Children shouldn't be allowed to cycle on road without an adult, says 'Mr Loophole'; Jumbo-Visma publish statement on Tour of Poland; Thug who pushed cyclist off bike didn't pay compensation; Spanish cyclist has ban reinstated + more on the live blog

Welcome to the Covid-19 testing drive through in #utrecht. Of course there are #cyclists standing in line. pic.twitter.com/yjTD5NEBtY

— Dick van Veen (@Dickvanveen) August 7, 2020

With UK driver-through test centres only accepting those with cars, perhaps it's time we took some inspiration from the Dutch once more. 

Cyclists of London!
Ride your bike to our Pop-Up Beer Garden in Camden and you can try our new MOJU Collab RIDE ON Ginger Radler (on us!)

Open Friday, Sat and Sunday - book ahead and walk-ins welcome. pic.twitter.com/XlfiuabP0V

— Camden Town Brewery (@CamdenBrewery) August 7, 2020

Well a single bottle of Ginger Radler actually, but it's free so hey ho. Thirsty London cyclists can claim the freebie at the Brewery's pop-up beer garden in Camden today and over the weekend. 

I'm permanently disabled due to a driver overtaking & turning left when I was cycling.

What you call 'debate' on cycling publicises views that dehumanise cyclists.

Drivers absorb this, dehumanise us & fail to believe we deserve their care when driving.@GMB @theJeremyVine pic.twitter.com/sZ1JwlDyoT

— Harrie Larrington-Spencer (@harrielspencer) August 7, 2020

Here at road.cc, some readers question why we give any airtime to certain people whose views could have a negative and/or dangerous influence on their audience; however we believe such views need to be challenged, and hopefully some sensible discussions can be had off the back of it that could lead to positive changes. Moving swiftly on... 

When asked about privacy issues regarding the identification of people on bikes - as opposed to the identification of vehicles rather than motorists when it comes to cars - Freeman claimed that there needs to be a debate over "the age young children are in fact safe to ride on the roads." 

He continued: "I think below a certain age they would have to be accompanied by a responsible adult who has passed a proficiency test."

A spokesperson for Cycling UK told road.cc: "What a cruel world that would be if kids could only ride with adults! Yet again we see the real risk ignored, which is the danger motor traffic can present." 

Freeman agreed that motorists are "the greatest risk" on the roads, but insisted they are accountable: "If a motorist commits an offence and goes through, for example, a red light, the registered keeper receives a section 172 notice. If he doesn't comply with that he'll be prosecuted for failing to give the information, he'll in fact receive 6 penalty points or disqualification upon conviction. His insurance premiums will rocket.

"I don't object to a similar system for cyclists, but I think it would just logistically work more sensibly if we identified the cyclists rather than the bike."

We're not sure if Mr Freeman has tried to report a motorist running a red light to the authorities recently, but we'd hazard a guess that it probably won't result in six penalty points for the driver based on your testimony alone...

Tomorrow. #MilanoSanremo!

Meet our lineup for the first Monument of 2020:@GannaFilippo @kwiato (🏆 2017)
Gianni Moscon@SalvatorePuccio @swiftybswift (🥈 2016)@DylanvanBaarle pic.twitter.com/csVaQqSZlo

— Team INEOS (@TeamINEOS) August 7, 2020

Originally scheduled for 21st March, the monument will finally go ahead tomorrow with Julian Alaphilippe aiming to defend his title. Historically Milan–San Remo has always been hard to predict, with the long distances and variable terrain meaning the winner is just as likely to come from a solo attack as a bunch sprint; this year's mammoth 299km course taking in the Poggio and the Cipressa is perhaps more unpredictable than ever, with wholesale changes made to the route just days ago due to disagreements with mayors in a number of coastal towns. It means the race is now taking place along a 'plan B' route, staying mostly inland before the final 40km of racing

Live coverage will be broadcast on Eurosport from 2.50pm tomorrow. 

Should cyclists get penalty points?

Motoring lawyer @TheMrLoophole says if there are going to be more cyclists on the road, there needs to be proper regulations and infrastructure in place to make the roads safe for everyone.

Watch the debate here 👉 https://t.co/yyUUJmzswF pic.twitter.com/mEOHOhFbxG

— Good Morning Britain (@GMB) August 7, 2020

Freeman called for the 1988 Road Traffic Act to be updated to include cyclists, and that cyclists must be "held accountable"; this is despite Freeman specialising in helping celebrities avoid motoring convictions, counting Jeremy Clarkson and David Beckham amongst his former clients. He said: "I welcome the increase in cyclists, I think it's fantastic and Boris Johnson is on the right track. But we do now need to regulate, if there are 8 million (cyclists) on our roads."

'The evidence shows that cyclists do not statistically present a risk.'

Duncan Dolimore from The Cycling UK says regulations are decided on the risk posed.

He adds that If there were regulations, it would impact 25 million people who own bikes, 7 million of whom are children. pic.twitter.com/GfmguU2eCY

— Good Morning Britain (@GMB) August 7, 2020

Duncan Dollimore of Cycling UK tried to explain the complications and costs involved in registering millions of bicycles in the UK to Mr Freeman, saying: "The reality is that 99.3% of pedestrians who die on our roads are involved in a collision with a motor vehicle. We have a situation where 41 cyclists died last year in a collision with drivers. No driver or car passenger was involved in a death in those and haven't been in recent years. 

"The reality is that statistically cyclists don't present that risk, so we don't regulate them the same way that we regulate drivers. If we chose to regulate them (cyclists) we'd have to regulate people owning 25 million bikes in the UK, including 7 million children who ride bikes regularly." 

@TheMrLoophole says that while the Road Traffic Act of 1988 dealt with the law for cyclists, it didn't think about how they were going to be identified if they break the law.

He says if drivers are getting penalised for road offences, cyclists should too. pic.twitter.com/b20pM43GKp

— Good Morning Britain (@GMB) August 7, 2020

Freeman then pulls out his "registered tabard" idea that he has floated numerous times in the past, saying: "I'm suggesting that all cyclists should be registered, there should be a registered tabard, identifiable with that particular person so that we know at any one time who is on a cycle." 

Following the death of a 24-year-old cyclist in the south-east London park back in June, the Met Police have put out a new appeal for witnesses. 

Police were called just after 6pm on Sunday 28th June after reports of a collision in The Avenue, Greenwich Park. The cyclist was taken to hospital but died from his injuries on 16th July, and police are still trying to "establish the circumstances surrounding the collision and how the man came to be injured."

PC Tony Butler commented: "A significant number of people would have been in the park at the time of the collision.

"I'm aware some time has passed since the date of the incident but I'm hoping somebody will be able to help with our investigation."

Anyone for information is asked to call 101 quoting CAD 6309/28JUN.