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A crackdown on killer lorries is being planned by Transport for London after researchers identified the HGVs that pose the biggest danger to cyclists and pedestrians.

A team at Loughborough university found that vehicles used on construction sites had a “blind spot” almost three times larger than other types of lorries which had lower cabs and bigger windows.

TfL commissioned the research after the number of cyclists killed or seriously injured in London rose by 59 per cent between 2000 and 2012. This often involved HGVs and bucked the national decline in road casualties.

Last year, seven of the nine cyclists killed in London involved HGVs, including those of consultant Ying Tao, 26, at Bank, mother Claire Hitier-Abadie, 36, in Victoria, and former Victoria and Albert Museum design director Moira Gemmill, 55, on Lambeth bridge.

Next month, TfL is due to announce proposals to require HGVs in the capital to have “direct vision” glass panels in passenger doors, larger windscreens and lower driver’s positions.

Val Shawcross, the deputy mayor for transport, said: “Direct vision was one of the key commitments of Sadiq’s campaign. We will be able to announce something within the next month. The question will be around how quickly can things change in the industry.”

Researchers at the university’s Design School computer-modelled driver’s sightlines from 19 bestselling HGV models with high and low cabs, and used data from real-life collisions to recreate dangerous scenarios.

They found the greatest dangers were presented by construction vehicles, compared with goods distribution and long-haul lorries, and called for European rules to specify what should be visible from the driver’s seat.

Project leader Steve Summerskill said: “We found that all standard vehicle configurations have blind spots which can hide vulnerable road users from the driver’s direct vision. However, the height of the cab above the ground is the key vehicle factor which affects the size of direct vision and indirect vision blind spots. Low entry cab designs… demonstrated real benefits.”

Last September, TfL introduced a London-wide safer lorries scheme, requiring HGVs above 3.5 tonnes to have extra “blind spot” mirrors and sidebars to prevent cyclists being pulled under the wheels of left-turning vehicles.