Drivers should let cyclists overtake them in cities, says Jeremy Vine

Motorists should let cyclists overtake them in cities, according to TV presenter and keen rider Jeremy Vine.

He believes traffic speeds in urban areas have slowed so much that some cyclists are now travelling faster than vehicles, which may frustrate drivers.

Calling for urban drivers to allow bicycles they see in their rear-view mirror to overtake, Vine told The Sunday Times: “I do think, firstly, we shouldn’t allow any overtaking of bicycles in big cities. That’s one step.

“And I’m starting to think I want cars to pull over if they see me behind them because they know I’m faster.”

The reality is that being behind the wheel may mean a driver “can only move at seven (miles an hour in traffic) and they can’t accept the fact that cyclists are faster”, Vine said.

The 58-year-old shares his passion for cycling and his experiences in the saddle with nearly 800,000 online followers through regular tweets and clips filmed with a helmet camera.

It has included swerving motorists and the abuse he faces while on the road and travelling to his jobs at the BBC and Channel 5 in London.

The newspaper said the average speed of traffic in Britain’s biggest cities slowed by up to 2mph between 2019 and 2022 to just 22.6mph, according to Basemap, a transport software and data firm that analysed traffic speeds in London, Birmingham and Manchester.

Vine also suggested that more properly segregated lanes could help reduce accidents.