Transport for London must urgently conduct a review of the blue paint used on its cycle superhighway network, a coroner has urged following the death of a motorcyclist road user last year.

 

Milan Dokic suffered fatal injuries last March when he drove in wet conditions onto Cycle Superhighway 8 in Battersea and lost control of his vehicle, skidding into a bollard.

 

Senior coroner Dr Fiona Wilcox has now called on TfL to take action to prevent future deaths in a report published ahead of an upcoming inquest into the incident. 

 

“Some cyclists have raised concerns that the cycle superhighway appears in places to have lower grip than other areas of road surface,” the report says. According to the collision investigator the point where Milan Dokic’s motorbike skidded offered much lower grip than the conventional road surface, representing a hazard to road users.

 

“In my opinion there is a risk that future deaths will occur unless action is taken,” Dr Wilcox reported. She wrote that areas of blue surfacing with reduced grip may be widespread, adding that “TfL should therefore undertake an urgent review of all areas treated with such road surface and replace it with a higher grip surface”.

 

“These concerns are too urgent to wait until the full hearing of the evidence to be addressed.” The inquest is due to conclude this summer.

 

Responding, TfL’s managing director of surface transport Leon Daniels said: “Our thoughts are with the family and friends of Milan Dokic. We're preparing our response to the coroner and carefully considering the issues raised. We are confident our cycle superhighway network is improving the safety of London's roads.”

 

London Cycling Campaign infrastructure campaigner Simon Munk said: “On many of the older cycle superhighways – like CS8 – the paint material is not up to scratch and when it is wet we get a lot of cyclists talking about how skiddy it is.

 

“This needs to be urgently addressed, although the paint on newer routes seems to be much grippier,” he added. “However for us the main point is that we need more physical separation between cycle routes and motorised traffic to provide a proper safe space for cycling.”

 

(Photo: Alastair Lloyd)