Scottish roads see worrying rise in cycling accident figures
November 12th, 2012
The latest figures released by Transport Scotland show that serious injuries sustained by cyclists rose by 13 per cent last year, highlighting the need for better road safety provision, campaigners say.
The figures were discovered by the Sunday Herald and have caused a stir with politicians, transport campaigners and cycling groups who now want to see a boost in funding for cycle paths.
Otherwise, they warn, more cyclists will be injured and even killed in the future.
The latest figures released by Transport Scotland show that serious injuries sustained by cyclists rose by 13 per cent last year, highlighting the need for better road safety provision, campaigners say.
The figures were discovered by the Sunday Herald and have caused a stir with politicians, transport campaigners and cycling groups who now want to see a boost in funding for cycle paths.
Otherwise, they warn, more cyclists will be injured and even killed in the future.
The worrying revelations come at the end of a pivotal week for cycling safety where two high-profile figures (Bradley Wiggins, four-times Olympic cycling gold medallist and Shane Sutton, coach of the British cycling team) were both involved in cycling accidents.
The accident figures, which also included pedestrian casualties, were buried in a statistical publication from Transport Scotland last month which took the angle of highlighting downwards trends in car accident instead of drawing attention to the spike in cycling and pedestrian related accidents.
Alison Johnstone, the MSP who co-convenes the Scottish Parliament’s cross-party group on cycling said: “To see so many more people seriously injured while on their bike or while trying to cross a street is shocking.”
“I hope it makes the SNP government realise that its response has been weak – nothing more than a fig leaf. It’s incredibly frustrating to see ministers yet again reviewing an aspirational cycle action plan rather than delivering real action.
Johnstone has now called for firm timescales of action to be introduced as well as ring-fenced funding and the reverse of cuts which are set to hit road maintenance budgets.
“We should consider the kind of road-user hierarchy that is commonplace elsewhere in Europe and assumes liability on the part of the heavier vehicle. This would dramatically improve driver behaviour and make cyclists take more care around pedestrians,” she added.
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