Yahoo News Road safety campaigners slam biker who filmed 70mph ride through central London
Road safety campaigners have slammed an "idiotic and dangerous" motorcyclist who filmed himself speeding through central London hitting 70mph and narrowly missing pedestrians and cyclists by inches.
The footage, filmed on a helmet camera, shows him weaving in and out of traffic racing another biker through the packed streets of the city.
It has been condemned by road safety charity Brake which said it was “astonishing that nobody was killed” by his “reckless” driving.
Speaking on behalf of the charity Jack Kushner said: “This is incredibly concerning footage.
"This idiotic and dangerous riding could have easily resulted in a devastating loss of life, and it’s astonishing that nobody was killed or seriously injured.
"Thanks to technology we now have permanent evidence of this reckless behaviour, and we hope that the police trace the culprit and make an example of him.
"Tragically, motorcyclists are among the most vulnerable road users, and are involved in a huge proportion of serious crashes and casualties on our roads.
"It’s vital that all road users stay well within the speed limit, to protect both themselves, and everyone else.”
The video was posted by Legit London – a YouTube account of videos of motorbike rides through the capital which has the description: “show[ing] you what London streets are really like”.
Despite breaking the law by speeding at 65mph in a 30 zone, he spends much of the video accusing other road users of posing a danger.
He has captioned the clip: “From idiots to people who just think they're right all the time, welcome to riding in London.”
But many of his viewers pointed out that he is the “idiot” on the road for “driving recklessly” and putting pedestrians in danger.
One subscriber commented: “Hey quit the speed, that's not good to watch and certainly not the place to do it in London. 60mph at one point..... you'll not last long keeping that up....just sayin.”
To which Legit London – seemingly undeterred - replied: “Nope I'll still be laughing.”
Another critic commented: “72 in a 30 with pedestrians everywhere and you have the cheek to go around lecturing others?”
At one point the footage shows a car pulling out from behind a bus, causing the rider to slow down to let him pass.
As he passes the car, the driver leans out the window and says: “When I’m driving my car be more careful than you were just there mate.”
One viewer wrote on the video: “You're a danger to yourself and everyone in this city. You're much worse than the drivers you're criticising.
“I hope when you finally crash you don't hurt anyone else.”
A Metropolitan Police spokesman said: "The footage has been brought to the attention of the Metropolitan Police Service who are investigating the matter."
