By Casey Neill
A Coroner’s report has recommended a safety overhaul for a Dandenong footbridge after a cyclist drowned.
Coroner Audrey Jamieson found that Darren Watts, 41, died in the Dandenong Creek near Kyla Avenue on Sunday 17 January last year.
She said that investigators concluded the Wantirna South man entered a bend approaching the bridge on the EastLink Trail travelling too fast, braked hard, collided with a raised concrete block and marker posts, and ended up in the water.
There’s already a sign pointing to the upcoming bend and plastic nylon pillars with reflectors on either side of the footbridge.
But First Constable Michaela Orchard suggested speed bumps, signs warning riders to slow down, more pillars on the bridge or fencing could improve safety.
Ms Jamieson recommended that EastLink conduct a risk assessment and examine these and other measures.
EastLink spokesman Doug Spencer-Roy said the organisation was in the process of determining its response.
“Once determined, we shall formally provide the response to the Coroner,” he said.
Mr Watts’ family reported him missing when he didn’t return home from a bike ride and passers-by spotted his body in the creek the following morning.
Emergency services also recovered his bicycle nearby.
Kellie Watts said her husband took up cycling after his father had a heart attack and often rode along the Dandenong Creek Trail.
“Mrs Watts said that after her husband’s death, a number of people had noted that the Dandenong Creek Trail was known to be a dangerous, accident prone area,” Ms Jamieson said.
Safety came under scrutiny when a three-year-old boy fell into the creek near a playground in Dandenong Park and drowned in September 2014.
