by David Weston
Family-run Forest of Dean Caravans has taken swift action and fired one of its drivers after a video was posted on YouTube of a transporter lorry narrowly missing a cyclist.
The driver’s actions have been described as shocking and stupid by the company, who were quick to distance themselves from this isolated incident.
The video was posted on Thursday (6 March) and has received over 40,000 views. The footage was taken from the helmet camera of a cyclist, named by the Gloucester Citizen newspaper as Jon.
The film shows Jon on the A59 at Samlesbury, Lancashire at 7.10am on Wednesday (5 March) being passed by other cars.
A horn is then heard before a flatbed truck, carrying one and towing a second Bailey Unicorn caravan, passes dangerously close to the cyclist.
The truck was identified by its Forest of Dean Caravans logo and the dealership has since apologised to the cyclist.
Police in Lancashire and Gloucestershire have been notified and an investigation is ongoing.
Mark Turley, Transport Manager for Forest of Dean Caravans, told Caravan Times:
“The driver is no longer an employee of ours after talking to him. It was a stupid piece of driving and we’ve been let down by one of our employees.
“We’re unhappy with what happened and shocked with what [the driver] did.
“It’s never happened before and we’ve been transporting caravans for over forty years,” he added.
“We’ve dealt with it, and hopefully now we can move on.”
The video is posted below. CAUTION: Contains strong language:
