Sister of pensioner killed by cyclist calls for new laws on dangerous bike-riding

THE sister of a pensioner killed by a hitand-run cyclist has backed calls for the Government to update laws to make dangerous bike riding a serious crime.

Christine Berridge, whose brother, Peter McCombie, was killed when a cyclist jumped a red light, says she fears ministers are afraid of the cycling lobby.

Now she has added her name to a growing list of those calling for the Road Traffic Act to be updated to ensure cyclists who break the law can be prosecuted in a similar way to motorists.

In 2020, Mr McCombie, 72, had waited on a central island for the “green man” to signal it was safe before crossing a road in Bow, east London. As he crossed, Ermir Loka, 23, struck him while riding “furiously” on a “cycle superhighway”, a court later heard.

As pedestrians helped Mr McCombie, who was bleeding badly from brain and skull injuries, Loka got on his bike and fled. Mr McCombie, who had been walking home from a hospital where he was a human resources administrator, died eight days later in hospital.

Loka gave himself up 25 days after the collision. He was jailed for two years, the maximum sentence available for causing bodily harm by “wanton and furious” driving, a crime under the 1861 Offences Against the Person Act. He was cleared of manslaughter.

Mrs Berridge, a 70-year-old mother of two from Essex, said: “There must be some charge, apart from an 160-year old wanton and furious driving, that would merit more than two years in jail. This has got to be changed.”

A spokesman for the Department for Transport said: “Any death on our roads is one too many… That is why we have launched a review exploring the case for specific dangerous cycling offences and will soon publish our response.”