Police fine 150 in London safety crackdown as MP calls for national dangerous junction audit

After the deaths of 14 cyclists so far this month, Labour MP Ian Austin has called for a national audit of the UK’s most dangerous junctions and of London’s Cycle Superhighways.

Mr Austin told told Sky News: “We need to see an urgent review of the most dangerous junctions across the country and we need to see a proper audit of how the Cycle Superhighway scheme here in London is operating.”

At least 12 of the deaths this month involved a motor vehicle. All six of the fatalities in London occurred at junctions and involved a large vehicle, either a bus, coach or lorry.

The Metropolitan Police has recently been running ‘Changing Places’ exercises in which cyclists are invited to sit in the cab of a heavy good vehicle and discover just how little of the road they can see.

Sgt Simon Castle of the Met’s Cycling Task Force said: “What we’re telling cyclists is to either stay right back behind the truck, or to move far enough forward that they can make eye contact with the driver. Either of those tactics makes you a lot more visible and a lot safer on London’s roads.”

150 drivers and riders fined in Operation Safeway

Ian Austin’s call for a junction audit comes as the Metropolitan Police yesterday issued 150 fixed penalty notices to drivers and cyclists on the first day of Operation Safeway.

Police said the fines issued were mainly for using a mobile phone while driving or passing through a red light.

In addition, police were stopping cyclists to offer advice on safety. Independent journalist Simon Usborne was one of those stopped, because he wasn’t wearing a helmet.

He wrote:

“How do you think you’ll fare if you get run over like this?” one officer asked. No “good morning, we’re here as part of the campaign to improve road safety and wondered if you had two minutes.” More like: “you’ll probably die, but first stand here looking guilty while I have a go at you for doing nothing illegal.”

People stopped at Hyde Park Corner after the morning rush hour yesterday appeared exclusively to be cyclists, none of whom had breached the highway code.

I told the officer stopping me that only logistics had left me bare-headed. I always wear a helmet, although it’s not the law to do so. He then took issue with my clothes. Not visible enough,” he said. I pointed at the bright sun, suggesting it lent me adequate visibility, thanked him for his advice, and cycled on.

The crackdown on dangerous road behaviour involved 650 officers in 60 locations across London and will eventually expand to encompass all 2,500 of London’s traffic police.