The Green Party has called for London mayor Sadiq Khan to bring forward his ban on dangerous ‘off road’ lorries.
It comes as Transport for London (TfL) published what it called ‘world-first research’ to back its consultation into the use of its world-first 'zero to five star' Direct Vision Standard for HGVs operating in London.
Construction vehicles often have the worst visibility
Under Mr Khan's plans, the most dangerous, zero-star rated, 'off-road' lorries will be banned from London's streets by January 2020.
Caroline Russell, Green Party Member of the London Assembly, said Mr Khan should bring forward the star rating system.
She said: ‘We cannot wait three more years before killer lorries are taken off our roads.’
‘We already know what a dangerous lorry looks like; why not bring forward the removal of the 35,000 zero star-rated ‘off-road’ HGVs operating in London, potentially saving many lives and preventing serious and life-changing injuries?’
TfL said the research proves that having direct vision from the cab of a lorry rather than relying on mirrors and monitors ‘has a substantial impact on improving road safety for pedestrians and cyclists’.
As part of the new research, a simulator was used to replicate a real-life driving situation and showed that the amount of direct vision a driver has could be a crucial factor in allowing a dangerous collision to be avoided.
Mr Khan said: 'This new research being released today shows how important it is we take bold action to address dangerous and poorly designed lorries operating in the capital.
‘HGVs with poor vision of cyclists, pedestrians and other road users from their cabin should simply not be allowed on London's roads. Every time someone is killed by a lorry on London's roads it is an appalling tragedy.’
The 12-week consultation aims to identify how the new standard can be best used to reduce road casualties.
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