Martel, who in June posted a video report<\/a> on his YouTube channel entitled \u2018Council builds \u00a32 million roundabout for bikes in industrial estate\u2026 that no one uses\u2019, counted 293 cyclists using the bike lane during rush hour.<\/p>\n Of those 293 cyclists, he claimed 200 rode through a red light, saying in his report: \u201cThe lights are red, but no-one is stopping.\u201d<\/p>\n During the report, Martel also spoke to a number of motorists, cyclists, pedestrians, and road safety campaigners about their views on red light-jumping cyclists, who have become the focal point of debates surrounding cycling in the capital in recent years.<\/p>\n Last year, the Metropolitan Police revealed that 11 cyclists a day were stopped and fined for riding through red lights<\/a> in London in 2023. And so far in 2025, 284 cyclists in the City of London\u2019s square mile have been fined for failing to stop at a red light \u2013 a number, Martel notes, not far removed from the one he counted on Tuesday morning at a single traffic light.<\/p>\n \u201cI think it\u2019s ridiculous,\u201d one motorist told the reporter this week. \u201cMore needs to be done about it, because if they get hit by one of us and we hurt them seriously, obviously there\u2019s a big issue there. It winds me up on a daily basis, to be honest.\u201d<\/p>\n A pedestrian also told Martel that she\u2019d \u201clove it if cyclists respected\u201d the rules.<\/p>\n \u201cI have a buggy, so for me to be able to cross and look either side, I always miss one,\u201d she said. \u201cSo it is really dangerous. The lights are there for a reason, so we can all cross and not bump into each other, it feels pretty simple.\u201d<\/p>\n Meanwhile, one cyclist, when asked whether people on bikes should obey the law more, replied: \u201cDefinitely, it\u2019s dangerous. Most people have headphones on, they\u2019re not looking where they\u2019re going, it\u2019s infuriating.\u201d<\/p>\n Another cyclist, however, was stopped by Martel after riding through the red, and told the reporter that he was \u201csorry about that one\u201d and that he believes he should obey the law.<\/p>\n >\u00a0\u201cYou\u2019re ticketing law-abiding citizens!\u201d: Cyclist fined for \u201criding no-handed\u201d as police officer claims it \u201ccontravenes Human Rights Act\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n Speaking to Martel, road safety campaigner Gerard Griffiths argued that the number of cyclists failing to stop at red lights \u201ccomes across as entitlement\u201d.<\/p>\n Griffiths\u2019 mother Hilda died in 2022, two months after she was struck by cyclist Brian Fitzgerald in Regent\u2019s Park, sustaining several broken bones and bleeding on the brain. A coroner\u2019s request last May confirmed that no charges will be brought against Fitzgerald<\/a>, who was travelling at between 25 and 29mph at the time of the collision, \u201cdue to insufficient evidence\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cIt comes across as entitlement,\u201d Griffiths told ITV when asked about red light-jumping cyclists. \u201cIf that was the case with motor vehicles, there\u2019d be carnage. And the more people who cycle, the more chances of accidents and collisions, and tragic ones, like in the case of my mum.<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s a reason why cars and motorbikes and lorries stop at red lights \u2013 because they have to. They know there are consequences if they go through them. Bikes or people that cycle just don\u2019t seem to have that same sort of attitude.\u201d<\/p>\n However, the London Cycling Campaign\u2019s Simon Munk told the reporter that some of London\u2019s cycle lanes are currently operating over their capacity, and that the issues concerning traffic lights and the flow of cycle traffic need to be addressed to ensure fewer people on bikes feel compelled to ride through reds.<\/p>\n Munk also noted that pedestrians are statistically more likely to ignore traffic signals than cyclists, while Martel pointed out in his report that cyclists are far less likely to kill than be killed on Britain\u2019s roads, with fewer than one per cent of pedestrian deaths stemming from collisions with people on bikes.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s not good, and we shouldn\u2019t be jumping red lights,\u201d Munk said. \u201cBut what we know is that cyclists are jumping red lights and misbehaving illegally and dangerously in roughly the same proportion as pedestrians.<\/p>\n \u201cIn fact, pedestrians are slightly worse behaved, and drivers are about as equally badly behaved as cyclists [at traffic lights].<\/p>\n \u201cThis is annoying, and it\u2019s really deeply hostile to pedestrians. These people shouldn\u2019t be doing it, but it\u2019s not actually statistically very dangerous.<\/p>\n \u201cI think it\u2019s important to understand that we shouldn\u2019t be accepting cyclists jumping red lights, but we should be working out why. We should be working out what the problem is and fixing it.\u201d<\/p>\n One of those problems, the London Cycling Campaign pointed out, is the design flaws inherent in some traffic lights.<\/p>\n Focusing on the traffic light that formed the basis of ITV\u2019s report, the campaign called on London\u2019s transport authorities to \u201cdesign out the issues causing\u201d cyclists to jump the red light.<\/p>\n \u201cBlackfriars Bridge has too-low capacity and badly-phased lights in quick succession,\u201d the group said on social media.<\/p>\n \u201cLet\u2019s do better for everyone without wagging fingers.\u201d<\/p>\n![\"Cyclists](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/cyclists-london-traffic-lights-cycle-lane-copyright-simon-macmichael.jpg\" "\\"Cyclists")
Cyclists in London at traffic lights in cycle lane (credit: Simon MacMichael)<\/p>\n![\"Cyclists](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/cyclists-traffic-lighs-london-c-simon-macmichael.jpg\" "\\"Cyclists")
Cyclists at traffic lights, London (credit: Simon MacMichael)<\/p>\n![\"Blackfriars](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/blackfriars-tfl.jpg\" "\\"Blackfriars")
Blackfriars Bridge (credit: Transport for London)<\/p>\n