Boris Johnson hails new cycle safety crackdown

Boris Johnson today joined police officers for the return of a road safety crackdown.

Operation Safeway was first set up last November after six cyclists were killed in London in a fortnight, and thousands of fines were issued to motorists and cyclists for offences.

The new crackdown came as official figures revealed the number of cyclists seriously hurt on London’s streets fell by almost a third last year. There were 475 serious injuries — where the victim has to spend at least one night in hospital — compared to 657 the previous year, down 28 per cent.

The Mayor, announcing the new “Son of Safeway” checks, said the latest figures were encouraging but “one death or serious injury is one too many. That is why I am building new, protected cycle routes and better junctions, the first of which will be delivered this year. It is why I intend to ban all lorries not fitted with cyclist safety equipment from London”.