Two People Die in Collision on Newly Paved Road
mbl.is
Two people died yesterday when a motorcycle and a camper collided in Kjalarnes, just north of Reykjavík, mbl.is reports.
The victims were the rider and passenger of the motorcycle. The motorcycle and the camper came from opposite directions. The driver of the camper, who was alone in the vehicle, escaped unharmed. Another motorcycle, that followed the first one, landed off the road. Its rider was transported by ambulance to Landspítali National University Hospital.
The cause of the accident, which occurred shortly after 3 pm, is being investigated, but speeding was not a factor.
Chief Superintendent Ásgeir Þór Ásgeirsson, tells mbl.is that the road had just been paved and the wet asphalt was “as slippery as ice, and neither reckless driving nor speeding is suspected.”
The Hvalfjarðargöng tunnel, north of the accident site, was closed to traffic for hours following the accident.
The motorcycle association Sniglar plans a silent protest at 1 pm today in front of the offices of the Road Administration on Borgartún, Reykjavík.
According to mbl.is, police and the Road Administration received several comments from commuters yesterday afternoon, warning that road conditions were treacherous. The media representative of the Road Administration confirms that at least three such phone calls were received prior to the accident.
Numerous commuters, spoken to by mbl.is, describe the conditions of the road as very slippery.
The Road Administration tells mbl.is in a report just published that it looks like the surface layer of the asphalt did not meet requirements. The work was in the hands of two contractors.
