{"id":151502144,"date":"2009-10-20T11:55:44","date_gmt":"2009-10-20T11:55:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp.baltimorespokes.org\/?p=151502144"},"modified":"2009-10-20T11:55:44","modified_gmt":"2009-10-20T11:55:44","slug":"cycling-plan-to-blame-drivers-for-all-crashes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wp.baltimorespokes.org\/?p=151502144","title":{"rendered":"Cycling plan to blame drivers for all crashes"},"content":{"rendered":"

MINISTERS are considering making motorists legally responsible for accidents involving cyclists or pedestrians, even if they are not at fault.
\nGovernment advisers are pushing for changes in the civil law that will make the most powerful vehicle involved in a collision automatically liable for insurance and compensation purposes.
\nThe move, intended to encourage greater take-up of environmentally friendly modes of transport, is likely to anger some drivers, many of whom already perceive themselves to be the victims of moneyspinning speed cameras and overzealous traffic wardens.
\nMany will argue that it is the risky behaviour of some cyclists \u2014 particularly those who jump red lights and ride the wrong way along one-way streets \u2014 that is to blame for a significant number of crashes.
\nHowever, policy-makers believe radical action is required to get people out of cars and onto bicycles or to walk more. Only 1%-2% of journeys are at present made by bike.
\nOther proposals to promote greener \u2014 and healthier \u2014 transport include the imposition of blanket 20mph zones on residential streets.
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\nSupporters want such measures to be included in the government\u2019s National Cycling Plan and Active Transport Strategy, due to be published soon.
\nPhillip Darnton, chief executive of Cycling England, an agency funded by the Department for Transport (DfT) to promote cycling, said four key policy changes were needed. \u201cI would like to see the legal onus placed on motorists when there are accidents; speed limits reduced to 20mph on suburban and residential roads; cycling taught to all schoolchildren; and cycling provision included in major planning applications,\u201d said Darnton.
\nSuch proposals will be seen by some as part of a battle for control of Britain\u2019s roads between motorists, cyclists and pedestrians.
\nIn London, where cycling has bucked the national trend and increased sharply, clashes are already common.
\nLast week James Martin, the television celebrity chef, described in a newspaper his joy at running a group of cyclists off the road and into a hedge while test-driving a sports car. Martin was forced to apologise after thousands of angry cyclists protested.
\nMatthew Parris, a columnist for The Times, was similarly forced to backtrack last year after suggesting that piano wire should be strung across roads to decapitate cyclists. Parris said he was joking, but statistics show that cyclists are actually among the most vulnerable road users, with 115 deaths last year alone.
\nLast month Harry Wilmers, 25, a mental health support worker, was killed when his bicycle was hit by a lorry in Manchester. Wilmers was the boyfriend of Rebecca Stephenson, the daughter of Sir Paul Stephenson, the Metropolitan police commissioner.
\n…
\nhttps:\/\/www.timesonline.co.uk\/tol\/news\/politics\/article6841326.ece<\/a>oldId.20091020115544490<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

MINISTERS are considering making motorists legally responsible for accidents involving cyclists or pedestrians, even if they are not at fault. Government advisers are pushing for changes in the civil law that will make the most powerful vehicle involved in a collision automatically liable for insurance and compensation purposes. The move, intended to encourage greater take-up … <\/p>\n

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