The Times Cycling Campaign

Surely anything in a proper newpaper that promotes debate about this imporant issue must be a good thing. I have written to my MP about this as suggested by the Times article. Many members of my club are doing the same. When I was in junior school there was some thing called the Cycling Proficiency Scheme. Reinstating this would give more kids confidence to get on the roads, because more bikes on the road = safer cycling. Just look at the Netherlands and Denmark.

Cycle proficiency has been resurected. it is called bikeability . It happens in most schools and adults can get this funded too especially in London
http://www.dft.gov.uk/bikeability/
http://www.lfgss.com/forum49.html

http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=40012&t=12834447&p=17429899#p17429899

same as here, less swearing, more cupcakes.

Pretty good summary: http://quickrelease.tv/?p=1705

You guys have all seen this thread right?
http://www.lfgss.com/thread79501.html

Other Rider Down threads are available "Three years and 50 deaths "

BTW

Although I wouldn't ride with earphones in, I wonder how many of the sanctimonious drivers damning every cyclist because a few choose to ride with them, drive with their radios off and windows open at all times, the better to be able to hear what is going on outside their metal and glass shells?

What if the campaign makes matters worse? makes drivers more resentful? makes the police come down hard on cyclists "for their own good"
Surely we don't want everyone to save us, we are saved already, what we want is everyone else to feel comfortable about cycling.

Something in the back of my mind is saying that the same concerns have been expressed by other minority groups of people who have been discriminated against or otherwise found themselves to be at the bottom of the food chain.

I'm not particularly politically active, not a militant cyclist, but like hell I'll be walked all over because I might make things worse. Cyclists are already bottom of the food chain, beneath pedestrians in the minds of many drivers, we've got fuck all to lose by standing up for ourselves.

^ Vive la revolution!

Something in the back of my mind is saying that the same concerns have been expressed by other minority groups of people who have been discriminated against or otherwise found themselves to be at the bottom of the food chain.

I'm not particularly politically active, not a militant cyclist, but like hell I'll be walked all over because I might make things worse. Cyclists are already bottom of the food chain, beneath pedestrians in the minds of many drivers, we've got fuck all to lose by standing up for ourselves.

Perspective... cyclists aren't walked all over. Do you really want compulsion around things like number plates, high viz & helmets, as a direct result of emotive reporting of perceived dangers?

Is that what you want, cos that's what'll (maybe) happen... [/paulwhitehouse]

http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=40012&t=12834447&p=17429899#p17429899

same as here, less swearing, more cupcakes.

and ... "Riding in traffic is a skill that takes practice. Not much different to swimming. But you wouldn't say "swimming is dangerous. Let's make it safer. Take away the water", would you?"

ha ha

Perspective... cyclists aren't walked all over. Do you really want compulsion around things like number plates, high viz & helmets, as a direct result of emotive reporting of perceived dangers?

Is that what you want, cos that's what'll (maybe) happen... [/paulwhitehouse]

Splitter! Join the revolution!

Has anyone got a spare copy of the Saturday Times 12 page pullout they'd be willing to post forum forum donation?

Bought a copy of the paper for it yesterday, went to read it over breakfast today, no supplement. Arse.

check to see if they have a number you can call to get a replacement, they often do...

alternatively, was it the stuff here? http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/public/cyclesafety/article3308569.ece - under the Graphic tab?

^ nice one, just checked, tiny print footnote on page 2 for this. cheers for tip, gonna email them.

thanks.

I'm new to this forum, but anyone seen the Sunday Times?

They ran another article on cycling and how to make the infrastructure safer. But it was titled:

Keep cyclists safe - ban us from main roads

Exactly what we dont need. Inflamatory titles that could polarise the views of motorists. In addition the stupid bint talks about A-roads at the end, and how scary it is to be passed at 60 mph, fostering wrong ideas that we shouldn't be on the roads. Its the motorists that are at fault, if they overtake you closely at 60 mph. Yet a campaign like this could see growing opinion to ban us from countryside rides.

When are the Times going to talk about the attitudes and awareness of drivers? I initially welcomed the campaign, but their message seems muddled and this thing could go the wrong way...

Perspective... cyclists aren't walked all over. Do you really want compulsion around things like number plates, high viz & helmets, as a direct result of emotive reporting of perceived dangers?

Is that what you want, cos that's what'll (maybe) happen... [/paulwhitehouse]

^is this online anywhere? on the right side of the paywall?

^This is why I've been wary of signing up for it.

It seems to be a campaign run by Journalists, for cyclists. Which is different to a campaign run by Journalists, with cyclists.

It also seems to be finding as much scary stuff to write about rather than the vast majority of riders experience of fun, efficiency, speed and incident free cycling.
Not signed up either until they change their tack

I think the whole article is online, but you have to subscribe to get full access. This header was all I could copy, the article is by Eleanor Mills

Keep cyclists safe – ban us from main roads

Eleanor Mills

• The Sunday Times
  
• Published: 05 February 2012
  
• Eleanor Mills
  
  
  

Every time you get on a bicycle and whizz off down a road you dice with death. For 10 years I blocked this inconvenient truth out of my mind as I cycled the seven or so miles to work. I was a bit of an evangelist for biking: it ticked the working mother box of performing two functions

Every time you get on a bicycle and whizz off down a road you dice with death.

ffs!

You need to read the whole article, because some of what she says is sane. BUT the title is inflamatory and for someone just glancing at the article, it could polarise their view that we should never be one roads

Whatever else the article may say any person considering cycling would read that and stop considering cycling and perhaps stop reading.

Eleanor Mills: "Every time you get on a bicycle and whizz off down a road you dice with death."

That says more about her lack of roadcraft than anything else

The article is unreadable... The Times web site is just horribly broken.

more backlash:

http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/brendanoneill2/100134915/cyclists-are-pompous-enough-as-it-is-–-a-cycling-covenant-would-make-them-unbearable/

Ho hum.