Call to toughen law as riders and drivers clash

TOUGHER policing and "advance" traffic lights for cyclists are needed to defuse tensions between riders and drivers in London, experts said today.

Motorists and cyclists should also be made to undergo additional training, said the Cyclists Touring Club.

Since the Nineties there has been a 91 per cent rise in cycling in London. Experts say this has seen increased problems between cyclists and drivers.

The CTC called for measures to encourage a "share the road" mentality including trials of "advance" traffic lights for cyclists. It said small, additional traffic lights could be placed a few feet ahead of standard lights to give cyclists a two to three-second head-start.

"Drivers are angered by cyclists going through red lights," said Roger Geffen, of the CTC.

"Cyclists do it because it feels safer than waiting for traffic to rush up from behind. If they could pull away sooner, legally, it would help."

The CTC called for cyclists caught riding on pavements or through red lights to be sent on re-training courses similar to schemes for motorists caught jumping red lights.

And it said the Driving Standards Agency should introduce cycle-awareness into the driver-training syllabus.

The AA, RAC Foundation, and Institute of Advanced Motorists backed the CTC's call for more policing. Paul Watters, the AA's head of road safety, said: "There is arrogance from both drivers and cyclists. Drivers notice it more because there are more cyclists.

"While most cyclists are law-abiding there is a minority who break the law, causing frustration for everyone.

"More policing would help if they concentrated on light-jumping but if everyone had a give and take attitude it would make the roads flow more smoothly." Sheila Rainger, head of campaigns at the RAC Foundation, said: "Cyclists are getting a lot more militant. When I ride a motorycle legally in bus lanes the more aggressive ones deliberately cut me up. They react strongly to what they perceive as others in 'their' road space.

"Some are very domineering they want everyone else to keep out of their way but they want to ignore rules they don't like by riding through pedestrian crossings and on pavements."

Ms Rainger added: "More policing of all road users would help, drivers are not angels either."

She said training that encouraged cyclists to ride in the middle of the road was "backfiring" as it was misinterpreted by those who needlessly hogged the centre of the road.

Vince Yearley, of the IAM, said: "Cyclists with a cavalier attitude to rules do cause heightened tensions. Cyclists should be more polite and drivers should give them more room."

David Love, of the London Freewheel event, said: "Drivers have become more used to bikes but some still like to bully cyclists. You get more respect from motorists if you behave like one that means ostentatious rear glances, hand signals, queuing at the lights and taking your full space on the road.

"Cyclists are their own worst enemies. I tell people that each time they ride through a red light, 20 more people hate all cyclists."

Mr Love said that cyclists who jump red lights should be fined.