Police go undercover as cyclists to catch drivers

Blue lights to on a bike

The operation that took place in West Yorkshire saw ten drivers stopped after they dangerously overtook the undercover officers on bikes.

West Yorkshire Police and Leeds City Council held the "close pass" operation on 13 November and subsequently gave caught drivers advice around how to pass cyclists safely.

The drivers were told to leave a sufficient gap of 1.5m between their vehicle and the cyclist while overtaking.

Sgt Andrew Sutcliffe said: "The idea is to educate motorists on how to safely pass cyclists on our roads in the hope it will make our roads safer."

He added: "All road users have the right to travel safely on West Yorkshire's roads and cyclists are one of the most at risk groups, so it's important that motorists give them enough space to prevent a collision or worse."

Last year, 164 people were injured while four were killed in cycling accidents on the roads of West Yorkshire.

In 2023, four cyclists died on the roads of West Yorkshire with a further 164 seriously injured.

Councillor Jonathan Pryor, the council's deputy leader, said: "It's disappointing to see that some drivers are still not leaving safe passing distances when overtaking cyclists.

"Inconsiderate behaviour puts cyclists' lives at risk and undermines our West Yorkshire shared goal of creating safer roads for everyone."