Car drivers - more room please

Despite a huge increase in road riding over the past two or three years I'm reluctant to take my kids anywhere near the open road. I want them to enjoy the thrill, freedom and independence riding a bicycle out into the country will give them. But I'm not prepared for them to take on the risks that I and every other recreational rider are exposed to each time we venture onto the road.

Last week one of the UK's top cyclists was killed whilst out training - hit by a van. Last Sunday I was passed on at least 4 occasions by vehicles within half a meter of me. The Highway Code instructs drivers to:

give motorcyclists, cyclists and horse riders at least as much room as you would when overtaking a car

Funny how this is unfailingly given to horses and ponies but rarely to cyclists. In France drivers are obliged to give a statutory 1.5 meter gap, despite there being a much more positive attitude to cyclists generally.

We are a nation of pretty crap drivers, in most cases completely under qualified or experienced in road use. Often our spatial-temporal faculties are poor or in decline. Cars and vans are getting wider and inevitably there are no bike lanes in which we can seek refuge. Despite the fact that most cyclists are also car owners and therefore contribute to road taxes, the issue of 'safer cycling' is not a high government priority. It is left to independent organisations like Sustrans to create a safer cycling environment and how great it was that in winning the £50 million Big Lottery Fund so comfortably the people recognised the importance of their work.

The American 'Give 3 Feet' campaign is a good example of how a government funded initiative could bring the issue to a wider audience.

 

http://www.cbcef.org/give3feet/

Meanwhile, all we can do is implore drivers to give a little more consideration in passing cyclists and slowly we may all feel a little more comfortable sharing the open road.

Jerry