Petrol Causes Cycling Fatalities - it's official

[Aperitif]

I read something, almost by accident this morning. It was another sad story of the death of a cyclist. It's here.

The last paragraph is interesting:

Some 2,770 cyclists died or were seriously hurt last year – 10% more than 2007. The AA claims the increase is down to rising petrol costs leading to more people pedalling to work.

So there you have it. Possibly why the AA is dishing out free helmets - to 'protect' those motorists who have to take a break from the cage.



Be careful out there.

 

[numbnuts]

cycle road test come to mind - God help us

 

[Davidc]

The answer to acidents involving not just cyclists but everyone is decent enforcement of road laws. That includes detection, prosecution, and sentencing.

Time the AA and many others woke up to that.

 

[snorri]

The AA desperately swimming against the tide!

http://www.ctc.org.uk/resources/Campaigns/CTC_Safety_in_Numbers.pdf

 

[mgarl10024]

http://www.ctc.org.u..._in_Numbers.pdf

What an excellent document - definitely one for useful facts/figures. Thanks!

 

[John the Monkey]

But of course. No one would willingly ride a bike, would they?

It must be the petrol cost forcing all those poor souls out of their comfy boxes.

 

[killiekosmos]

Unfortunately the driver of the car which killed her could still afford the petrol.

 

[As Easy As Riding A Bike]

The AA desperately swimming against the tide!

http://www.ctc.org.u..._in_Numbers.pdf

Hmm... I'm not sure the Safety In Numbers argument is especially helpful in the case of the road this lady was killed on.

There will probably be a 'tipping point', when a sufficient number of cyclists are encountered on busy dual carriageways like the A189 for drivers to start looking out for them, and hence for the safety of the 'average' cyclist to increase - but until we reach that point, I strongly suspect that more cyclists on the A189 = more deaths.

The CTC's 'Safety In Numbers' argument fails to take into account that a large part of the safety of cyclists in NL is the provision of separated paths on roads like the A189 - it's not just about the brute numbers.

 

[dellzeqq]

it's about all kinds of things, not least driving culture. The simple fact is that the CTC has demonstrated that if you double the number of cyclists in a town the risk run by each cylist is likely to decrease.

which is neither here nor there as far as Edmunk Kink is concerned. The man has a bee in his bonnet about cyclists. It's odd, and it would be sweet if he didn't have an agenda, which is to establish in the minds of politicians and judges that it's the cyclist's job to reduce the risk, rather than (for example) contractors to insist that the drivers of skip lorries know what they're doing or local authorities and the DfT to consider streets as public space rather than a mechanism to get from A to B.

WGF and EK are two sides of the same coin. A whole lot of theorising that neglects to examine the particular.

Anyone for the Cycling Embassy meeting tomorrow night?

 

[As Easy As Riding A Bike]

it's about all kinds of things, not least driving culture. The simple fact is that the CTC has demonstrated that if you double the number of cyclists in a town the risk run by each cylist is likely to decrease.

which is neither here nor there as far as Edmunk Kink is concerned. The man has a bee in his bonnet about cyclists. It's odd, and it would be sweet if he didn't have an agenda, which is to establish in the minds of politicians and judges that it's the cyclist's job to reduce the risk, rather than (for example) contractors to insist that the drivers of skip lorries know what they're doing or local authorities and the DfT to consider streets as public space rather than a mechanism to get from A to B.

WGF and EK are two sides of the same coin. A whole lot of theorising that neglects to examine the particular.

Anyone for the Cycling Embassy meeting tomorrow night?

As it happens, I was 'examining the particular' - I was making a specific point about the A189, and dual carriageways like it, and the application of 'Safety In Numbers' on them.

Would you do me the courtesy of responding to that point, rather than speculating about my opinions on the enforcement of road traffic law and risk reduction, which - as it happens - probably almost exactly align with yours.

 

[ComedyPilot]

The AA desperately swimming against the tide!

http://www.ctc.org.u..._in_Numbers.pdf

Interesting piece of literature - in that there isn't a single helmet or hi viz jacket to be seen???

 

[GFamily]

Interesting piece of literature - in that there isn't a single helmet or hi viz jacket to be seen???

You missed one three.