[Cycloid]

The post below refers to an incident that has yet to come to court, but it has already been featured on national television so I reckon we are safe talking about the case it makes for graduated licences

The popular TV series “Catching Britain’s Speeders” was screened on Channel 5 last night, and featured a collision between a car driver and a cyclist. The opening text invited viewers to decide who was at fault.

An officer attended the aftermath of the collision and from the descriptions given by witnesses it would appear that an eighteen year old driver who was overtaking a cyclist while approaching a blind summit met oncoming traffic. He swerved, rolled the car and hit the cyclist. The cyclist who was wearing Hi-Vis and daylight lights was seriously injured and spent a week in hospital.
The officer gave a fairly neutral description of the incident, possibly because a Dangerous Driving court case is pending. He did express words of sympathy for the driver, who walked away from the collision, saying “I’ve not lost sight of ths fact that the driver has been through something traumatic as well”.

Should we have graduated licences for new drivers, or should we accept that taking out the odd vulnerable road user is just part of the price of gaining experience?

The video can be seen on My5 catchup, “Catching Britain’s Speeders” (Series 6, Episode 4) about 39 minutes in.

Topic

[Spangly Shiny]

Trouble is, that when we

Trouble is, that when we begin our driving lives we are all inexperienced drivers. Some, who have had half a lifetime as time touring cyclists (not a lot when you’re only 17), tend to have just a wee bit more road nous. But that’s by no means a universal condition.
Oh, and you’re right the 155 PS Ka was a special, just wanted to make all the lovers of the little beastie appreciative that someone bothered to find out.

[chrisonabike]

Start with a Canta:
Start with a Canta:

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canta_(vehicle)

…next a Kei car… https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kei_car

(Same can apply in reverse if we somehow can’t bring ourselves to actually stop proven unsafe drivers driving – just downgrade ’em each time).

[mike the bike]

Spangly Shiny wrote:

Hang ye slack there, big boy. That age restraint would have prevented my family taxi duties for more than 10 years. Not everyone who carries passengers below the age of 30 are open to being “egged on” by such passengers, especially when they are babes in arms.
Notwithstanding the Ford Ka 71 – 155PS is a small car, that’s still quite a punch and can hardly be described as low power. I don’t think that any car manufacturer would survive producing a deliberately low power car today, but I am open to being proved wrong.
 

I’m not sure the little Ka was ever manufactured with 155ps on tap.  The re-badged Fiat engines were usually between 69 and 84 bhp and were either 1.2 litre petrol or 1.3 litre diesel.  Of course specialist tuners might have worked their magic but not, I would suggest, on the bog-standard model in the crash.

And nowhere did I suggest that everyone should be banned from carrying young passengers;  only inexperienced drivers.

[Spangly Shiny]

Hang ye slack there, big boy.

Hang ye slack there, big boy. That age restraint would have prevented my family taxi duties for more than 10 years. Not everyone who carries passengers below the age of 30 are open to being “egged on” by such passengers, especially when they are babes in arms.
Notwithstanding the Ford Ka 71 – 155PS is a small car, that’s still quite a punch and can hardly be described as low power. I don’t think that any car manufacturer would survive producing a deliberately low power car today, but I am open to being proved wrong.
Maybe reducing the power available to below 120PS in cars for those drivers who have less than 2 kids might be a way to go. It would certainly reduce the preponderance of 17 – 27 year olds whizzing about in very small, high powered BMW’s, AUDI’s, VW’s and Cupra’s. (Yes, I am aware that the last three are basically the same manufacturer, more ignominy to VAG.)

[David9694]

By itself? I’m a meh on this

By itself? I’m a meh on this idea.  If enacted on the back of one grieving father’s campaign, it just becomes a campaign box ticked for him and a wider box ticked for the government for road safety. By implication, it hands a free pass to “experienced” drivers. 

For real, Cycloid? “a collision between a car driver and a cyclist”??  Bothsides much? 

Thoughts and prayers to the poor traumatised driver.  It’s a no on being some kind of crash dummy for inexperienced drivers – if that comment was ironic, I’m afraid you lost me. 

[Cycloid]

Just checked your link, My

Just checked your link, My RAC link is somewhat older, but I get the feeling it’s not a high prority.

 

[chrisonabike]

Yeah, “stucture the driving

Yeah, “stucture the driving lessons better” – that’ll fix it…

(TBH having observed the driving behaviours of a couple of driving instructors there’s still likely an issue there too… or at least there are several who will give “this is how it is in practice” lessons on illegal driving on footways / dispelling anti-parking runes by deploying BOLAS…)

[Cycloid]

I Pinched this from the RAC

I Pinched this from the RAC website.

In October 2020 it was announced that the graduated licence scheme had been scrapped by The Department for Transport. Instead the government proposed restructuring driving lessons to enable stronger tuition.

I’m sure the restructured driving lessons are now in place!

[Cycloid]

I think the technical term is

I think the technical term is “kicked into the long grass”.

[Tom_77]

There was the first reading

There was the first reading for a Private Members’ Bill for Graduated Driving Licensing in May. With the election I assume this now has to go back to the start of the process.

As far as I can tell, the bill has wide support and very little opposition. But the new government has a lot on its plate so I don’t know if they’ll find the time for it.

[chrisonabike]

In addition to graduated

In addition to graduated licences perhaps a system (aside from insurance costs) which also looks at how experienced you are.  Definitely should be some kind of ban (and maybe serious consideration as to whether you get another go) depending on circumstances.

OTOH if you’ve been “driving my whole life” and do something that’s clearly dangerous and idiotic perhaps an enhanced block on you getting back on the road is appropriate also?

While “but they were young / inexperienced” / “but it was a single moment of madness from an otherwise law-abiding motorist” may have some truth I don’t think these should constitute court-worthy excuses…

[mike the bike]

Speaking generally, yes, we

Speaking generally, yes, we should have a graduated licence system that prevents the inexperienced from driving hugely powerful vehicles and from carrying passengers under the age of, perhaps, 30 years.  More specifically the incident you have highlighted involved a low power Ford Ka and a lone driver, so it wouldn’t have helped here.

There are some problems that cannot be solved.

[Author]

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