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@izgard
Today I received a reply from Cllr. Harvey:
Dear Mr. del Aguila,
Thank you for contacting me regarding comments attributed to me in the press. The quote you’ve mentioned “We’re always getting little old ladies who are knocked down and abused by a cyclist, who leaves them on the ground as they ride away” is a mis-conflation of a number of comments made when relating incidents described by Westminster residents.
The Built Environment Policy and Scrutiny Committee fully support increasing the number of cyclists in Westminster; I’m a cyclist myself. However the Committee’s major objective is that the roads should be safe for all road users, cyclists, pedestrians and motorists alike, and that is through the persistent application of the Highway Code. A more accurate picture of the conclusions of the Committee was included in the Council’s own press release (attached).
Our comments reflect the concerns of Westminster residents. The regularity with which this problem has been brought to the attention of Councillors led the Committee to consider it necessary to scrutinise the problem of poor cyclist behaviour. Councillors and Amenity Societies have heard from a number of residents who have been injured by inconsiderate cyclists, as well as many more near misses, abusive language and other unhelpful practices. This is corroborated by written and oral evidence received by the Committee, available on the Westminster City Council website (Agenda Item 4, esp. Appendix 1). You will see the London Cycling Campaign gave evidence at the meeting and fully support and promote cyclists adherence to the Highway Code. The minutes of that meeting will be posted on the website in due course.
It is fully accepted that there is widespread underreporting. This may be due, at least in part, to the procedural difficulties associated with formally reporting incidents and low confidence that informing the relevant authorities will lead to a useful result. It can be very frustrating to wait a long time in a police station to report an incident which is unlikely to be resolved. That is why police enforcement of the Highway Code, and TfL’s public awareness campaign are so key. The high level of media and public interest in the whole subject underpins our belief that action must be taken now.
Yours sincerely,
Cllr Angela Harvey
Also attached was the same press release as above.
I find it quite significant that she took time to respond. Ho hum