A WIDOWER whose wife was killed when she was hit by a cyclist has welcomed the news of a possible change in law which could see riders prosecuted for dangerous cycling.

This week the Department of Transport announced the launch of a consultation which will look at whether a new offence equivalent to causing death by careless or dangerous driving should be introduced for dangerous cyclists.

Since his wife Diane was killed after being struck by a cyclist in Pewsey High Street in May 2016, Peter Walker, 81, has been appealing to get a law on dangerous cycling implemented after the cyclist was not prosecuted over his wife’s death.

Mr Walker, of Edwardian Court, Pewsey, said: “This law should be and needs to be put in place. The accident should never have happened and my wife should not have been killed.

“If the police had treated my wife’s death seriously then something would have been done sooner. The coroner even told the police that they needed to do something to address it.

“It would be a comfort to me if this law was finally put in place, it’s something I have been hoping for for the last two years.

“There is no reason why my wife should have been hit just crossing Pewsey High Street in front of the bank. They must have really been going at some speed.

“Cyclists are not insured, and most do not have a bell. I heard a bike coming up behind me the other day as it had a bell which rang loudly. All bikes should have them.”

Just months before the accident, the death of Kim Briggs, who was also hit and killed by a cyclist in London, sparked debate after many campaigners said there was a hole in the law.

Her killer, Charlie Alliston, then 18, was prosecuted under a little-used 150-year-old law of causing bodily harm by wanton or furious driving, as dangerous driving laws cannot be applied to un-motorised vehicles.

Commenting on the consultation on the new dangerous cycling law, Joshua Harris, director of campaigns at road safety charity Brake, said: “Whilst the intentions behind the government’s announcement are sound, they are trying to fix a fundamentally flawed legal framework.

“A full review of road safety law is required and frankly long overdue. All too often families are denied justice, with drivers who kill let off with pitifully lenient sentences, and the public endangered through dangerous drivers evading driving bans.

“The government must review all road safety law to protect the public and deliver justice for the families of those devastated by road death.”