Four Spanish cyclists have been injured after being hit by a car on the old Bunyola road in Marratxí near Palma. Three of the victims have been taken to different hospitals for a more thorough medical examination. The Traffic Guardia Civil attended the scene and has taken charge of the investigation into the accident to try to clarify the causes of the collision.
The accident occurred at around 1.00 pm, according to sources from the emergency services, at kilometre marker 8.500 on the Ma-2031 road heading towards Pont d’Inca. Four cyclists riding alongside a group of eight athletes were hit by a vehicle emerging from a side road and fell to the ground.
Marratxí Local Police patrols, along with three ambulances, attended the scene of the accident to assist the injured, who sustained minor injuries. Officers have been responsible for directing traffic. The Traffic Guardia Civil have also attended the scene and are in charge of drawing up the relevant report and investigating the causes of the accident.
There have been recent post on social media by Mallorca residents complaining about the number of cycle tourists clogging up the roads in Mallorca, in particular in the Tramuntana mountains. However, the Balearic Minister for Tourism, Culture and Sport, Jaume Bauzá, has recently argued that cycle tourism is ‘an opportunity’ to extend the season and bring benefits to inland villages, in the face of criticism from left wing MÉS per Mallorca that this form of tourism ‘brings the whole island to a standstill’.
The debate over cycle tourism has been raging for years. In January, the El Pi party called for an ‘urgent’ plan to improve cycle paths and routes across the island in a motion presented during a plenary session of the Council of Mallorca. El Pi wants the council to promote the improvement of the cycle routes used by cyclists on the island, with the aim of increasing safety, organising pending actions and responding to an increasingly present reality on Mallorca’s roads.
The regionalist party pointed out that Mallorca is a land deeply linked to cycling, both because of its sporting tradition – with historical and current figures of the highest level in all disciplines – and because of the large social base that practises it. In general, El Pi pointed out that there are more than 110 active cycling clubs in the Balearics and thousands of people who practise this sport on a regular basis, to which must be added more than 150,000 cycle tourists who visit Mallorca every year.
And, cycling tourism has, once again, been the sector underpinning the early opening of hotels throughout the Bay of Alcudia this year with both the hotel accommodation and the complementary services in Playa de Muro having made a strong commitment to specialising in this segment. The construction of bicycle garages and repair areas, indoor swimming pools and a wide range of specialist shops offering everything needed for cycling have been a constant feature in the tourist centre of Muro in recent years.