Campaign Theme

Safe Drivers and Vehicles

Introduction

Urban cyclists

Cycling's health benefits far outweigh the risks, so anything that puts people off has to be tackled. Hostile road conditions are a major deterrent, but the good news is that the 'safety in numbers' effect means that more and safer cycling are perfectly capable of going hand in hand.

Cycling is essentially a safe activity, causing little risk either to cyclists themselves or to other road users. Moreover, there is good evidence that cyclists gain from ‘safety in numbers’, with cycling becoming safer as cycle use increases.
However, fear of road traffic is a major deterrent, despite the health, environmental and other benefits of cycling. Actual cycle safety in the UK lags behind many of our continental neighbours, because of poorly designed roads and junctions, traffic volumes and speeds, irresponsible driving, and a legal system that fails to respond adequately to road danger.
National and local government should therefore aim for ‘more’ as well as ‘safer’ cycling – the two aims can and should go hand in hand.
Despite scare stories about cyclists jumping red lights or riding on pavements, other road users are far more likely to be hit by a motor vehicle than by a cycle.

Latest News

Minor win for cyclists as prosecution guidance shifts

The driver of this car was charged with 'careless driving'

In early May 2013 new guidance from the Crown Prosecution Service on prosecuting acts of bad driving was published. It includes a potentially important addition in determining what should be charged...

Demand a proper sentence for driver who killed twice

Audrey Fyfe and her daughter Aileen Brown

CTC has joined with the family of Audrey Fyfe to challenge the scandalous sentence handed down to Gary McCourt on 3 May. McCourt was sentenced to 300 hours of community service and a five-year...

Pedro Delgado joins battle against helmet compulsion in Spain

Delgado won the 1988 Tour de France (Photo: Numerius, Flickr)

1988 Tour de France champion Pedro Delgado has walked out of a meeting with María Segui, the director of the national traffic authority (DGT), in protest at the Government's plan to force...

Get Britain Cycling report recommends £10 per head, per year funding for cycling

Chris Boardman, MP Julian Huppert, Dr Sarah Wollaston and Ian Austin

Six weeks of oral evidence, hundreds of written pages, and the report is out. CTC welcomes its publication and urges the Government to implement its 18 recommendations