More than 100 more cyclists were killed on London’s roads in 2011 than in 2010

There were 571 cyclists killed or seriously injured  in London in the past year, a 22 per cent increase over 2010, leading to one senior London Assembly Member to blame Boris Johnson, the capital’s “cycling mayor”, for policies applied through Transport for London.

The increase in cyclists killed or seriously injured (KSIs), more than 100 more than the 467 in 2010, was matched by an increase in pedestrian deaths, the first increase for several years according to TfL figures, from 913 in 2010 to 980 last year.

UPDATE: In Croydon, the dire stats were worse than the wider London figures, with a 25 per cent increase in KSIs: 109 killed or seriously injured in 2011, compared to 87 in 2010.

Green Party AM Jenny Jones said today that she was “very depressed” by the latest figures. “But it’s no real surprise,” Jones said. “The London Mayor more than halved the road safety budget, rephased traffic lights and told his road engineers to smooth the journey times of motorists, so an increase was inevitable.

“This Mayor inherited a situation where the total number of casualties had been falling year on year for nine years and under him, that downward trend has reversed since 2008. Now we have more dangerous roads.”

Jones is annoyed over delays by the Mayor in delivering a road safety action plan, first promised three years ago.

• When asked in September 2009 about the casualty targets, the questioners were told that the new targets for 2010 onwards were “under review” as part of drawing up a road safety plan.
• In November 2010 a strategy “was in preparation” and would be consulted upon in 2011.
• In January 2011, “Stakeholder consultation will take place before the end of the current financial year”.
• In March 2011 analysis of the draft plan was “largely complete” and it merely had to go through the TfL Board.
• In June 2011, the Mayor said he would “shortly consult” on the new road safety plan.
• On January 25 this year, the Mayor was pleased to inform “that TfL will shortly be going out to external consultation”.

“Boris needs to end the complacency, increase the road safety budget and produce a plan that works for vulnerable road users, not just motorists,” Jones said.

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