June 30th, 2006
Cycle Deaths On The Rise
The Times Online today reported that cycling deaths are on the rise. Partly this is a result of more commuters taking to their bikes in London.
I can’t agree with this simplistic response from Brake:
Mary Williams, Brake’s chief executive, said: “It is no surprise that cyclists, one of the most vulnerable groups of road users, are dying in increasing numbers. Britain’s roads are still plagued by speeding drivers, as well as law-breaking uninsured, unlicensed, drunk and drugged drivers.”
It’s that kind of obsession with speed instead of educating car drivers about the needs of other road users that achieves nothing. Cars infringing into my local cycle lanes mostly do it at a crawl, well under 10mph. I’d put money on none of them being drugged or drunk either.
This childish thinking has led to a policy of “enforcement, enforcement, enforcement” instead of “enforcement, education and engineering”.
We cyclists are the ones who pay the price for that shortsightedness.
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July 4th, 2006 at 9:51 pm
Spot on Nick. I was going to write something about this but you beat me too it so lazingly I’ll just link it when I get a minute ;) But this whole thing about enforcement treating road users as abusers just waiting to be caught is hardly a long term policy.