Road users are overwhelmingly in favour of greater penalties for bicycle, e-bike and e-scooter riders who flout road laws, figures show. 

According to research from Venson Automotive Solutions, 94 per cent of survey responders were in favour of introducing penalty points and fines for riders of bicycles, e-bikes and e-scooters breaking speed limits and greater penalties for those red light jumping.

One in four also believe that before riders of a bicycle, e-bike and e-scooter take to the road, they should obtain a rider’s licence which includes taking a theory and road test. 

This comes following proposals from the former transport secretary, Grant Shapps, who suggested a Whitehall review of how cyclists who break the law should be tracked and prosecuted.

Initial ideas put forward to facilitate this include insurance cover for riders and registration plates for bikes.

The survey results showed that  62 per cent agreed that riders of bicycles, e-bikes and e-scooters should have insurance cover and nearly half believe these modes of transport should carry registration plates.

Cyclists who jump red lights – which is an illegal act for all road users - are creating dangerous situations on the road for themselves and other road users, but unlike motorists, the odds of escaping prosecution are high.

However, if caught jumping lights, cyclists will be issued with a standard Fixed Penalty Notice of £30 opposed to a potential maximum fine of £1000 for motorists and points on their licence.

Currently, under the Highway Code and Road Traffic Act speeding limits only apply to motor vehicles and their drivers, exempting cyclists and scooter riders of this vital safeguard.

In Swindon, traditional road users in cars or other vehicles are more frequently finding themselves sharing the road with bicycles, e-bikes and e-scooters and there have been a number of crashes between these two groups. 

The most recent example is the hit-and-run of an e-scooter rider near The Dockle Farmhouse in Greenbridge which took place in early September. 

A 20-year-old man wearing orange high-visibility clothing rode an e-scooter along Swindon Road when a vehicle hit him as he approached the junction of Stratton Road, knocking him off the e-scooter. He lost consciousness and suffered face and arm injuries.

The driver of the vehicle involved did not stop and did not report the collision, Wiltshire Police claimed in a witness appeal.