Cycling mum calls for safer roads after being left in tears by swearing and aggressive driver 

A mum and cyclist has called for safer infrastructure after she was targeted by a swearing and aggressive driver while riding to pick up her daughter from nursery.  

Katherine Miles, from Oxford, has shared an emotional video after she was left in tears by the driver, who told her to get off the roads.

The Liberal Democrat council candidate shared her message on Twitter on Tuesday (November 10), calling for the council to put safer infrastructure in place for cyclists in Oxford.

She said: “I just cycled on to nursery to pick up my daughter and I had  a car tooting its horn the entire length of the street, swearing at me, basically telling me that I shouldn’t be there and I need to move out of the way. 

“They then told me I should get into the bike lane, to which I explained I couldn’t because it was unsafe there. They continued to swear at me. 

“Something needs to change.” 

Miles said the incident happened on the Warneford Lane in Oxford, close to Oxford Brookes University.

Cycling safety has been a hot topic in 2020, as the government has put measures in place to encourage more people to cycle through the global coronavirus pandemic. 

The UK saw up to a 200 per cent increase in cycling during the first coronavirus lockdown, the government revealed, with workers being encouraged to cycle where possible. 

But the easing of lockdown sparked concerns that the roads could be even more congested than before the pandemic, as those returning to work try to avoid public transport due to health concerns.

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In order to avoid a new traffic lockdown the government encouraged people to jump on the bike, releasing a £2 billion investment in pop-up bike lanes, wider pavements, safer junctions and traffic-free neighbourhoods.