Calls for greater road safety in Kingston following hike in injuries (From Surrey Comet)
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Calls for greater road safety in Kingston following hike in injuries
7:00am Tuesday 3rd July 2012 in News By Tom Barnes
Jon Fray
A cycling group has called for greater safety measure after new figures revealed a dramatic rise in the number of bike riders injured on the roads.
Jon Fray, chairman of Kingston cyclists, wants action including more cycling lanes on busy roads in the wake of the new statistics in Kingston.
According to figures released by Transport for London (TfL) this week, 87 cyclists were injured, both seriously and slightly, in Kingston in 2011, up 43 percent from 2010.
Mr Fray met with a safety officer at Kingston Council to ask them to analyse the data from the study to identify and tackle accident hotspots.
He said: “We do not want to jump to any conclusions before the data has been analysed but where problems are identified we would want the council to take remedial action.
“We do not expect them to introduce speed limits on major roads like London Road and Cambridge Road but a cycle lane or cycle track on those roads would be helpful and could tackle injuries.
“This rise in figures may also be a result of more people using bikes which may be proportionate to the figure.”
Leader of the council Derek Osbourne said the authority would look at the figures to see where they could improve but pointed out that injuries in Kingston were among the lowest in the capital.
He said: “Without question this is something we will look at. We are very proud of our road safety record in Kingston which is one of the reasons we were able to bring the Olympic cycling to the borough.”
The total number of pedestrians, motorcyclist and motorist injured on the roads last year also rose - up 4 percent to 443.
There were two fatalities on roads in the borough last year after none in 2010.
Is Kingston safe enough for cyclists? Call Tom Barnes on 020 8744 4273 or email tbarnes@london.newsquest.co.uk
Comments(12)
fedup58
says...
10:27am Tue 3 Jul 12
OKbyMe
says...
11:58am Tue 3 Jul 12
Is there a similar facility for cyclists who behave in dangerous ways?
Prince Philip of Greece
says...
4:14pm Tue 3 Jul 12
OKbyMe wrote:Last time I looked, cyclists don't have registration numbers...
Regerem is a useful site do check it out.
Is there a similar facility for cyclists who behave in dangerous ways?
OKbyMe
says...
6:29pm Tue 3 Jul 12
helen59
says...
6:59am Wed 4 Jul 12
I firmly believe all cyclist should be insured at least and not only those because I have seen a chap regular drive down the middle of the petersham road in his mobility scooter !!!!
Jon Fray
says...
10:34am Wed 4 Jul 12
These issues need to be addressed. Better driver behaviour, better driver observation and better cyclist awareness of hazards are likely to be the solution. Drivers need to show more consideration for cyclists rather than thinking "I can just nip out in front of this bloke because I'm in a hurry".
kingstonpaul
says...
12:59pm Wed 4 Jul 12
We all have a duty of care to our fellow road users, whether on four wheels, two tyres, two legs, or uncle shanks's pony. Let's grow up, stop this peurile points scoring, and get on with making raods safer for all.
Jon Fray
says...
4:31pm Wed 4 Jul 12
When I'm riding a bike passing a parked car I'll move out so that I won't be hit by a car door opening. When I'm in a parked car I won't open the door on a cyclist or anyone else. It's common courtesy really.
For those who think it's only cyclists who go through red lights you just have to stand at a junction for 10 minutes and you'll quickly realise it isn't.
The sad truth not mentioned in the article is that both fatalities were motorcyclists. There needs to be some thought as to why.
helen59
says...
4:37pm Wed 4 Jul 12
Jon Fray
says...
5:05pm Wed 4 Jul 12
Some drivers don't have insurance but they ARE required to have it.
I don't think pedestrians are required to have insurance either and generally no-one does for walking anywhere.
All 11,000 or so members of the London Cycling Campaign DO have third party insurance as do the nearly 70,000 members of the CTC (Cyclists Touring Club). The insurance is included in the price of membership. This is possible because cyclists are very low risk - people don'ty claim off these cyclist's insurance. Hence the premium is minimal.
Jon Fray
says...
1:15pm Thu 12 Jul 12
regerme.com says...
8:46am Tue 3 Jul 12
Useful for all to comment against the registration of the careless or just d**n right dangerous drivers. If you could tell a driver the consequence of their actions could prove catastrophic and as a result make our roads safer would you??? Regerme have provided a FREE to use platform to communicate through the medium of vehicle registration numbers by posting pictures and comments. This innovative altruistic website has road safety for schools, new driver monitor, how's my driving and road rage reporting components. PLEASE GET INVOLVED & POST YOUR CONSTRUCTIVE COMMENTS ON THE SITE. It's FREE, it works and could save lives. What other reason do you need? If you drive the scheme is not something you can opt out of. Search regerme, log on and check your registration. You may have a comment.
Thank you