POLICE are appealing for witnesses to another cycling fatality on Scotland's roads as up to 3000 people prepare to take to two wheels to demonstrate at Holyrood for safer conditions for those who travel by bicycle.
The 21-year-old man, thought to be a tourist, died following a collision with a pick-up truck on an unclassified Wester Abercalder road near Gorthleck, Inverness-shire, on Thursday night.
He was thrown from his bike after the collision with the Ford Transit at around 6.10pm.
Police Scotland were unable to confirm any further details surrounding Thursday night's accident, including the identity of the cyclist.
Tomorrow's Pedal to Parliament event will highlight the campaign's eight-point manifesto for a cycle-friendly Scotland.
The family of two riders who have died on Edinburgh's roads over the past two years, Audrey Fyfe, 75, and Andrew McNicoll, 43, will lead cyclists on the event in Edinburgh.
Following the latest death, campaign founder Kim Harding said: "There is a lot to be done to make roads safer. Our roads have been restructured to make them more friendly to people in metal boxes on four wheels, rather than people on two wheels or indeed two feet.
"We have completely changed our road environment over the past 40 to 50 years to the detriment of everyone else."
Ms Harding said there was a variety of causes of road accidents involving cyclists but insisted: "Drivers just don't exercise enough care."
The eight-point manifesto for the campaign includes improved statistics to support decision-making and work to reduce the risk of HGVs to cyclists and pedestrians. Latest figures available from the Scottish Government show more than 15 cyclists a week were injured in road accidents last year, up 6% from 2010, while the overall level of road-crash casualties and deaths fell to an all-time low.
There were 824 injuries involving cyclists recorded in 2011, a 9% increase on the average from 2004-2008. Of these, serious injuries were up 16% to 156 over the same period.
The number of cyclists killed remained the same as 2010, at seven.
However, it is not clear whether cycling has become more dangerous, as the spike in accidents and serious injuries has accompanied a surge of interest in the activity.
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