For many Londoners the Boris Bike is part of their daily lives. 29,200 cycle journeys were made using Barclays Cycle Hire on its busiest day so far. More than 128,000 people are now Barclays Cycle Hire members. Transport for London expect the scheme will break even in three or four years. However Bicycle safety is now gaining greater aware and Lorry drivers in London will now have the option to add a cyclist awareness course to their CPC training for free.

The course will be partly funded by Transport For London. It will include both practical and theory-based training in order to improve their conduct around cyclists in the capital.

This will involve bike-riding on a busy road and formal discussions with keen cyclists amongst other activities. Similar courses have been made available to those in logistics work before, but this is the first which has been made available at no extra cost to drivers.

It is hoped the move will dramatically reduce the amount of accidents featuring HGVs and bicycles throughout the capital.

The idea reportedly spurned from Lambeth, where the borough’s cycling officer spotted a similar workshop aimed at HGV awareness for cyclists. Now, it is hoped that the removal of a fee will see many lorry drivers learn about the dangers of cyclists.

Speaking to bikeradar.com, a spokesperson from the Freight Operator Recognition Scheme claimed it would be useful for the course to spread across the UK.

He said: “We’d like to see it adopted throughout the country…a lot of freight distribution drivers come into London so it would be great if local authorities and lorry operators around the country adopted it.”