Taxi driver films driver using new London Cycle Superhighway

Perhaps the driver of the Toyota Prius wasn’t paying attention; perhaps they were following a sat nav that didn’t realise they were driving along the newest part of London’s kerb-protected East-West Cycle Superhighway.

Either way, some people on bikes, and one taxi driver, were surprised and perhaps outraged to see the vehicle rolling along slowly amid the cyclists, hemmed in by the concrete kerb designed, ironically, to protect riders from errant traffic.

A taxi driver, recording on what appears to be a handheld mobile phone, films the driver of the white Prius proceeding along the newly-built section of London’s East-West Cycle Superhighway in Hyde Park, before re-joining the correct part of the road at a pedestrian crossing.

Families flock to London's Cycle Superhighways

The taxi driver, whom the Evening Standard names as 38-year-old David Clark, can be heard in the footage delivering his judgment on the situation.

“Prius in the bike lane, Hyde Park Corner, right by the boating lake, hasn’t got a clue.”

Clark, who has been a taxi driver for six years, told the Standard: “The cyclists and the people on the sidewalk were just staring in disbelief. They couldn't believe what they saw but sadly I wasn't surprised.

“I do not know how they did it because sat navs are so sophisticated now but maybe they thought they could take a chance.”

Meanwhile, some are questioning whether the taxi driver is using a handheld mobile phone at the wheel.

.@standardnews what's more dangerous, a minicab being slowly driven along a cycle lane or a taxi driver using his mobile phone at the wheel?

— CS7 Cyclist (@cs7cyclist) August 24, 2016

The newest section of London’s East-West Cycle Superhighway, on West Carriage Drive in Hyde Park, opened on Friday, adding roughly 500 yards to what will become an 18 mile cycle route across London.

The route will run past Buckingham Palace, before joining up with the kerb-protected cycle track, which now runs from Parliament Square to Tower Bridge, via Victoria Embankment. The completed sections of protected cycle superhighway have proved hugely popular with Londoners from their opening, with 1,200 cyclists per hour pouring through at peak hours.