As more Londoners are taking to cycle lanes in the daily battle to get to work during Tube strikes, some areas are seeing half of cyclists flouting traffic laws.
In the capital it is all too common to see cyclists ignore red lights at crossings, with pedestrians often having to jump out of the way.
But the full scale of the problem in London has now been revealed, with some busy junctions seeing half of riders ignore the basic principle of red meaning stop, and green meaning go.
On Oxford Street, 50% of cyclists were found to be running through crossroads without stopping, a study from NextBase found.
Meanwhile the intersection between Shaftesbury Avenue and Charing Cross Road saw more than 200 cyclist offences in just 40 minutes.
Of the total 25,000 riders recorded during peak travel times last month, with 26% of e-bike users rode through red lights.
Which are the worst junctions and streets for cyclists running red lights in London?
- Oxford Circus – 50%
- Holloway Road & Drayton Park – 46%
- Regent St & Great Marlborough St – 43%
- Lambeth Bridge & Milbank – 37%
- Shaftesbury Ave & Charing Cross Rd – 36%
- Euston Rd & Pancras Rd – 35%
- Seven Sisters Rd & Blackstock Rd – 34%
- Kingsland Road & Balls Pond Road – 33%
- Brick Lane & Bethnal Green Road – 28%
- Elephant and Castle – 26%
Another 18% of pedal of cyclists were found doing the same.
Food delivery drivers were the worst contenders, with 24% ignoring red lights, 10% riding on pavements and 6% going against the flow of traffic.
But don’t get the burning torches out for cyclists just yet, as some pedestrians and car drivers were also seen flouting traffic rules.
At one junction in London – New Oxford St & High Holborn – 69% of pedestrians crossed the road before it was safe to do so.
Some 8% of drivers were also found to be distracted while at stop lights, including eating and using their phones at the wheel.
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London has been brought to a standstill this week, with trains and buses overwhelmed after members of the RMT union walked out.
For some Londoners this week marks the first time they have hopped on one of the city’s many e-bikes.
Lime said it has seen a 58% increase in demand for the e-bikes since the strike started.The new cyclists have been dubbed ‘strikelists’ – the riders who only dust off the pedals, or hop on a Lime bike for the first time ever, when the city shuts down.
There have also been reports of riders jumping red lights, leaving some cyclists concerned for their safety.
Londoner Emily Shackleton told Metro there were ‘swarms of people’ on Lime bikes.
‘There was a lot of dodgy behaviour such as undertaking, people wearing headphones, I even saw someone talking on Facetime holding their phone out in front of them while speeding downhill,’ she said.
‘I lost count of the times I had to stop suddenly as someone cut in front in me and or suddenly swerved across me.
‘While it’s great to see people taking up cycling as a commuting alternative especially on strike days, lack of care and basic knowledge of road safety as well as the increased numbers on the road made a usually simple commute feel incredibly unsafe.’
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