CYCLING

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Ministers are considering making motorists legally responsible for accidents involving cyclists or pedestrians, even if they are not at fault. Government advisers are pushing for changes in the civil law that will make the most powerful vehicle involved in a collision automatically liable for insurance and compensation purposes. The move, intended to encourage greater take-up of environmentally friendly modes of transport, is likely to anger some drivers, many of whom already perceive themselves to be the victims of moneyspinning speed cameras and over-zealous traffic wardens.

Many will argue that it is the risky behaviour of some cyclists, particularly those who jump red lights and ride the wrong way along one-way streets, that is to blame for a significant number of crashes. However, policy-makers believe radical action is required to get people out of cars and onto bicycles or to walk more. Only 1%-2% of journeys are at present made by bike. Other proposals to promote greener and healthier transport include the imposition of blanket 20mph zones on residential streets. Supporters want such measures to be included in the government’s National Cycling Plan and Active Transport Strategy.

Phillip Darnton, chief executive of Cycling England, an agency funded by the Department for Transport (DfT) to promote cycling, said four key policy changes were needed. He said, “I would like to see the legal onus placed on motorists when there are accidents; speed limits reduced to 20mph on suburban and residential roads; cycling taught to all schoolchildren; and cycling provision included in major planning applications.” Placing the onus of responsibility on motorists is perhaps the most controversial move under consideration.

Such scheme would place the presumption of blame against whoever was driving the most powerful vehicle involved in an accident, so they or their insurers would be liable for costs or damages. If a cyclist were hit by a car, the presumption of blame would fall on the driver, while a cyclist would automatically be blamed if he or she knocked down a pedestrian. Edmund King, president of the AA, said, “Many cyclists are motorists and many motorists are cyclists. Simple changes in the law that assume one party is in the wrong because of what they drive will not help harmony on the roads.” (Source: Times Online, Sep/09)

Cyclists will be permitted to ride the wrong way along one-way streets under a change intended to encourage more people to give up their cars or use them less. The Government is to announce that cyclists will be permitted to ignore no-entry signs, a practice already followed by many, including David Cameron, the Conservative leader. The Department for Transport is authorising a trial in the Royal Borough of Kensington & Chelsea, Mr Cameron’s home authority in West London, in which a small plate saying “Except cyclists” will be attached to poles carrying no-entry signs.

If the trial is successful, the department intends to extend the policy to the rest of Britain and permit thousands of one-way streets to become two-way for bikes. It believes that long diversions around one-way systems are a significant deterrent to new cyclists, who might be less confident about breaking the rules. This is the first time that the department has permitted an exception to the no-entry rule. Existing cycle “contraflow” lanes require authorities to build separate entrances for cyclists so that they do not have to break traffic rules.

The cost of building these entrances, though, has deterred all but a tiny number of authorities from creating contraflow lanes. Hackney Council in East London pioneered the introduction of contraflow lanes and now has the highest rate of cycling of any London borough. Sadiq Khan, the Transport Minister, said, “The pilot contraflow cycling system will help to reduce journey times for cyclists while allowing them to travel safely and legally on the most convenient routes. If this pilot is successful then councils across the country could be offered the opportunity to use similar measures on their roads.” (Source: Times Online, Sep/09)

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