, said her ‘heart went out’ to the family of Dr Felce.

An online petition demanding a dedicated cycle lane and traffic lights on The Plain, which was launched in the wake of Tuesday’s tragedy, has already garnered more than 260 signatures.

Organiser Nicola Randall said: “There have been too many deaths at The Plain roundabout and it’s about time Oxford City Council implemented a cycle Lane and traffic lights to prevent any further loss of life.”

The woman’s death came exactly three weeks after the death of another cyclist, 40s, who was killed in a collision with a lorry near Oxford Parkway railway station.

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