Road Safety

Almost a year ago, I want to see our local councilor with responsibility for transport to talk about cycling. In my dealings with the Cycling Projects Officer, I’d got the feeling that there was more going on than the council were being entirely open about. I thought that perhaps there was some sort of...
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This is a road safety video, showing the impacts of driving while distracted. In this case it’s texting, but it could just as easily be driving while talking on the phone - hand-held or hads-free - don’t kid yourself that there’s a difference: I came across the video via Andy Cline’s Carbon Trace , and...
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Sometimes I dispair. I was working late in the office last week, when the only other guy left with me answered his phone: Hi. Yeah. I’m just leaving. I’ll call you from the car. Maybe I live in a particularly sheltered La-La Land, but I was actually shocked at this. So I asked if he was REALLY...
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So if I’m going to be riding wearing non-regular clothes, I thought I’d better take a look at my wardrobe. Remember just over a week ago, when I was wondering about muggle-repelling cycling jerseys ? Well I eventually decided on a design that I liked, and doesn’t use any recognised UK police devices, thereby not...
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One of the things you absolutely, positively, definitely, without fail, must go and see before you die is the original Monet Water Lillies in the Orangerie Gallery in Paris’ Tuilerie Gardens . But for many of us that’s quite a hike, and something that you might end up having to delay until you’re in the...
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The UK isn’t actually the most dangerous place in the world to ride your bike, and some local councils do make efforts to create a better cycling environment. But in general, what we have is tokenism, where the facilities are created with the money left once the "real" work’s been done by the transport...
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I was visiting a client in Blyth the other week, and I came across this part of town . . . So what’s this mean in practical terms? Hmmm… Junctions marked with asymmetrically placed brickwork and trees… Foliage taking the place of parked cars . . . … and some of it well-established so as to obstruct the...
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I’ve had an unusual week. Full of highs and lows. On the plus side . . . My ride to work on Wednesday was just brilliant, despite the weather’s attempt to rain on that particular parade. And as I explained to the people from Sustrans - my skin’s waterproof. On that ride . . . I...
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If you come here often, you’ll probably know that I’m far from pro-helmet, and absolutely 100% anti helmet compulsion. Basically, the protection offered by bicycle helmets is fairly marginal in situations other than static falls (which is how they’re tested), and I’m a firm believer that compulsion does more to paint an image of...
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Confession time - I’m a bit of an anorak. I like playing with numbers to see what they’ll say. I mean, without numbers, what have you got? In God we trust, but everyone else had better bring data! So I was quite interested in the CTC’s Safety In Numbers campaign that was launched yesterday. Their glossy...
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