Lord Sugar incurs the wrath of cyclists after suggesting almost all accidents would be avoided through 'situation awareness'

The billionaire business mogul made the comments in an interview criticising Boris Johnson for congestion caused by building the East-West cycle superhighway
Criticised: Cyclists have taken exception to Lord Sugar's comments 99 per cent of accidents would have been avoided through "situation awareness"
Ken McKay/ITV/Rex
Jamie Bullen25 November 2015

Lord Sugar is at the centre of a Twitter backlash after angry cyclists rubbished his suggestion 99 per cent of London's cycling accidents would have been avoided through “situation awareness”.

The billionaire business mogul and TV star of The Apprentice made the comments in an interview with LBC when he criticised Boris Johnson for the construction of the East-West cycle superhighway which he said had resulted in severe congestion in Lower Thames Street.

When asked by the interviewer if the new cycle lane was being built to protect riders, Lord Sugar said the way to decrease accidents was to increase awareness of cycling hazards.

He said: “The way to stop that is what I call ‘situation awareness’ and I say this with the greatest respect to the cyclists and to those that have been injured, and that is that you cannot cycle in the centre of London without being aware of the dangers

Construction on the cycle superhighway along a stretch of the Victoria Embankment
Glenn Copus

“I have a very simple principle when I’m on my bike. Any car in front of me, any car on the left or on the right is going to kill me. It’s as simple as that.

“Any truck that is parked by traffic lights, I will not go down the inside lane of it. I will stay behind it and be patient because it’s going to kill me.

“And as long as you have that philosophy when you’re riding your bike in central London, I think 99 per cent of the accidents that occurred would have been avoided.”

Since the interview was aired, the 68-year-old has received criticism on Twitter from cyclists who said awareness had not stopped them from being involved in accidents.

Richard Warner tweeted: “Thanks, @Lord_Sugar. I'll tell my child to be more aware. That'll encourage him to ride more.

While Guardian journalist Peter Walker wrote: “If further confirmation were needed that Alan Sugar is a bit of an idiot, here it is.”

Another cyclist simply said: “After 40+ years London cycling I've brilliant 'situation awareness'. Not stopped #dangerousdrivers from hitting me.”

While another wrote: “@Lord_Sugar says teaching my 8 year old 'situational awareness' will help her cycle safely amongst heavy traffic.

The East-West Cycle Superhighway will run from Lancaster Gate to Tower Hill when it is completed next summer before it is later extended to Acton.

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