London Mayoral Candidates Talk Cycling Safety

This via LBC:

In a previous City Hall Question Time, Boris revealed that overall, things are safer for cyclists - the KSI rate (the proportion of cyclists killed or seriously injured per journey, or per number of kilometres cycled) IS reducing.

Let’s be clear about this - It’s A Good Thing.

The problem is, that there’s lies, damned lies and statistics. I’m not sure that we have any evidence that the improved safety rate is anything to do with the Mayor and his VERY EXPENSIVE blue paint.

What we do know is that although he seems to have forgotten it, at certain key junctions, his instruction to TFL was that traffic flow (by which they mean motorised traffic flow) was to be prioritised.

We don’t know whether or not TFL’s actions led directly to the deaths of a number of people on bikes. But it is currently the subject of a police investigation for a potential charge of corporate manslaughter.

Filed under: Bike Culture

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One Response to “ London Mayoral Candidates Talk Cycling Safety ”

  1. Dr. Robert Davis on April 5, 2012 at 9:42 pm

    “But it is currently the subject of a police investigation for a potential charge of corporate manslaughter.”

    Hmm. I don’t think it is - I suspect you are just referring to what one (albeit senior) police offcier remarked as something which should be considered.

    My understanding is that we won’t get anywhere with CM. It just does not really apply in such cases. There is , of course, legislation with regard to Highway Authorities requiring them to have the correct safety procedures in place, including properly designed highway layouts.

    The problems with this are that:
    (a) These procedures (such as Road Safety Audit) can coexist with schemes that are bad for cyclists. Often schemes which pass RSA are WORSE for cyclists than what existed before.
    (b) When people take legal action under this legislation it is generally to oppose measures which have not protected careless/dangerous motorists from killing themselves (e.g. by not cutting down roadside trees which drivers have driven into etc.).

    So suing Highway Auhtorities is not something which seems to be a viable option for cyclists. At the moment. And not through corporate manslaughter.