Should cyclists face the same laws as drivers? We talk to both to find out what it's like on the roads of the UK.
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00:00The House of Commons has backed a proposed change to the law, which would see people
00:07face up to 14 years in prison for dangerous cycling that causes death.
00:13Campaigners say change has been long overdue to ensure cyclists are held accountable for
00:17fatalities in the same way as motorists. It will apply to incidents involving pedal cycles,
00:22e-bikes and e-scooters.
00:27Coming up we'll take a look into cycling in the UK and ask whether this new law is needed
00:31and if it might work.
00:34We'll talk to drivers and cyclists to get a view from each side and we'll be checking
00:38up on your highway code knowledge.
00:40There you go, and I'm the one doing my driving lessons.
00:44And we'll also talk to the cyclist who was involved in a horror crash at the hands of
00:48a careless driver.
00:52One rib was through the back of my lung, shoulder was entirely disintegrated, arm was disintegrated,
01:01coma for 10 days after it.
01:10They pass very, very close to you, don't seem to notice you there, I presume they don't,
01:15or they're doing it on purpose. And again, when you're going along the road, cars will
01:21pull out in front of you because I just don't seem to see them.
01:24Well, sometimes there's two or three abreast and I'm worried about either mowing them down
01:29if something's coming towards me or damaging myself if I don't move in fast enough.
01:37What would you rather they did?
01:38I'd rather they strung out a little bit so, you know, there's one in front of another
01:42really.
01:43Do you think all drivers should be cyclists for a day?
01:47I think some of them are. Actually, sometimes when they do really nice things to me on the
01:52road, I'm thinking, yeah, you're a cyclist as well.
01:56I think they've got every right as much as we have to be there. I think it's difficult
02:01sometimes when people are driving, sorry, riding in tandem, whereas a group, when you
02:08have to go all the way around them. But it's a small price to pay. I do think that everyone
02:12has the right to be on the road.
02:15Cyclists could soon be punished in the same way as other road users for reckless behaviour.
02:19In an amendment to the Criminal Justice Bill, ministers have agreed to introduce the offence
02:23of causing death by dangerous, careless or inconsiderate cycling, and causing serious
02:28injury by careless or inconsiderate cycling.
02:31As it stands, the bill still needs to be presented to the Lords for further debate.
02:35It follows campaigning by MP Sir Ian Duncan Smith, who said cyclists should be held accountable
02:39for careless behaviour, but said the law wasn't anti-cycling and in fact the opposite.
02:45The proposal aims to make the current convoluted and difficult legal process simpler, according
02:49to Sir Ian. Transport Secretary Mark Harper said most cyclists, like most drivers, are
02:54responsible and considerate, but it's only right that the tiny minority who recklessly
02:58disregard others face the full weight of the law for doing so.
03:02While bodies that represent cyclists back change that makes roads safer, they point
03:05out road deaths involving cyclists are rare, and that a greater focus is instead needed
03:10on deaths and injuries caused by motor vehicles.
03:14I think that any government that wishes to bring in new laws which cracks down on antisocial
03:20behaviour or illegal practices or dangerous practices on our roads, that is something
03:26that we at IAM Roadsmart support.
03:30What I would say to this, though, is that there's an element of a little bit of fiddling
03:35while Rome burns, and the reason why is because when you look at the statistics overall, the
03:41number of people that are killed by cyclists is an absolute fraction of what is, what happens
03:48with motor vehicles, for example.
03:51How much do you think that this will impact cycling behaviours, and will it have a big
03:56impact on road safety as a whole?
03:59The majority of cyclists are safe, they just want to use a clean, healthy, active way of
04:06travelling to get from A to B, and to do that in as safe a way as possible.
04:11So we would hope that any new laws would actually help improve standards on our road network
04:18among cyclists, but as I say, the majority of cyclists need not worry because they're law-abiding.
04:26Historically, shall I say, there's been some animosity, maybe, is the word to use, between
04:31cyclists and other road users.
04:33What's the cause of this?
04:34Why is there so much butting of heads there, and do you think this new law change will
04:40prove to exacerbate that or make it better?
04:43There is always a lot of interest in playing cyclists off against drivers, and the reality
04:49is that we've got to stop looking at people as part of a faction, whereas in reality,
04:56people who get in their cars just want to get from A to B in a safe and efficient way,
05:02and people on bicycles want to do exactly the same.
05:05It really is about everybody on the roads having responsibility, taking responsibility
05:10for their actions.
05:14All road users, regardless of how they use the road, has an absolutely rock-solid duty
05:24of care to behave courteously to all other road users.
05:32I think the timing of it was cynical, I think it's a desperate vote-grabber, and I also
05:39think that the published details don't carry really an explanation of what constitutes
05:48dangerous cycling, and whether dangerous cycling in itself is going to be penalised or only
05:57penalised based on the outcome of that action.
06:03But I think you also have to get it into perspective as well.
06:06We see the figures for how many people have been injured by cars every day, or killed
06:14by cars every day, and to my knowledge, I only know of one person that's been killed
06:21by a cyclist in years.
06:24So I think you have to get things into perspective.
06:27Yes, I've been knocked off a couple of times when I've been cycling, and that's usually
06:33been just because the driver hasn't really seen me.
06:37They're keeping an eye out for cars, and they just don't see the cyclists.
06:42And usually when you get knocked off, or the times I've been knocked off, the first thing
06:46they've said to me is, sorry mate, I just didn't see you.
06:49And that seems to be kind of typical.
06:53I think more or less the laws in Europe are pretty much the same as here in the UK.
06:57You have to keep a lot of road sense, you have to cycle safely on the correct side of
07:04the road, etc.
07:06But I would say the big difference for me, obviously there are better and worse road
07:11surfaces around Europe than here in the UK.
07:15So for instance, France and Spain, I would say, are far better road surfaces, which makes
07:19cycling a lot easier.
07:21But then you go somewhere like Italy and the road surfaces are absolutely shocking, and
07:24the road surfaces here, by comparison, are a lot nicer.
07:28But generally speaking, the big difference is the way that drivers kind of see cyclists.
07:34In Europe, cycling is seen as a mainstream sport, and cyclists are afforded quite a lot
07:41of respect and courtesy on the roads.
07:44But I do see that happening here as well, a lot more these days.
07:48But by the same token, I would say that us as cyclists also have a responsibility to
07:55show drivers courtesy when they're clearly making allowances for us, when they don't
08:02try and overtake when it's dangerous, when they do wait to let you through and stuff.
08:07So every time I see that from a driver, I will always put my hand up, say thank you,
08:13and hopefully that kind of counts, you know, sticks in the driver's mind thinking, oh,
08:18you know, not all cyclists are that arrogant, you know.
08:23It's easy to get cross with people driving badly, particularly when you feel put at risk.
08:29But rather than shake my fist and swear at people and just perpetuate those attitudes,
08:35I would just, I have learnt to just shrug my shoulders, roll my eyes, let it go.
08:42But when someone shows the least amount of courtesy towards me as a cyclist, I am effusive
08:48with gratitude and thanks, because I want that perspective to be gifted on and hope
08:56that the next time that driver will have another positive experience.
09:04There are too many cars chasing too few parking spaces and that takes, everyone is looking
09:10for a parking space, they're not looking at other road users and you just want just
09:17that little bit more concentration on the road.
09:21And if not being angry at someone shaking your fist a few minutes ago helps that concentration,
09:29so much the better.
09:32I think, yes, I mean, again, I can only reiterate that I think if a cyclist rides irresponsibly
09:39and causes an accident or heaven forbid worse, then yes, they should be punished.
09:46The solution, I don't know, I think, I'm not sure cycle lanes are the answer because a
09:54lot of them aren't really fit for purpose.
09:57I think it's an education thing of both, you know, cyclists to get on with motorists or
10:05at least not to ride dangerously.
10:09But I also think it's down to the motorists as well to just, you know, not be aggressive
10:16towards cyclists if they think a cyclist is riding in the middle of the road or, because
10:22usually a cyclist is riding in the middle of the road to avoid a pothole, but the motorists
10:28don't really see that.
10:31So yeah, I think it's just everybody just needs to kind of calm down a little bit maybe
10:36and just look out for each other and be a bit more tolerant.
10:41I mean, I think the biggest problem is that there are too many cars and particularly for
10:48short journeys, big cars, one person in it.
10:53And if you ask that person why you drive your car instead of cycling, generally they will
10:58say something along the lines of, I don't feel safe on the road.
11:04Now until you can break that cycle, the more people who cycle for the short journeys, the
11:11less short car journeys there are.
11:14And as they become less car journeys, then the roads become safer.
11:18And as the road becomes safer, more people will look at alternate modes of transport,
11:26reducing car usage further again.
11:30But it's very difficult to cycle to break into, pun unintended.
11:36The bottom line is though that the most dangerous thing on the roads these days are cars, lorries
11:43and trucks.
11:44And it's usually cyclists, pedestrians that end up falling foul of that.
11:56When is it acceptable for cyclists to ride to abreast?
12:10A. Always.
12:12B. As long as they're not on a narrow road, busy road or bend.
12:16Or C. Cyclists shouldn't ride side by side, even on quiet roads.
12:20C. Isn't it always?
12:25It should be C actually.
12:26Well, it's probably C, but I would say B.
12:32If it's a wide, not a narrow road.
12:35I'll go with A. Ding, ding, ding, correct.
12:38Thank you very much.
12:42It's illegal not to wear a helmet while cycling.
12:45Is that true or false?
12:48I would say false.
12:49I would have thought true.
12:50Yeah, yeah, I'd say that's true.
12:51False.
12:52I'm gonna say false.
12:53Yeah, I'm gonna say false.
12:54False.
12:55Ding, ding, ding, correct.
12:56Well, that's cool because I never wear a helmet.
13:09What is the minimum safe overtaking distance for a motorist overtaking a cyclist?
13:15Is A. 2.5 metres, B. 2 metres or C. 1.5 metres?
13:232 metres.
13:24So, the answer is 1.5 metres.
13:26Oh!
13:27A metre and a half.
13:28I'm gonna go 1.5 metres.
13:29It should be 2.5 metres, but I'm gonna go with the shortest distance.
13:34I'm gonna go with B. 2 metres.
13:36The answer is apparently C. 1.5 metres, yeah.
13:39There you go.
13:40Yeah, and I'm the one doing my driving lessons.
13:431.5 metres, are we?
13:45Correct.
13:461.5 metres.
13:47That's right.
13:48So, I've been hit by a car once on a bike anyway, so I know these facts.
13:51I'm surprised about the helmet, to be honest.
13:53I thought the helmet should be mandatory, but there you go.
13:57I think that this change in the law, personally, I think it's a good thing.
14:02I think that, you know, the government are trying to encourage more cyclists on the roads.
14:09And I think there's a bit of a big disparity and discrepancy between cyclists and motorists
14:14currently on the road.
14:15The majority of cyclists are law-abiding and good cyclists.
14:20But as I say, I think if we're gonna be getting more cyclists, I think this approach and this
14:25change in the law is, if anything, it's highlighted the disparity between motorists and cyclists
14:32on the busy roads that we've got today.
14:34The cycle lanes in the UK are in the gutter.
14:37You're not as safe on two wheels as you are on four.
14:40So, they haven't avoided drains and potholes and obstacles.
14:44Certainly, as a supervisor and driver, when I've got a learner driving, you know, the law has
14:51recently changed.
14:52We've now got to give them more clearance, which is a good thing.
14:55But you're still gonna get cyclists who are just suddenly swerving out to avoid an obstacle
14:59at the last minute.
15:00I have a friend that, years ago, was driving along quite happily, and the cyclist came
15:05out of the side road, drove straight into his car, rolled over the bonnet, cracked his
15:09windscreen, and got up and was gonna walk away.
15:12And the friend said, well, no, hang on, you're either a bit stunned or maybe been taking
15:17something, I don't know.
15:18And he insisted on calling the police and an ambulance.
15:22And bizarrely enough, when the police got there, they breathalysed the driver, and they
15:25sent the kid home.
15:27So, what does that tell you?
15:28So, this friend of mine was actually left with the full cost of a new windscreen, and
15:33this kid had absolutely no comeback at all.
15:36But what I find interesting was the fact that police, the first response was to breathalyse
15:41the driver.
15:42If you have a look at the UK set of rules, there's a little bit in the highway code.
15:47And to be fair with you, I don't think it's that comprehensive.
15:50It's more about wear a cycle helmet and don't go through a red light.
15:53A lot of them are suggestions as to what they should do, but no, there's nothing governing
15:58cyclists on the road at the moment.
16:00So, if they do want to, again, incorporate more cyclists, they have to do something more.
16:09And I think this law, maybe putting a little bit of onus on the cyclist, for me personally,
16:14is a good step forward.
16:17Now to Preston, and this footage shows the horrifying moment a cyclist was thrown into
16:21the air after being hit by a car driven on the wrong side of the road.
16:25Mike Inkley caught the film on his helmet camera, which shows the force of the devastating
16:30impact.
16:38Aargh!
16:41Aargh!
16:42Aargh!
16:45My shoulder!
16:48Aargh!
16:55Somebody turning out onto a main road from a side road, he was turning right.
17:01And unfortunately, he didn't go straight to the opposite side of the road where he should
17:06have been.
17:07He cut across on my side of the road and hit me head on.
17:11So, car doing 15, 20 miles an hour and me doing 15, 20 miles an hour.
17:16Me versus Volkswagen Passat Estate, I lost.
17:19I had seven broken ribs, a haemothorax, a pneumothorax.
17:26So, one of those is where you get all the air and fluid in your lungs, basically swap
17:33around.
17:34You get air in your chest cavity and you get fluid in your lungs.
17:37One rib was through the back of my lung.
17:41Shoulder was entirely disintegrated.
17:44Arm was disintegrated.
17:46Coma for 10 days after it.
17:48So, life changing.
17:50I was off work for just under two years.
17:53Difference in arm length is quite dramatic.
17:55So, I can put a shoulder bag across this way and it stays on.
17:58I put a shoulder bag on that shoulder, it slips off.
18:05It's really quite a difficult situation for cyclists at the minute because there was a
18:09lot of people who weren't previously cyclists who bought bikes during lockdown to get out
18:13for the exercise and everything else and some of those are quite inexperienced.
18:17So, they have an issue.
18:19There is a massive issue, to my mind, in the state of the roads.
18:24I think they are positively dangerous for cyclists.
18:27You know, a car hits a pothole and I've had to have a new tyre on my car last week from
18:32a pothole and yes, it was a couple of hundred quid and it annoyed me.
18:35Cyclists, it's a pothole.
18:37Potentially, they're under the front of a lorry or a car.
18:39That's a very, very different situation.
18:41So, I think there are major issues with that.
18:45There are also issues we have here with the attitude and politics of shared spaces.
18:50So, if you go into continental Europe, shared spaces are just that.
18:55Here, it's kind of a free for all.
18:58So, you know, you sort of take the shared spaces in Preston, for example,
19:01and they're sort of shared between cars and bikes and people.
19:05And nobody's quite certain whether there's a right of way or not.
19:09The cars look at it and say, if there's a kerb, it's automatically a road,
19:12therefore, our right of way.
19:14Cyclists, I'm very disappointed.
19:17And this comes back especially to certain cyclists, I have to say,
19:21is that they don't necessarily ride with the respect they should.
19:26And I think you do have a big issue that, in terms of overall safety,
19:32everybody notices bad car drivers and everybody notices bad cyclists,
19:36and we never notice the good ones either.
19:38And I think the problem is that cyclists sometimes don't help themselves
19:42in terms of red lights and stop signs and pavements.
19:47But at the end of the day, if you get a bad cyclist hits your car,
19:50he might break a wing mirror.
19:52If you get a bad car driver who hits a cyclist, he kills them.
19:55So I think cycling is a fantastic thing for people to do.
20:02It's wonderfully healthy, it's wonderfully green,
20:04it's brilliant for transportation,
20:07but it has to be properly monitored, properly measured,
20:11and looked at in a way that says,
20:14yeah, OK, let's encourage all the good that's out there.
20:17But at the moment, there's no position to clamp down on all the bad.
20:21And that, for me, is an issue that there should be.
20:31I would immediately make it a legal requirement to have a helmet.
20:34I see no issues with that at all.
20:36It's no different to seatbelts in a car.
20:40I get quite disappointed when people say, you know, it's civil liberties.
20:45Yeah, in a way, I can accept that,
20:47but let's say I'm driving my car perfectly safely,
20:50and a cyclist does something silly,
20:53and I clip him and he dies, I've got to live with that.
20:57If that was a situation with two cars coming together,
21:01and one of them wasn't wearing a seatbelt,
21:03there would be a prosecution for it.
21:05It's a necessary safety item,
21:08and I don't think it's even remotely sensible to pretend anything else.
21:12There's got to be a collective responsibility,
21:15there's a society on that to say, this is a reasonable precaution.
21:19You know, a helmet's, what, £20 in Tesco's?
21:22And there's no logical reason why people can't wear them,
21:25so I wouldn't be stood here if I hadn't been wearing a very good helmet.
21:29I think, yeah, helmets, absolutely a requirement.
21:41Insurance is a slightly more difficult one,
21:43because I'm not aware of any statistics available
21:47to say the number of crashes involving cyclists and the damage involved.
21:52Helmets is a much simpler one.
21:55It's an automatic.
21:57I'd say no-brainer, but if you're not wearing a helmet,
22:00you potentially don't have one.
22:02But insurance is more difficult.
22:04Whether you could do a registration scheme
22:07that costs £10 a year, I don't know.
22:10We have that for drones.
22:12If you go out and buy a drone that weighs more than 250 grams,
22:15you have to register, and it costs £10, £12 a year.
22:18So in the event of an accident involving it,
22:21you've got a sticker in there which has to carry your name,
22:24your registration number, and they can trace it back from that.
22:27So whether you could do that, I don't know.
22:31Bikes change hands an awful lot.
22:34But there's an element of sense in doing that.
22:36You can microchip a cat for £20.
22:38Could you potentially pop a microchip inside a bike
22:41and then solve the issue of who owns it, where it was,
22:44whether it's been stolen, do all of that in one go?
22:47The combination of this attitude that's getting worse,
22:53this them-and-us attitude, this conflict,
22:57the state of the road surfaces,
23:00the nature of driving these days.
23:02I think driving standards have got worse.
23:04Cars have got bigger.
23:06People are far more insulated from what's going on around them.
23:09They've got all the distractions in the car of a lovely big screen or two screens,
23:14which is strange that you have your phone in the cradle,
23:16you're not allowed to touch it,
23:17but you're allowed to press 96 buttons to make your seat one degree warmer
23:20or heat your steering wheel or change your sat-nav.
23:23So there's so many distractions going on in a car these days
23:26that never used to exist.
23:28And as I say, the big one for me is the state of the potholes
23:32because they're difficult in a car.
23:35They're positively dangerous on a bike.