Mary Bowers is a reporter at The Times and, among her colleagues, a popular one. For the past year, however, while many of them have spoken to her, she has not spoken to them. For, a year ago yesterday, Mary was knocked from her bike at a junction in front of the offices in which she worked. Crushed and horrifically injured, she has not yet regained full consciousness.
This newspaper makes no apology for having begun a campaign on such a personal basis, only an apology for not having begun one earlier. Since Mary’s accident, more than 100 cyclists have died on Britain’s roads. The youngest was eight years old; the oldest was 80. So far in 2012, eleven have died in London, three in