Calls for ‘mini Holland’ scheme to be brought forward after three cyclists are hit by vehicles on one road in just over a week

Cycling campaigners have asked that plans to transform Waltham Forest’s Lea Bridge Road be implemented as soon as possible after three cyclists were hit by vehicles while travelling along it in little over a week.

The London Borough of Waltham Forest is to receive £30m to introduce safety improvements as part of Mayor of London Boris Johnson's Mini-Hollands initiative. However, plans are still at the consultation stage. In the meantime, Lea Bridge Road, which is set to be transformed, has seen three separate incidents in little more than a week.

Last Tuesday, a male cyclist in his 50s was hit by a van around lunchtime and subsequently taken to hospital. This Tuesday, a male cyclist in his 30s was hit by a car on Whipp’s Cross roundabout and he too was hospitalised. Yesterday, the London Evening Standard reported that a third incident had taken place, this time opposite Lea Valley Ice Rink.

A spokeswoman for the London Ambulance Service reported: "We were called at 7.25am to reports of a road traffic collision involving a lorry and a cyclist. We treated a man in his 40s for a chest injury. He was taken to the Royal London Hospital as a priority."

Speaking after the first two incidents, Simon Munk from the Waltham Forest Cycling Campaign, said that when it came to safety improvements to the road, time was of the essence.

“It is absolutely horrible that we have had two serious incidents in one week, and I have heard from others who have been knocked off their bikes this week too but were okay. It is the most widely used road for cyclists here and also the most dangerous.

“We want the council to move forward as quickly as possible. If we want the so-called cycle revolution in London and more cyclists, we have to embrace segregation and that will hopefully mean no more families have to receive bad news.”