Elephant and Castle named the most dangerous junction in London as top 10 cycle hotspots revealed
The 10 worst hot spots for cyclists in London have been identified – and Elephant and Castle has been named the most dangerous junction in the capital.
There have been 80 accidents between motorists and cyclists reported to police between 2009 and 2013, topping the list of locations surveyed by insurance giant Aviva.
The next most dangerous junction was Trafalgar Square, which had 46 incidents reported, followed closely by the Waterloo Road roundabout with 45.
In total 23,000 cycling accidents were recorded by the police over the period surveyed, resulting in 80 cyclists dying as a result.
The research showed that 64 per cent of claims involved commuters and one-third of them were men aged 40-49.
Over a third of the accidents involved vans while heavy goods vehicles were involved in 35 per cent. Aviva said a third of cyclists involved in accidents after dark did not have their lights on.
Aviva's Simon Warsop commented:
Cycling in London has never been more popular but the continued rise in the number of collisions involving cyclists is alarming. The human cost of these incidents can be immeasurable and we believe more can be done to reduce them.
Here is the top 10 hotspots.
1. Elephant and Castle roundabout:80
2. Trafalgar Square: 46
3. Waterloo Road roundabout: 45
4. Lambeth Bridge/Millbank roundabout: 38
5. Upper Tooting Road/Lessingham Avenue, Ansell Road/ Derinton Road: 34
6. Grove Road/Mile End Road: 32
7. Vauxhall Bridge/Wandsworth Road: 31
8. Monument Tube station junction: 29
9. Camberwell New Road/Brixton Road: 28
10. Camberwell New Road/Kennington Road/Harleyford Street: 28
Mapped: How London's streets became a death trap for cyclists
Last year, London Mayor Boris Johnson's office announced £4bn of funding to upgrade London's road network, including more cycle lanes.
However, the study has been called into question by Transport for London, which responded to the research in a statement saying:
While we don't recognise the interpretation of these figures, we entirely agree that any accident on London's roads is one too many.
TfL is not the only group to quibble the data. Aviva's claims over the use of lights after dark and its sample size have also been questioned.