A CYCLIST from St Helens died on Sunday after being knocked off his bike in a collision with a motorbike.

The 43-year-old man was riding along Rivington Road heading into Belmont village, near Darwen in Lancashire, when he and collided with the motorcycle, which was heading the other way, collided.

The cyclist, who has yet to be identified by police but has been named on social media as Dave, died later that afternoon at Preston Royal Hospital.

The motorcyclist was treated at Salford Hospital for facial injuries.

The incident has added to concerns about the levels of traffic on that road, which was closed for three hours following the accident.

Warning signs have been placed on the road, advising cyclists to be careful, following a spate of accidents including a serious one in January.

Cyclist Simon Fox, who lives near the road, said: “It can be a bad road up there.

“You get people on motorbikes and in cars that can be a bit enthusiastic."

He said there had been an increase in the number of cyclists and motorbike riders in Rivington Road.

He said: “I do go over there quite a bit and there has been a lot more cyclists on the road these days.

“And there is generally a big bikers meet at Rivington Barn on a Sunday so there are a lot of them around.

“Cyclists have to be careful. They do need to be very aware of what’s going on because of the level of traffic in that area.”

Police are appealing for witnesses to the accident which took place at around 2.20pm. Sgt Claire Pearson, of Lancashire Constabulary's Road Policing Unit, said: “We are trying to establish how this collision occurred.

“We know there were several people in the area at the time, both on foot and in vehicles and so I would ask anyone who witnessed the collision to contact us.”Anyone with information can contact Lancashire Police on 101 quoting log number.