A CYCLIST was hit by a car when his bicycle chain broke in the middle of a dark country road, an inquest heard.

Jacob Joseph, 39, of Lodden Avenue, Berinsfield, was dressed in dark clothes and had no lights on his bike when an Audi A3 struck him on the A415 Abingdon Road in Burcot, near Abingdon, on March 25.

The father-of-one, who was not wearing a cycle helmet, suffered severe head injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene.

After an inquest into his death on Wednesday, his family called for better street lighting and urged cyclists to fix lights and reflectors to their bikes.

Andrew Rogers was outside the Chequers pub when he saw Mr Joseph cycling to work at the Close Care Home, shortly before 9pm.

He told coroner Nicholas Gardiner: “He got into difficulty when halfway across the road and his chain came off. I remember thinking, ‘Mate, you need to get off the road.’”

Moments later a car with dipped headlights and driving within the speed limit, struck and killed him.

Driver Gordon Nisbet, of Leach Road, Berinsfield, told the hearing he had seen no-one in the road.

He said: “All of a sudden, I felt a thud coming from the right. The car swerved and I brought it to a halt. I didn’t know what caused it.”

Mr Gardiner ruled that Mr Joseph’s death was accidental.

Mr Joseph, also known as Saji, came to Oxfordshire from India in 2007 to join his wife Molamma, who also worked at the care home.

After the inquest, his brother Jojo Joseph, 34, from London, said: “The council needs to make that road safe. There should be a pedestrian crossing or lights.”

He urged cyclists to fix lights on their bikes, even when travelling short distances.

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