Collisions in London

[slowmotion]

There's a theory that women are less comfortable cycling assertively than men, and so would be more inclined to hug the gutter and get caught down the inside of a long vehicle.

Not sure how much truth there is to that as there are obviously a couple of very big assumptions, but it does sort of fit with what I see: in five years of cycling I don't think I've ever seen a female cyclist take the lane.

That makes some sense, but saying it risks you getting a lot of sh1t round here.

 

[deptfordmarmoset]

But why does that not extend outside of London, figurewise, not an increase in incidents.

I really don't know. Perhaps it's down to the fact that the construction trade in London has not really seen a recession - partially they were fulfilling contracts from before, but that seems to have tided them over. But they've never stopped building the damn place and, if I could be bothered, I could go outside and count the cranes.. And the Costcutter tipper drivers have never stopped in an urban area where there are a good number of female cyclists. None of which explains the gender imbalance. There was a theory from a TfL study that the imbalance might be due to blokes ignoring red lights more - and I suppose if you're not at the lights when the lorry turns, it's not going to hit you, whether or whether not he's indicating. A personal theory is that it might be more to do with seeking or avoiding eye contact. The trade's drivers are almost exclusively male, therefore an unwelcome gaze that many women might seek to avoid. But avoiding the gaze risks invisibility. And invisibility doesn't help.... I'd guess that more males will want to be in view (in that particular context). But, as I said, it's a personal theory and I've never seen anyone else expounding the theory.

 

[PK99]

There's a theory that women are less comfortable cycling assertively than men, and so would be more inclined to hug the gutter and get caught down the inside of a long vehicle.

Not sure how much truth there is to that as there are obviously a couple of very big assumptions, but it does sort of fit with what I see: in five years of cycling I don't think I've ever seen a female cyclist take the lane.

What you say is supported in the rport linked to by Glenn earlier in the thread:
http://www.theguardian.com/environm...s-women-road-deaths?guni=Article:in body link

Every tragic accident is different but certain common themes run through the recent deaths: turning left, roundabouts and women.

But why would gender affect the likelihood of being killed on the roads? Barry Mason, a cycle safety campaigner with Southwark Cyclists, speculates that this is because women are less assertive riders and therefore tend to be less visible. "You see more women cycling very close to the kerb than you do men. They don't take the lane, or overtake lorries on the outside. They sneak up on the inside, which is fatal, literally."

Mason recommends that everyone should have cycling training before taking to their bikes. "Every adult makes errors. A good trainer will iron out all sorts of bad habits." It makes sense, it's a long time since most of us did our cycling proficiency tests at primary school. CTC has a list of accredited trainers.

There's one simple piece of advice for dealing with lorries - don't be intimidated by them. Mason says: "If you cycle in the gutter they'll treat you accordingly."

 

[Globalti]

I can't understand this thread; I thought it was already well understood that male cyclists are more likely to assert their position and go through to the ASL or the front of the queue while women tend to come less assertively up the inside of the queue where they risk getting crushed by a left-turning truck?

 

[deptfordmarmoset]

I can't understand this thread; I thought it was already well understood that male cyclists are more likely to assert their position and go through to the ASL or the front of the queue while women tend to come less assertively up the inside of the queue where they risk getting crushed by a left-turning truck?

Thing is, I haven't seen any written studies showing this to be the case. There was the TfL suggestion back in 2010 (or earlier) but I thought that that was only a leaked account. I didn't think it had been published.

So I regard the assertion/RLJ theory as a possibility and not something to be treated as fact. And no more than a possible contributory factor at that.

 

[Beebo]

Interesting article here about female cycling in London.
http://www.standard.co.uk/lifestyle...fe-how-to-cycle-safely-in-london-8855636.html
This paragraph stood out for me.
"However, when it comes to casualties, as Cavenett points out, the split of cycling deaths between men and women has fluctuated greatly over the past five years. Last year, just one of the 14 people who died on their bikes was a woman. In 2009, 10 of the 12 deaths were women, nine of them involving HGVs. In most cases it’s more sensible to talk about careless driving and poor road layout being the cause than it is to talk of timid cyclists."