Bereaved campaigners call for cyclists to face tougher penalties after LBC records over 100 red-light jumpers in an hour

The study, which took place at a pedestrian crossing in Blackfriars, showed that only 36 cyclists out of 151 complied with the road signals.

Meanwhile, 115 ran the red lights - the equivalent of almost two per minute - which is an offence under the Road Traffic Act 1988 and can carry a fine of up to £50.

However, none of the offenders observed by LBC were stopped by police or enforcement officers.

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Figures from last year reveal an average of 11 cyclists a day were fined for running lights in London.

The data, obtained by The Standard, shows 4,067 cyclists were fined throughout 2023 and only 196 were issued with £30 fixed penalty notices for riding on pavements.

Hilda Griffiths, 81, died in June 2022 after she was struck by a cyclist who was part of a high-speed peloton racing through Regent’s Park.

She was crossing the road on the junction of Outer Circle and Hanover Terrace when she was hit at 25mph.

The park’s speed limit for cyclists is 20mph. Witnesses at the time described how the retired nursery schoolteacher had stepped out in front of the cyclist without looking.

Her son, Gerard Griffiths, told LBC: "She had catastrophic injuries including a broken pelvis in three places, broken arm, broken wrist, fractured ribs, collapsed lung, massive head injury and bleed on the brain.

"I defy someone half her age to recover from that.

“We weren’t allowed to see her until 6pm that evening because of the work they were doing on her."

She died 59 days later and the incident was not given as the cause of her death, despite the cyclist who hit her exceeding the speed limit by 25 per cent.

Mr. Griffiths is now calling for a crackdown on dangerous cycling and for it to be treated with the same severity as motoring offences.

"[The cyclist] had no further action taken against him... and the laws governing cycling are from 1861, [which is] so very archaic."

He also told LBC time-tracking apps and pay-as-you-go bike rental services are to blame, as they encourage riders to cycle faster.

"If you want to ride at breakneck speed fair enough, but you don’t use pedestrians as your collateral damage to reach your goal on Strava," he said.

"A lot of younger people have never even driven so they don't necessarily have road sense and awareness. And with Christmas coming people will go for a night out, have a few drinks and jump on a bike to get home."

Matthew Briggs lost his wife Kim, in 2016, after a collision with a cyclist driving an "Olympic style" bike with no front breaks through Shoreditch.

Mr Briggs told LBC: "She was crossing the road and he had no way of stopping effectively, so he just collided with her... she suffered catastrophic injuries and died in hospital a week later."

Charlie Alliston was found guilty of causing bodily harm by "wanton or furious driving" and issued an 18-month prison sentence.

Mr. Briggs has since campaigned for a change to the law which would mean cyclists who kill pedestrians by acting dangerously on the road could face life imprisonment.

A Government amendment to the Crime and Policing Bill, which is currently going through the House of Lords, would see cycling offences brought in line with driving offences.

"I had lots of cups of lukewarm coffee and platitudes in the Department of Transport, but it was really an uphill battle," Mr Briggs added.

"Even after ten years, it’s quite triggering to see cyclists having recklessly. Until this law is passed, cycling is almost literally a lawless activity."

Reacting to LBC's finding, Sergeant Stu Ford, Cycling Team Lead at the City of London Police, said "It's not a surprise at all.

"I think a lot of people want to just get from A to B as quickly as possible."

Mr Ford's department are cracking down on cyclists flouting the rules: "I've got a core team of sergeant and ten PCs.

"I also set up called Operation Lewis and it looks to deal with antisocial cycling and issues around red-light offences.

A Government spokesperson said: “Dangerous cycling is completely unacceptable, and the safety of our roads is a key priority for this Government.

“That’s why we’re proposing new offences and penalties, updating legislation that is over 160 years old to ensure that the tiny minority who recklessly disregard others face the full force of the law.”

"We're doing a lot of work in the New Year around education and road safety for cyclists and pedestrians. Pedestrians are at the top of the of the hierarchical pyramid in the new highway code, so they're the most vulnerable road users."