The traffic in London, as those of us who live here know only too well, is at an almost permanent standstill, so last night’s episode of the BBC TV motoring programme Top Gear organised a race to discover the fastest way of getting across the city: from West London to City Airport in the east. Each of the four presenters was given a different means of transport. James, the posh one, opted for a car – though quite why he chose a giant Mercedes 500 remains a mystery. Richard, the cute one, who survived that horrific high-speed accident on a car-testing circuit, wisely went for a bicycle this time. Jeremy, true to form, decided on a powerful speedboat to use on the Thames, while the show’s pet racing driver, Stag, who turned up for the event in full Formula 1 gear, was given and an Oyster card. The result must have been a shock for many of the petrol-head viewers of Gear. By the time Jeremy came charging into the airport, Richard was already sitting comfortably in the first-class lounge. Stag, after receiving some curious looks on the Underground, was third. And James’s luxury, gas-guzzling car came in a thoroughly deserved last.

The average driver in London spent 148 hours in traffic jams in 2021 – twice the national average, according to a new report by Inrix, a firm that analyses road traffic. These findings prompted a BBC story that attributed London’s new status as the world’s most congested city to an increase in cycle lanes, implemented throughout the capital to maintain socially distanced travel during the pandemic. This analysis would seem to overlook the fact that congestion during 2021 was about the same as it was in 2019, before the pandemic.