A lorry driver has admitted killing an NHS paediatrician in a crash as she cycled to work at a London hospital.
Dr Marta Krawiec, a noted food allergy expert and consultant, died in the collision at the junction of Southampton Row and Theobalds Road near Holborn on August 4, 2021.
The 41-year-old was en route to work at St Thomas’s Hospital by bike at the time of the crash, having taken up cycling during the pandemic.
Kevin Allen, 68, from Mansfield in Nottinghamshire, was charged with causing death by dangerous driving following an 18-month Met Police investigation.
At the Old Bailey on Thursday, he denied the charge but pleaded guilty to the lesser allegation of causing death by careless driving - accepting his responsibility for Dr Krawiec’s death.
The HGV driver will now stand trial on January 2 next year.
He entered his pleas in front of Judge Sarah Munro KC, standing in the well of the Old Bailey court for the short hearing.
The judge imposed an interim driving disqualification, and freed Allen on bail until the start of his five-day trial.
In the wake of her death, cyclists staged a protest at the scene over safety concerns, and paid tribute to Dr Krawiec as an “extremely compassionate, knowledgeable and positive doctor loved by her patients and colleagues”.
Dr Krawiec’s family issued a statement through the Metropolitan Police, saying: “Marta loved helping other people every day. She died on the way to her patients.
“We are devastated by the loss of our beloved daughter and sister.”
