There are campaigns to protect motorcyclists and horse riders. Why is there nothing similar to encourage the safety of cyclists?

Can any advertising gurus out there come up with a simple slogan that could be used as part of a campaign?

There is a Think! Cyclist campaign…you mean you’ve never heard of it?

That’s ok because no one else has either.

No seriously there is.

We have a big campaign on safer cycling for kids on local radio at the moment.

“They don’t pay road tax so run the scroungers off our roads” ?

Cycling down one of the narrow country lanes i commute on, I got beeped at by a van with umpteen think bike stickers in the back. It did make me chuckle quite a bit.

‘Give Cyclists Space’

Isn’t that a campaign type thing?

I find the “Cyclists Dismount” campaign seem to be investing in a lot of advertising old fashioned poster stuff though needs to appeal a bit more to th fb generation

A while ago I ended up with a couple of emails being passed from my local MP to Mike Penning, who is/was the road safety minister.

I said exactly the same as the OP, especially because bikeability is teaching kids to take primary and a large chunk of drivers don’t understand why they do it, so they get angry/frustrated.

He replied to say that no education campaign is needed to protect cyclists because:
– We spent lots of money on the motorbike campaign and that was very successful, and
– some councils offer bikeability to adults and some of the people who choose to do it will be drivers as well as cyclists. So drivers are educated about primary position and the other needs of cyclists by choosing to do bikeability.

Neither of those points made a huge amount of sense to me, but then I’m not a politician….

From the think website

“Cyclists have the second highest KSI rate per billion passenger miles travelled of any road user group. “

And yet we see national media campaigns on drink driving, texting, looking out for motorcyclists, drug driving, seat belts….nothing for cyclists. It’s pathetic.

It’s pathetic.

and bizarre.

SEE THE CYCLIST ?

Do I win a day-glo Altura or a nice malt ?

A motorbike or a frightened horse can do a lot more damage to a car than a bicycle. Maybe that’s why drivers take special care round horses and motorbikes? Or am I being a bit cynical?

Having seen the damage a horse can do to a car, and the resultant long time closure of the road while the dogs new dinner is taken away its no surprising that the motorist will need to be told to slow for a horse or horses, there is also the risk to the rider faling from the seat of a horse.

Our local council has now got its vartious flashing signs proclaiming slow down nd look out for a biker, not bike rider, which is what a power ranger impersonator does rides a bloody bike.