Road Safety Week (17th – 23rd November) highlights the importance of all road users taking care on the road, regardless of their transport. The theme of the week this year is ‘look out for each other’. The charity Brake emphasises that this attitude should be used by people using all modes of transport and that mutual consideration must be given between different road users to create a safe environment. They believe that we are different tribes but are all ultimately making the same journey.
Some road users are more vulnerable than others however, with pedestrians and cyclists the most at risk in the case of an accident. Brake are urging drivers in particular therefore to cut their speed and drive more carefully. They are calling for lower speed limits to be enforced in residential areas to protect pedestrians and cyclists. They also suggest that drivers do not exceed 20mph in communities, approach slowly at junctions and bends, and give plenty of room to others.
There were 109 cyclists killed and 3,143 seriously injured on Britain’s roads in 2013 [1]. The roads are particularly dangerous for cyclists during this time of year, when darker afternoons and evenings mean that visibility is poorer, and adverse weather conditions may affect a driver’s ability to react or stop quickly. Cyclists can take steps to improve their own safety, like wearing bright clothing and bike lights, but motorists must also adapt their behaviour to the change in conditions and remain alert to those more vulnerable with which they share the road.
Brake suggest that drivers make a pledge of behaviours that will keep themselves and others safe on the road. The six points of the pledge are; Slow, Sober, Secure, Silent, Sharp, and Sustainable. More information and advice about the Brake pledge can found here.
James Pritchard, Associate Solicitor at Macks commented “As a personal injury solicitor and a keen cyclist I am all too aware of the dire consequences that can occur when we don’t look out for each other. We should all get behind any initiative that helps draw attention to the issues and makes us all feel that little bit safer on the roads”.
[1] RoSPA
