A motorist has been handed a 24-week suspended sentence and a one-year driving ban for causing the death of cyclist Ray Dare by careless driving. The 91-year-old lost his life while taking part in a time trial in Buckinghamshire last year.

Dare was riding on the A41 near Aylesbury on July 19 2017 when he was hit from behind by a van driven by Alan Mills.

Dare held eight national Veterans Time Trials Association records, including riding 50 miles in 2h52m01s at the age of 88. He had been attempting to complete a 10-mile time trial in under 29 minutes and 43 seconds to set a new age group record at the time of the collision.

His friend John Beer said: "Ray died doing what he loved. He was hit on a straight flat open piece of road, he had two miles to go. We should all remember him for the truly amazing cyclist and husband and father he was."

The BBC reports that Mills admitted causing Dare’s death by careless or inconsiderate driving and was given a 24-week jail sentence, suspended for 24 months. He was also disqualified from driving for 12 months and will have to take an extended retest.

Last year we reported how a petition had been launched seeking to ban cyclists from Buckinghamshire's dual carriageways in the wake of Dare’s death.

It attracted 642 signatories, but in his response, Mark Shaw, Buckinghamshire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Transportation, pointed out that the highway was not being considered a contributing factor in the police investigation.

He concluded: “I am not aware of any national policies currently in place which prevent cyclists as individuals or cycling as part of a time trial from using the dual carriageway network.

“Any national policy to restrict cyclists from these roads would require a change of legislation and an amendment made to the Road Traffic Act. In Buckinghamshire I have no current plans to restrict cyclists from using the A41 or to reduce the speed limit.”