Andy Beal labels cyclists thick and blames them for traffic conditions at The Plain roundabout in Oxford (Oxford Mail, December 1).

It takes two or more to cause an accident, so let's label car drivers thick as well.

All accidents could be avoided. How? By better driving.

I use Cowley Road and have enough experience of it on a bike, motorcycle, car and bus to know that all modes of transport share the blame for any problems.

We have individual control of our vehicles and must make sure that what we do, we do safely.

Has Mr Beal noticed how many cars do not indicate at the roundabout, especially when exiting?

Some cyclists need to be more assertive, holding their line and not being bullied by drivers.

There seems to be a lack of tolerance to cyclists and it is a case of taking your life in your hands when on a bike.

I agree about cyclists pulling out from the left hand lane across to the right, but how many cars overtake bikes and pull back into the left hand lane when they could hold back? Sometimes, there is so much traffic there even a cursory glance over the right shoulder can be scary as other vehicles come close. A driver should realise that cyclists in front of them may wish to change direction and should allow for it.

Mr Beal is correct that speed is not an issue around this junction.

The problem is the number of cars using it. Narrowing the lanes will cause even more congestion.

I also agree with him about cyclists jumping red lights. This annoys me too, especially when it's an older person who should know better.

I am also annoyed at cyclists who ride without lights or obscure their lights with bags or baskets.

The council and police should launch an initiative to stop cyclists without lights and make them pay to have lights fitted on the spot or face a large fine.

Recently, in Cowley Road, I saw two cyclists without lights pass two police officers, who didn't say a word.

But please don't tar all cyclists with the same brush. I know there are idiots out there and some scare me - they seem to act as though they're bullet-proof.

But all road users are the same - you can't say any group is worse than the other.

What would Mr Beal make of the time when car workers at Cowley came out en masse?

I've seen photographs of hundreds of cyclists hitting the street at one time daily and bringing the rest of the traffic to a halt.

Perhaps you could print such a picture to remind us that we have progressed, or have we?

Cars now block the streets where cyclists used to outnumber them. Halcyon days?

GARY BRIMSON Hollow Way Cowley Oxford