The Government has been urged to invest more in segregated cycle lanes in order to enable people to ride every day ‘without fear for their own safety’.
The road safety charity Brake says while actions to encourage more people to cycle and keep them safe are ‘welcome’, they must go further.
Brake is also calling for ‘safer’ default speed limits on rural and urban roads and a justice system which ‘keeps dangerous drivers off the roads’.
Focus on cycling
The plea comes in the midst of Bike Week 2019 (8-16 June) – which promotes cycling as a ‘fun, easy and accessible’ way to get about for shorter trips.
More than 300,000 people are expected to take to two wheels as part of the initiative – joining the UK’s five million regular cyclists.
As part of the week, hundreds of events are taking place, ranging from family friendly to naked cycle rides, cycle maintenance and bike breakfasts.
Dangerous driving on the rise?
Brake has also published the findings of a survey, carried out in partnership with Direct Line, which suggest that 40% of people think there has been an increase in dangerous or aggressive driving around cyclists over the past five years.
Joshua Harris, director of campaigns for Brake, said: “Cycling is one of the healthiest and cheapest ways to get around and everyone should be able to cycle every day without fear for their own safety.
“Yet our research has found that even drivers think dangerous driving around cyclists has increased in recent years, and with 10 people cycling being killed or seriously injured every day, more is clearly needed to be done to keep those on two wheels safe.
“Whilst the Government’s actions to encourage more people to cycle and keep them safe are welcome, they must go further. We need slower, safer speed limits, greater investment in segregated cycle lanes and drivers who do behave dangerously removed from our roads.”
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