A LORRY driver from north Essex has been cleared of causing the death of a physiotherapist.

Esther Hartsilver, 32, was cycling to work at King’s College Hospital when she was involved in a collision with the lorry.

The accident happened 100 metres away from the hospital, but her colleagues were unable to save her.

Ms Hartsilver had been in a collision with a Co-op articulated food lorry driven by Philip Beadle.

Mr Beadle, 47, of Vine Road, Tiptree, had denied causing death by careless driving.

After a trial at Blackfriars Crown Court, Beadle was cleared by a jury.

The crash took place on May 28, 2015, during the early morning rush hour. Ms Hartsilver, from Islington, was taken by ambulance to the hospital where she worked but died of her injuries later that afternoon.

The pelvic health specialist had been working at the hospital for a year having previously worked at Guys and St Thomas’ Hospital, Chelsea and Westminster Hospital and the Portland Hospital.

Mr Beadle, who works for the Co-op, had previously appeared at Camberwell Green Magistrates’ Court after the 8am crash.

After Ms Hartsilver’s death, cycle campaigners held a vigil at the scene for weeks.

Fundraising events were also held in her honour following her death ,with colleagues and friends paying tribute to her dedication to fitness, regularly cycling to work and being a member of the Project Awesome fitness club based near London Bridge.

Ms Hartsilver’s friend, Haylee Palmer, speaking at the time, said: “Esther was the life and soul of the party.

“She was just a really good person. She had a way of walking into a room and lighting it up with her smile.

“She was a person who could make you feel so good about yourself and made everyone feel happy. She put 100 per cent into everything and took everything she could from life.”

Last week London mayor Sadiq Khan unveiled plans to ban thousands of lorries from London to make the capital’s roads safer for cyclists.