The number of fines handed out for cycling on the pavement has dropped by 98 per cent in the past two years, according to new figures.

In 2013/14, 99 cyclists were issued with fixed penalty notices for cycling on pavements but that number dropped significantly over the next year.

The statistics for 2015/16 show only two fines handed out – a fall of 97 per cent.

Richmond Cycling Campaign spokesman Tim Lennon said the figures reveal more about a shift in police approach to law enforcement than cyclists changing their behaviours.

He said: “I would imagine there is no significant difference in people actually riding on the pavement but rather the police’s approach to enforcing it.

“We would never encourage people to ride on the pavement but we understand people feel that the roads are too dangerous.

“Police are still stopping people to them regularly but they are talking to them instead of fining them so that is a positive step.”

But Labour’s London Assembly member Murad Qureshi warned that the figures represent a “real problem” and called for more fines to be given to cyclists.

He said: “With more cyclists than ever on London’s streets the number of fines issued to pavement hopping cyclists has nose-dived.

“In Richmond, fines have dropped 98 per cent in just two years, that’s a real problem, particularly with the number of pedestrians around.

“This kind of thoughtless behaviour from an incredibly small minority of cyclists endangers pedestrians who have a right to feel safe on the footpaths in just the same way cyclists should on the roads.”

Across London, the number of fines dropped from 5,003 to just 406 in the past year, despite an increase in the number of cyclists on the street.