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news
Metropolitan Police officers inspecting a lorryMet Police relaunch controversial Operation Safeway - fining motorists and drivers who flaunt road rules
London’s Operation Safeway, a police scheme to improve cycle safety, has been relaunched as the clocks turned back - with a new focus on cyclist visibility.
The operation, launched late last year in response to a crisis in cyclist injuries and deaths on the streets, saw officers issuing Fixed Penalty Notices (FPNs) to offending cyclists and drivers who breached road rules like jumping red lights, cycling on footpaths and having no lights, or for drivers, driving without insurance and driving without wearing a seatbelt.
By January, more than 13,800 fines had been issued to drivers and cyclists.
The operation saw 2,500 officers from the MPS Traffic Command and Safer Transport Command deployed to around 170 junctions across London.
The most common offences included not having lights on their bicycles at night (1,598 FPNs/reports for summons) and contravening traffic signals (1,225).
Around 900 FPNs were cancelled when the cyclists agreed to attend designated points subsequently to show that they had now fitted lights to their bikes.
Motorists were issued with 9,733 FPNs or reported for summons during the period. Failing to wear a seatbelt (2,437) and using a mobile phone while driving (2,424) were the most frequent offences. However, 1,056 motorists also contravened traffic signals.
Now more than 500 officers will police key junctions in the city to avoid more tragedy as Christmas approaches.
In a statement the Met Police said: "This time of year - with the darker evenings following the clock changes last weekend - is a peak period for cycle fatalities and serious collisions. Cyclists used to commuting home after work in daylight may now find they do so in darkness."
During this phase of Operation Safeway, officers will be giving cycle lights - funded by TfL - to those caught without them in the hours of darkness, to allow them to legally continue on their cycle journey, as well as making it easier for them to be seen by motorists and pedestrians.
Cyclists riding without lights will also be liable to a fixed penalty notices of £50 - by law, a bicycle must have a working white front light and a working red rear light from sunset to sunrise. The MPS will also be extolling the Highway Code's advice that cyclists should make themselves as visible as possible and wear reflective clothing or accessories at night.
In support of Operation Safeway, the RTPC Cycle Safety Team will be running 'Exchanging Places' events which puts people, particularly cyclists, in the driver's seat of an HGV to get a better understanding of what a driver can and cannot see, especially with regard to cyclists on the nearside and directly in front of the vehicle.
A survey of the users of the Exchanging Places programme found that 97 per cent of cyclists said they would change their riding behaviour and 99 said they would recommend it to a friend.
Chief Superintendent Matt Bell, MPS Roads and Transport Policing Command, said: "Operation Safeway aims to reduce the number of people who are killed or seriously injured on London's roads each year. Every road death or serious injury is a needless tragedy that is devastating for the victim's family and friends. "The operational activity began last year and has been hugely effective at raising awareness of road safety among all road users, reminding them to take care while out on the roads.
"With fewer daylight hours at this time of year, it is even more important that cyclists have good lights on their bikes - white at the front and red at the rear - so that they are visible to motorists and pedestrians. It is also a requirement by law that they do so.
"I urge every cyclist to affix lights and make themselves as visible as possible. Our message is clear: BE SAFE, BE BRIGHT, BE SEEN."
Steve Burton, Director of Enforcement and On-street Operations at TfL, said: "The Mayor and TfL are passionate about improving road safety across London. This enforcement activity at busy junctions will further help build awareness and reduce injuries on the Capital's roads.
"By promoting road safety through enforcing the rules of the road and giving advice to all road users, we can further reduce the number of people killed and seriously injured on our roads, making them safer for all. "As the days become shorter and we approach winter we want to remind all cyclists to check their lights are working, ensuring they are bright enough to be seen clearly in the dark."
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23 comments
The correct word is "flout", not "flaunt".
Putting cyclists in the cabs of HGVs? So that they will know exactly in what way the vehicle that kills them is incredibly unsafe as it bears down on them?
You might just as will let people spend 10 minutes watching knives being sharpened the day before they get stabbed, or show people round a land mine factory the day before they have their legs blown off.
Put HGV drivers on bicycles, and make them ride through rush hour, in order to qualify for their licence category. Make them do it every year, just like they have to go to a Cardio department in a hospital every year to do a treadmill test.
I'd agree with that.
I'd also make police officers ride through rush hour, in plain clothes and politicians too.
But most of all, if a new "cycling facility" is put in place then the young children of the designers should be sent down it unassisted. If they don't agree, then they clearly haven't built it properly and need to go back to the drawing board until they design something they are happy to send their own kids down.
No thanks, I do not want to see more 'shared use' pavements where you can't cycle at more than 10mph
I originally posted this on the story about the police in Cambridge. But it's more apt here as I ride in London.
They had some PCSO's on my route home the other night. Whilst one of them was checking the front of all the bikes stopped at the lights. I pointed out to him that the car behind was in the bike box, about an inch away from my back wheel, and that he entered on a red light. I was told to "Shut up."
Sounds like a great scheme, they're targeting both drivers and cyclists and giving away free lights to those that need them - allowing them to carry on their journey safely.
I think its an excellent use of Police resources to make our roads safer. I left work in the dark recently, I couldn't see the first cyclist who was riding on a dark road with no lights until I was almost upon him.
I then stopped at the red light. The next cyclist almost hit the pedestrians on the crossing, they were all in black and very hard to see as he flew through the lights.
But will the lights provided by TfL be road legal? (i.e. be British Standard, flashing but without a fixed mode, or meet an equivalent EU standard). I suspect not, as front lights that meet these requirements are incredibly difficult to find. A recent check of my local LBS and 2 national chains failed to turn up any.
Whilst I think that any lighting is better than nothing, it's a farce that the UK lighting laws are so antiquated that no one sells legal lights. It just sends out a message that the government consider that's it's ok for cyclists to break the law when it suits.
The same farce exists with respect to pedal reflectors, which are threoretically legally required for cycling in the hours of darkness. When the bolt on reflector on my platform pedal broke I tried a few bike shops and none had a replacement. Almost no clipless pedals have reflectors and recumbents can't have legal reflectors as the pedals are vertical.
I think the "controversy" is that there doesn't seem to be any evidence the operation is effective in improving road safety (and it seems good at harassing easy target cyclists).
Whilst I would never advocate not having lights, police resources are limited and every choice of operation will cost money.
However well intentioned this scheme is, do they know that fining cyclists without lights and handing out lights will reduce the number of incidents?
Are there better and more effective ways to reduce the number of deaths and injuries (and dare I say it ways that are more hassle for the coppers).
The police should have some idea of the efficacy of their policies, especially ones that they have done before.
Please let me clarify in case of any misunderstanding - the rules of the road are clear and cyclists should have lights at night and I do not disagree with that rule or flout it myself (https://www.gov.uk/rules-for-cyclists-59-to-82/overview-59-to-71) BUT is it a good use of limited resources to crackdown on cyclists not using them. How many incidents investigations have concluded that a lack of lights was the primary factor?
Cheers
FLOUT
"drivers who flaunt road rules"
Flout, flout.
Grammar-police to issue on-the-spot fines for violations of the rules of English. Offenders will be given free dictionaries.
'Snot grammar.
Shame they can't be given the funds to run the scheme all year round. Also the Commissioner should speak out on paid per drop trucks.
Do London hipsters without lights get issued with Fixie Penalty Notices instead?
I kill me, I really do.
No problem with enforcing the law on lights, I'd even say it's quite sensible to have such a campaign following the change of the clocks.
What annoys me is this sort of nonsense, that I've just heard promoted on the radio in London - http://www.lbc.co.uk/brighter-rider-stay-safe-with-our-free-vest-99260
A much better way of dealing with many of the offences is not fines but towing away the vehicle and placing the driver/rider into a sin bin for two hours. Jump red light to save a few seconds and risk loosing several hours of your time. Late for work/meeting/delivery.... Time is more precious than cash to some people.
Having lights to give away to cyclists in addition to the fine seems like a very sensible idea.
Can someone explain what makes this "controversial", though? I see that word in the article title but there's no mention of controversy in the article itself. People breaking the law being issued with FPNs hardly seems like an outrageous idea.
Would be good if they were also giving out enough mirrors to HGV drivers to allow them to see what's actually around them. Even better if they took away mobile phones.
The idea that stopping cyclists riding on pavements will actually do anything useful to improve safety might be controversial (or mad).
Not, perhaps, to some pedestrians.
It's a great idea - the story the other week about fines for cyclists that got waived if they presented a receipt for lights seemed like a long-winded way to go about it, when they could just slap on a small fine and give out lights at the same time.
Contravening lights- good job we didn't cross on the green man
see http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JGyTGord8iY