AN EX-Met chief has called for a crackdown on rogue cyclists amid a hike in the number of pedestrians being injured by bikers.
The former head of the Metropolitan Police has urged for more safety measures as accident figures climb by more than a third over the past decade.
Lord Hogan-Howe, who was the Met Police commissioner from 2011 to 2017, arguing to see stricter penalties for cyclists introduced.
These could range from having penalty points added to their driving licence to a system that allows offenders to be identified and brought to book.
Lord Hogan-Howe’s call for action comes as e-bike incidents are also becoming an increasing scourge in society.
Just weeks ago we reported how a man was knocked out cold by an e-bike as he crossed the road.
Footage showed Sam Bevan, 33, a steelworker from Newport, Wales, being flung off his feet by after the horror collision.
Lord Hogan-Howe revealed his proposals as peers continued their detailed scrutiny of the wide-ranging Crime and Policing Bill.
The legislation would see new offences to put cyclists on an equal footing with car drivers if they cause death or serious injury by dangerous or careless cycling.
Speaking in the upper chamber, Lord Hogan-Howe revealed figures show 444 pedestrians were injured by cyclists back in 2015, but this had risen by 35% to 603 in 2024.
Of these the number of seriously injured rose from 97 to 181.
Lord Hogan-Howe said: “Every day, particularly in our large towns and cities such as London, we see cyclists ignoring traffic regulations and putting people at risk, particularly pedestrians who have a disability or a lack of mobility, even when those same people are using pedestrian crossings.
“At night many cyclists are not displaying lights, wear dark clothing and ride dark cycles, and pedestrians and other road users just cannot see them.
“I do not believe that cyclists are a group of people who are more criminal than the rest of society or than any other road users.
“However, they are less accountable than people who drive buses and cars, and general deterrence theory does not work for them.
“General deterrence theory claims that the risk of detection is the most effective deterrent to crime.
“Drivers of motor cars, lorries and buses know that there is a good chance that their behaviour will be noticed and probably investigated because they will be identified.”
But he said cyclists have “no identification mark to offer for an investigator to identify them after they have behaved badly”.
Tory peer Baroness Neville-Rolfe also warned of “a Wild West” and said: “As a pedestrian, particularly in central London, you take your life in your hands every day.
“There has to be a major change in enforcement, since riding on pavements and through traffic lights is already illegal.”
Independent crossbencher Lord Russell of Liverpool echoed the “collective frustrated cry” and said: “While we have successfully encouraged cycling and put cycling infrastructure in place, the element we have completely ignored is how to do it safely, and how to enforce rules and laws.
“With the benefit of hindsight, to do the one without the other is blindingly stupid.”
He added: “What we have heard today is a collective frustrated cry for somebody to do something about it.”
Conservative frontbencher Lord Cameron of Lochiel said drivers are held to “a far higher standard” than cyclists which needs to change.
Meanwhile, Home Office minister Lord Hanson of Flint recounted his own personal horror after nearly being ploughed into by a cyclist on a zebra crossing.
He told how a police officer had later pulled the biker over so “it is possible for enforcement to happen”.
He added: “It is right that strict legislation is already in place for cyclists, and the police do have the power to prosecute if these laws are broken.
“Cyclists have a duty to behave in a safe and responsible way that is reflected in the highway code.”
It comes after the Home Office also launched a consultation on their proposals to tackle the scourge of anti-social behaviour blighting communities.
Operation Vulcan in Oldham has been targeting e-bikes, four of which were seized after their drivers were arrested for drug supply.
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper has already announced powers for police to seize bikes, e-scooters and cars without warning.
And it was revealed that yobs who terrorise towns with off-road bikes, e-scooters and cars will have them crushed within 48 hours under new police powers.
Ministers plan to reduce the time cops can destroy thugs’ vehicles from two weeks to two days so they have less chance to retrieve them.
Officers have complained that the current 14-day window creates a “revolving door” where louts have time to reclaim their bikes and cars to keep wreaking havoc.
