• A LARGE proportion of cyclists are selfish and ignorant, their normal practice being to ride on pavements, through red traffic lights, and ignore one-way streets.

On bank holiday Friday last it reached a nadir. At least six (probably more) were riding down Camden High Street in the morning, against the flow of traffic, some on the pavement and some in the road, even in the bus lane area, a danger to themselves and to pedestrians.

The same afternoon, on the narrow high-walled footpath about four feet wide called Shepherds Walk joining Rosslyn Hill and Fitzjohn’s Avenue in Hampstead, there were two more with no room to pass safely or at social distancing.

It is obviously a footpath and they should not have been there. Since lockdown I have noticed many more misusing it.

I am appalled at the talk of making it legal post-lockdown to allow them on the pavements. It is a hard battle to stop them and get the message cross that it is illegal and dangerous for others.

The only time I have even seen police around during the lockdown – with very little road traffic – is to patrol Hampstead Heath in vans to ensure social distancing.

If they were to have a week’s campaign stopping and booking all pavement riding and red traffic light ignoring cyclists, they would have a field day.

With suitable press coverage perhaps we might see less of it.

Sadiq Khan, are you listening? Never mind the proposed wider pavements, an expensive waste of money for what is hopefully a temporary situation – pedestrians in shopping areas (like Camden) tend to ignore social distancing anyway, especially those with small children.

Get the cyclists back on the road first and actually going in the right direction. London has spent enough money on segregated cycle routes already.

These idiots don’t deserve any more.

JOHN STRATTON
Thurlow Road, NW3