A INJURED teenage cyclist was shunned by drivers when he was hurt in an accident involving a car at a busy junction at the weekend. Charlie Haynes, aged 15, was cycling along the Harpenden Road towards St Albans on Saturday afternoon when the incident hap

A INJURED teenage cyclist was shunned by drivers when he was hurt in an accident involving a car at a busy junction at the weekend.

Charlie Haynes, aged 15, was cycling along the Harpenden Road towards St Albans on Saturday afternoon when the incident happened at the Ancient Briton junction.

His mother, Fiona, said that a dark-coloured car overtook her son at the traffic lights and turned left into Beech Road, cutting up Charlie and forcing him to brake suddenly which sent him flying over the handlebars and into the car.

She said the Sir John Lawes pupil hit his head on the door of the vehicle at such force that his helmet split and he also sustained a broken elbow, an injured hip, and cuts and bruises.

But neither the driver involved nor any other drivers stopped to help the teenager from Lectern Lane, Wheathampstead.

He managed to get out of the road to safety and his two friends, who were cycling behind him without helmets, came to his aid.

Charlie, who is the chairman of Harpenden Youth Council, didn't think his injuries warranted calling an ambulance and tried to find a doctors' surgery instead but he ended up walking all the way to Boots in St Peters Street.

A conscientious member of staff in the store saw the teenager covered in blood and rushed him to the minor injuries unit at St Albans City Hospital.

Mrs Haynes was then called and she took him to the QEII Hospital for further treatment.

She said this week that Charlie has been left mentally and physically traumatised by the incident in a week in which he has had to sit his GCSE exams.

Mrs Haynes was told things could have been far worse. She said: "The hospital said that if he hadn't been wearing his helmet there could have been very different outcome. They also said he could have had internal bleeding where his hip was injured - he was so lucky."

Mrs Haynes is extremely upset that nobody stopped to help her son. "I just think it's a really sad world we live in," she said.

"There is no way that the driver couldn't have seen him because his head hit the car door."

She continued: "Because the person didn't stop, Charlie didn't get an ambulance called for him and the police weren't called, so it was two hours before he got any treatment."

She added: "Drivers need to be aware of cyclists, particularly as its coming up to the summer holidays. People need to take that extra glance."

Mrs Haynes is also angry that in a separate incident after the accident, a man tried to steal Charlie's bike from his friends as they walked to meet him at the hospital.

But she hopes that one good thing to emerge from the whole day is that the accident has highlighted to all of Charlie's friends the importance of wearing cycling helmets.

Police are investigating the incident, which happened at around 2.30pm, and are appealing for witnesses so that they can establish the circumstances.

PC Nigel Wakerley, investigating the incident, commented: "We are yet to speak with the driver involved in this incident and I would appeal for them to get in touch to help us establish exactly what happened."

He asked anyone with information to contact him on 0845 33 00 222.