A 20-year-old man died on Tuesday after being involved in a car crash in the Nicosia suburb of Aglandjia in the early hours of the morning.

According to police, Kyriacos Antoniou, from Ayios Dometios, was driving on Aglandjia’s Larnaca Avenue from the University of Cyprus roundabout towards the centre of Nicosia when the incident occurred.

Police said that Antoniou’s car collided with a vehicle which was being driven by a 24-year-old man, before veering off course, hitting a set of traffic lights, and coming to a stop.

Deputy mayor of Aglandjia Andreas Constantinou said that the road is often used as a ‘race track’, a problem which has been reported to the police several times, the latest time in May this year.

“Residents have recently warned the police with repeated telephone calls about Larnaca Avenue being used as a race track,” he said in a social media post.

“Unfortunately, we were not listened to. And this ‘unfortunately’ cost the life of Kyriakos,” he said.

The culture of only acting after something bad has happened continues to cost us dearly, he added. “It is time to adopt the responsibility of Prometheus to foresee, to provide, to prevent,” he continued.

Asked if he was aware that reports had been made to the traffic police about the danger of the road and requests for speed cameras that had not been responded to, Transport Minister Alexis Vafeades said he had not been informed about a problem.

He was taken to the Nicosia general hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

The 24-year-old, along with his 23-year-old male passenger, were both also taken to the Nicosia general hospital, where they were administered first aid and discharged.

The police’s investigation into the matter is ongoing.