Man arrested after cyclist is killed in crash

A cyclist has been killed after being hit by a coach a day after government figures highlighted a rise in deaths and serious injuries to cyclists on Britain's roads.

A man, who has not been named but was reported to be in his sixties, was pronounced dead at the scene after the crash on Bishopsgate in east London, the London Ambulance Service said yesterday.

The death comes after campaigns by national newspapers – including The Independent, the London Evening Standard and The Times – highlighted the need to improve cycle safety.

Government figures have revealed that 4 per cent more cyclists were killed in the three months to September 2011 than in the same period the previous year. And figures released last month showed a 60 per cent rise in the number of cyclists killed over the past three years.

The man is the 10th cyclist to be killed in Britain this year and the first in the capital. A 61-year-old man from Essex has been arrested on suspicion of causing death by dangerous driving.