Cyclists have a duty to help drivers spot them

SIR – I agree with Adair Anderson (Letters, August 20) that cyclists should wear bright, visible clothing.

More than once, when emerging from our road, I have nearly felled a lone cyclist coming from the shadows: travelling at 25mph, head down, not looking where he was going, riding a black bicycle and dressed from head to toe in black lycra. Raising my hand in apology, I (like Mr Anderson) received the two-finger response.

In any case, surely cyclists have a duty to look out for cars. They have a far less obstructed view of the road. Duncan Rayner

Sunningdale, Berkshire

SIR – As well as hi-vis vests, could cyclists also get themselves bells to ring? This would be especially helpful when they flash past from behind on the single-track lanes common in our area. Michael Hearn

Longdon, Staffordshire SIR – As a cyclist I face three major dangers each time I get on my bike: potholes, motorists (and their dooropening passengers) and pedestrians, who step off pavements into my path.

I therefore make sure I am not only visible with lights and bright clothing, but audible, too, with a good oldfashioned bicycle bell.

Cyclists who don’t ride safely give the rest of us a bad press. However, it’s also worth remembering that there are bad motorists in equal if not greater numbers, and two wheels are much more vulnerable than four. Linda Bos

Midhurst, West Sussex

SIR – Cyclists should make every effort to make themselves visible.

However, a strange phenomenon seems to occur whereby motorists see cyclists crossing red lights, riding on the pavement, and so on – but as soon as responsible, law-abiding cyclists take to the road they become invisible to those very same motorists. Fred Clark

Liverpool