Westminster City Council has produced a series of short videos featuring ‘real cyclists’ on the borough’s roads, in a bid to pass on practical safety tips and encourage cyclists to take advantage of free training.
In the series of nine videos, cyclists ride about Westminster on their every-day routes with cameras fitted to their bikes, to capture the scenarios they encounter.
The videos also offer commentary giving practical advice on topics including: mixing with pedestrians; right turns at junctions; negotiating pinch points; cycling around parked vehicles; complex intersections and junctions; and passing stopping vehicles.
The videos are intended to display the practical skills needed in the various situations and to foster a mutual understanding and respect when sharing the road.
Westminster City Council is also encouraging cyclists to brush up on roads skills and increase their confidence on the bike with a free group-to-group or one-to-one City Cycle Course.
The courses, which are open to anyone who lives, works or studies in Westminster, teach the techniques required to cope with traffic, road positioning, signaling and general cycle safety.
While the number of cyclists on roads in Westminster has increased by 20% year on year – and the uptake is predicted to grow further next year – the number of people taking up the free training offer has not increased on a similar scale. While group training for novice cyclists has increased by 20%, the uptake of free one-to-one training has decreased by 15% – a figure described as ‘alarming’ by Westminster City Council.
Councillor Heather Acton said: “We are delighted that more people are cycling in Westminster; our 2014 Cycle Strategy aimed to open the city up to more cyclists and it seems to be working.
“However, it is a real concern that the increase in number of cyclists on our roads does not correlate with the uptake of free cycle training. We’ll continue to urge cyclists to register for our free cycle training so that they feel equipped to enjoy their bikes on our roads in this unique area.”
FOOTNOTE: the videos are being released at fortnightly intervals, the first of which can be seen above. The other videos will be released on the Westminster City Council YouTube channel.
So Peter this was filmed on several occasions, not just one shot and on every shot the young lady had an unsafe helmet strap. In the event of an incident that helmet would have been as useful as an ashtray on a motorcycle and she could have received serious head injuries because of its extremely lose fit. If you are going to do a safety piece on cyclists at least make sure that everything is above board and correct.
Bob Craven, Lancs…Space is Safe Campaigner
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Derek,
As Aidan says it was filmed over a period of time and put together to show some real cycling not a continuous run. But if you want to be pedantic you won’t see the Elephant and Castle or Vauxhall Cross as neither are in the City of Westminster. As and when the others appear on our website please do comment as we are looking to do a similar exercise with our walking strategy when it comes out and feedback will be useful. Remember to keep looking at:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCiBJoktetqLcI_pL8u-Q0oA#sthash.6rUcwd4V.dpuf Thank you.
Peter Wilson Westminster
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Derek,
I suspect they did the journey more than once. From the front camera you can’t see the one behind her. TV shows do that kind of thing. On those house improvement shows they have the presenter ring the doorbell then cut to a shot of the homeowner opening the door from the inside but we don’t see the camera crew behind the presenter. I’m fairly suspicious of house shows where they let you see both ends of a phone conversation. In the movies every journey in London will show someone passing Buckingham Palace, regardless of geography, and every window in Paris has a view of the Eiffel Tower.
Aedan, Airdrie
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At risk of seeming pedantic, ‘Anna’, rides from Gt. Tichfield Street, left into Margaret St. allowing pedestrians to cross. At this point she does have a black cab behind her, but all is going so slowly, and there is no possibility of the cab attempting to overtake due to space available. The Addy Lee car moves to the right of and alongside the car in front, not unexpected. But then we see Anna approaching the junction with Regent Street. So what happened to crossing the junction with Gt. Portland Street? Rapped knuckles for the continuity dept.! Can we see some riding across the Elephant & Castle, Vauxhall Cross, Parliament Square, or Hyde Pk. Corner?
Derek Reynolds, Salop.
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We are finding that 1-hour workshops delivered in the workplace are a good way to promote the concept of 1-2-1 training. As most of our cyclist casualties are commuters we offer it in terms of bespoke travel planning rather than a safety initiative, which seems to go down very well. As for the video, I agree with Rebecca; as a profession we need to wind down the pedantry a bit.
Iain Temperton – Norfolk
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Yes she signalled to the pedestrians to cross in front of her as she was being courteous and as she was travelling at a steady speed, she didn’t particularly have to slow, stop or alter her course. Surely it is the responsibility of the pedestrians to look for what other vehicles may be approaching behind her? It looked to me as though they had already started to cross anyway.
Rebecca Leeds
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Is this for real?
Here she is beckoning pedestrians across without the slightest clue as to what might be coming up behind her and the Addison Lee Limo clearly had an affordance into the right lane yet still she was surprised when he took it. If this was my student on a motorcycle then I’m afraid I would be having a few words after that performance.
Duncan MacKillop. No surprise – No accident.
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They are being released fortnightly onto the Westminster City Council youtube page. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCiBJoktetqLcI_pL8u-Q0oA
I do apologise I was led to believe we would put them out to our professional colleagues in one hit but our communications department seem to have not done so.
Peter Wilson. Westminster
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Patrick – trying to find out – will advise in due course.
Nick Rawlings, editor, Road Safety News
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Is there a link to the other videos?
Patrick, Kingston
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I can understand where they are coming from. That being said did you see the strap on her helmet? In the event of having an accident that helmet will be thrown off the head and be worse than useless. I know that I am being objective but if you want to put forward a safety film about training then let’s look at it properly and not be lazy, or incorrect.
What I did like was the comments about not rushing, taking one’s time, to look round and to look for and make use of safe space.
bob Craven Lancs….Space is Safe Campaigner
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