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Get Britain Cycling report 'will recommend' tougher sentencing in cases where victim is a cyclist

Sunday paper says lower speed limits and more spending on infrastructure will also be among report's recommendations...

The All Party Parliamentary Cycling Group (APPCG) is expected this week to urge the government to take steps to ensure that motorists found guilty in incidents where the victim is a cyclist receive harsher punishment than is often currently the case.

The appeal will be one of the recommendations contained in the report of the recent Get Britain Cycling Parliamentary Inquiry hosted by the APPCG, reports the Independent on Sunday.

Other recommendations of the report, which is due to be unveiled at the House of Commons on Wednesday, are that speed limits be reduced and greater investment made in cycle routes.

The report has been written by transport academic Phil Godwin, funded by News International, owner of The Times newspaper which last year launched its Cities Fit For Cycling campaign, with the Bicycle Association paying for the design and printing.

While the initiative from The Times, building on existing efforts by cycle campaigners, addresses issues such as the safety of cyclists around lorries and infrastructure, helping push those issues up the political agenda, recent months have also seen a new focus on what happens after a cyclist is killed or seriously injured.

Last year, British Cycling and CTC were among organisations that launched a campaign urging for a review of sentencing in cases in which the victim is a cyclist, leading to a meeting with justice minister Helen Grant that the governing body’s director of policy and legal affairs, Martin Gibbs, afterwards called “a significant step forward.”

In February, CTC launched another campaign calling on residents of England and Wales to urge their Police and Crime Commissioners (PCCs) to prioritise road safety.

The organisation said that police forces need to thoroughly investigate road traffic incidents involving vulnerable users including cyclists and ensure the drivers involved face appropriate action.

According to CTC, shortcomings in investigations of such cases result in less evidence being available to the prosecution, which has a knock-on effect in terms of the charges that are brought and, ultimately, sentencing in the event of a conviction.

Simon joined road.cc as news editor in 2009 and is now the site’s community editor, acting as a link between the team producing the content and our readers. A law and languages graduate, published translator and former retail analyst, he has reported on issues as diverse as cycling-related court cases, anti-doping investigations, the latest developments in the bike industry and the sport’s biggest races. Now back in London full-time after 15 years living in Oxford and Cambridge, he loves cycling along the Thames but misses having his former riding buddy, Elodie the miniature schnauzer, in the basket in front of him.

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5 comments

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bendertherobot | 10 years ago
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Yes, Carl, that's quite true. But why is it the case?

It's a very strange situation whereby motorists, as a class, direct their combined ire towards an entire other class simply because they saw some members of that class doing something dull.

Contrast this with motorists view of other motorists. Every motorist will see scores of stupid incidents daily. And in each case that motorist will simply think that the PERSON doing it is a dull **** rather than the class of person.

So whilst it's true that what cyclists do reflects on other cyclists that, in itself, is messed up.

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Carl | 10 years ago
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Farrell, I'd chill out but it pisses me off to see cyclists flouting the law as if it didn't apply to them, aside from riding in such a bloody stupid manner.

Why do you think getting on a bicycle suddenly gives someone an exemption from road laws?

The point is that motorists see this kind of riding and then take the attitude that cyclists are arrogant, lawless pricks and treat us with a lack of respect. That affects all of us on two wheels and distracts attention from the real issues of bad road design, lack of separation of cyclists and vehicles and moronic/blind drivers.

Rant over  1

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farrell | 10 years ago
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More chance of plaiting piss to be honest.

Also, Carl, chill out, have a tug or something and relax yourself.

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Carl | 10 years ago
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Walking up Bond Street in London this morning and spotted two women blithely cycling the wrong way up what is a 3-lane one-way street. Then one of them took a turning through a red light and almost hit me. The stupid cow was also wearing headphones.

Can cyclists please not act like fuckwits and take some personal responsibility for how they ride?

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djcritchley | 10 years ago
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Not holding my breath on this one.

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