As some of you may remember from previous columns, I’m a very keen cyclist. There are few ways I prefer to spend a summer day than joining my wife for a long bike through the countryside.
Solihull is home to several thriving cycling clubs, and I regularly say hello to local residents out on the lanes all over town.
When I’m down in Westminster, I also try to brave the London traffic and cycle into work at the Houses of Parliament. There’s no doubt that it can be a hair-raising experience on occasion. That’s why I’m so pleased that the Government is taking action to make our roads safer for cyclists.
Jesse Norman, the Roads Minister, has already announced several important reforms. These include providing more training and material for police forces to make drivers aware of the importance of keeping a safe distance when passing cyclists, and funding new cycle awareness training for approved driving instructors to help the next generation of road users.
This week, the Government has opened a new consultation on reforming the law governing drivers and cyclists on British roads.
More people taking up cycling would have a huge benefit to all road users, whether you yourself cycle or not. It offers cleaner air, cheaper travel, and lower congestion, as well as an obvious boost to physical fitness and wellbeing.
But if we want more people to get on their bikes, it is very important that cycling is both safe and perceived to be safe.
We also have a duty to make sure that the law governing cyclists is fit for purpose. Those few whose recklessness endangers, injures, or even occasionally kills others must be held to account just as are dangerous drivers.
This legal overhaul, combined with hundreds of millions of pounds of investment as part of the Government’s Cycling and Walking Investment Strategy – including £100 million for improving dangerous roads – shows how serious we are about making the bike a safe, natural choice for British travellers.
Ministers want your feedback on the Department for Transport’s proposed updates and new offences. The new consultation opened on Sunday and will run until November.
No matter if you’re by habit a motorist, cyclist, or pedestrian, please take the time to look it up online and fill in the response form. Together, we can make Britain’s roads safer for everyone.
Originally published in the Solihull News, 17/08/18.