An article criticising poor planning in cycle lane development has made it onto page three of the Observer this morning and it’s well worth a read.

Following the death of London cyclist Vivki McCreery last week on Blackfriars Bridge, the issue of dangerous road layouts receives almost an entire page of attention in which the paper calls the death toll of cyclists in the UK ‘relentless” accompanied by the sobering statistic of a cyclist being killed every two and a half days. While acknowledging that it’s unclear how many of these victims are killed in cycle lanes the article raises doubts about the planning procedure of cycle lanes and outlines several instances patently dangerous cycle lanes wedged between lines of fast flowing traffic and buses around the country.

While we’re used to seeing lines of print dedicated to ‘lycra loonies’ it’s refreshing to see a national paper taking on the issue of cycling safety, although a point that would have been good to see more highly emphasised in the article is one made by Tony Russell of the CTC: “There are situations where designs put the cyclist in a more dangerous position. Most accidents, though, are caused by motorists not being careful”. That is, arguably, the real scandal.