Boardman hits out at laws treating killer cyclists like dangerous drivers

CHRIS BOARDMAN, the Olympic gold medallist, has criticised new laws which could lead to cyclists who kill being treated the same as dangerous drivers.

The former racing cyclist lost his mother Carol after she was fatally injured following a collision with a car in July 2016. The 49-year-old, who won gold in the 1992 games, hit out at plans for a criminal offence of causing death by dangerous or careless cycling.

The legislation is being proposed by the Government after Kim Briggs, a 44-year-old mother of two, was knocked over and killed by a bicycle in February 2016. Victorian legislation was used to prosecute the rider, who was given 18 months in prison, because there was no cycling equivalent to the offence of causing death by dangerous driving.

Mr Boardman added his voice to concerns that the planned legislation did not address real threats on the road. He wrote on Twitter that the focus was “on a single tragic case”, when around “66 pedestrians are killed each year, on the pavement alone, by drivers, who are prosecuted for careless driving”. He said ministers should consult road fatality statistics before deciding “where to focus resources to save most lives”.

Figures for 2016 show that 448 pedestrians were killed on Britain’s roads, but only three cases involved bicycles. The proposed laws include combating the close passing of bicycles. Duncan Dollimore, of Cycling UK, said: “If the Government is serious about addressing behaviour that puts others at risk on our roads, they should grasp the opportunity to do the job properly, rather than attempt to patch up an area of legislation that’s simply not working.”