POLICE hope these photos will show the danger of cycling without lights before they launch another crackdown.

Officers will be stopping riders in Bournemouth this autumn and issuing £30 fines, which are cancelled if offenders buy lights within seven days.

In the first photo, the rider has no night-time gear and is very hard to spot.

The second shows a typical commuter with lights, and also a high-visibility jacket and helmet – the latter are not mandatory, but are recommended by the Highway Code.

And in the final photo, the cyclist is wearing the latest and most complete reflective clothing.

PC Rob Hammond said: “The clocks go back at the end of October and this makes it darker in the evening.

“Many cyclists are unaware of the danger they present by not making themselves visible.

“Now is the time to make yourself as safe as you can be.”

The Echo’s photos show cyclists at 14 metres from a car’s headlights – the stopping distance at 30mph.

Police last year began a series of operations with a presence a Bournemouth Cemetery Junction in December.

Officers stopped 33 riders in two hours and issued fines. They plan to carry out another series of operations in the next few months.

Last winter, they concentrated on Wallisdown Road, a busy commuter spot that also includes the most accident prone spot for cyclists in the whole town, the roundabout which joins to Wimborne Road.

PC Hammond said: “Cyclists can change how they look to motorists relatively simply and cheaply – after all, how much is your life worth?”