Family of Sydney Harbour Bridge crash victim Jamal Choukri make desperate plea

The devastated family of a truck driver who died in a horror crash have launched a desperate appeal to help repatriate his body abroad.

Jamal Choukri, 44, who was on his way to work in Botany in Sydney’s south, was killed in a multi-vehicle collision on the Sydney Harbor Bridge on October 17.

The 51-year-old driver of a Hyundai i30, who was traveling in the northbound lanes, crossed into traffic in the southbound lanes before colliding with a Mercedes.

The vehicle then struck Mr Choukri’s Hyundai Accent and the two drivers were tragically killed.

Mr Choukri’s shattered family are now desperately trying to get his body back to Morocco, in North Africa.

A GoFundMe page was set up by Amal Abu-Rassaa, whose stepfather is Mr Choukri’s uncle.

Ms. Abu-Rassaa said Mr. Choukri’s relatives wanted to pay their respects and condolences.

She said his grieving parents are struggling to come to terms with the loss of their son, who moved to Australia from Morocco six years ago for a better life.

“They are hiding there as much as possible… they were absolutely desperate, especially when you are in another country and you can hardly get here,” Ms Abu-Rassaa said. The Daily Telegraph.

‘We didn’t believe it at first. My stepfather was basically stuck in the city for four hours on (the day of the accident).’

Ms Abu-Rassaa said Mr Choukri’s family had provided an estimate for funeral costs and funeral services in Morocco.

She also described the heartbreaking moment when religious rites were performed on Choukri’s body at a mosque on Thursday.

“Yesterday he was at the mosque, and it was clear that seeing (Mr Choukri) being washed was probably one of the hardest things (my stepfather) has ever had to do in his life,” Ms Abu-Rassaa said.

The fundraiser raised nearly $6,000, while the family hoped to raise $10,000.

Ms Abu-Rassaa said Mr Choukri’s loved ones in Sydney and Morocco are grateful for the donations made so far.

Following the double-fatal crash, calls are rising for an overhaul of the reversible lane system on the Sydney Harbor Bridge, after two men died following a crash on the infamous ‘suicide lane’.

Mr Choukri, 44, (pictured) was killed in a multi-vehicle collision on the Sydney Harbor Bridge on Thursday

Mr Choukri (pictured) was one of two drivers killed after a Hyundai sedan traveling in the northbound lanes crossed into the southbound lanes before crashing into a Mercedes and hitting Mr Choukri’s vehicle.

In a vision of the horror crash, a blue Hyundai i30 driving in the outer northbound lane is seen slamming into oncoming traffic in the inner southbound lane.

The car crashed into Mr Shukri’s white Hyundai Accent at around 1.30pm on Thursday, killing two and injuring several others, including an expectant mother.

A growing chorus of Aussies are questioning the safety of the bridge’s reversible lane system, which alters the flow of northbound and southbound traffic.

The direction of lane four, better known to Sydneysiders as the ‘death’ or ‘suicide’ lane, is typically reversed every morning after rush hour before returning to the northbound lanes in the afternoon.

A green check mark or red cross above the lanes indicates which ones can be used, but dozens of motorists said they were careful to avoid the infamous “death lane.”

‘So tragic. I drive on that road regularly. I hate it. They call it the “suicide lane” for obvious reasons. Rest in peace those poor people,” one person wrote online.

“The design of the Harbor Bridge has always been very difficult due to the proximity of oncoming traffic in the center lanes,” said a second.

Red crosses and green check marks (circled in red) indicate which lanes are available for motorists traveling north and south on the Sydney Harbor Bridge

Footage of the fatal crash shows a blue Hyundia i30 entering the southbound lane

‘A third wrote: ‘I hate those lanes on the bridge. Every time I drive it I stay in the outside lanes, I never use the inside lane, I always think it’s an accident waiting to happen and today tragically it did.”

Many agreed that concrete barriers or bollards should be installed on the bridge between northbound and southbound traffic.

Others wanted the reversible lane system to be completely abolished.

“Variable lanes without a concrete physical barrier, such as on Victorian roads, are downright dangerous,” one woman wrote.

“That’s why these roads are so stupid. Do you really trust people to drive at highway speeds without a median and lanes that change directions so you have to look at the lights above the road?’ said another in reference to the tick and cross system.

Cleaning work and investigations at the bridge brought traffic to a standstill throughout the city on Thursday

A spokesperson for Transport for NSW previously told Daily Mail Australia it would consider the police’s findings.

“In 2022, following a review of the speed zone and signage, Transport will install clearer signage for motorists on the Bridge,” the spokesperson said.

‘The Sydney Harbor Bridge is not wide enough to accommodate a movable barrier system and maintain all lanes on what is Sydney’s main traffic route.

‘In 2015, following a serious collision, consideration was given to using a “zipper machine”, similar to the one on Victoria Road near Drummoyne, to move the barrier.

‘However, it proved to be unsuitable as it would require the removal of one lane from the bridge, which would reduce traffic capacity by 15 per cent.’