Sir – While your correspondent Clare Weiner is completely right to state that cyclists should always obey traffic signals, and I share her sympathy with the student who was recently injured by an errant cyclist on the George Street pedestrian crossing, I have to say that, from a cyclist’s perspective, I found her letter very one-sided.


There are a number of crossings around the centre of Oxford where pedestrians often ignore the signal telling them not to walk, and the crossing at the top of George Street is a particularly good (or do I mean bad?) example.

Invariably, I’ll wait on my bicycle on the other side of Magdalen Street at the signals opposite Waterstones, then, when the signal turns to green and I set off down George Street, I encounter a number of pedestrians crossing the street, completely ignoring the pedestrian light telling them that it’s not their turn.


I then have to resort to frantic bell-ringing in an attempt to clear my path, and in return I’m usually treated to a bemused look of incomprehension at the fact that a bicycle is crossing their path when the light advising them whether they can walk is showing red.


I’m afraid I could only agree with Clare Weiner’s request for more police checks to catch dangerous cyclists if those policemen and women were also tasked with cautioning pedestrians found to be crossing the road in an unsafe manner.
Chris Day, Yarnton