Sunday 18 December 2011

Should cyclists cycle up this cycle lane?

Vulnerable road users are being seriously injured or killed as a consequence of large lorries, designed in such a way that drivers can't see other traffic, being driven in our city . As a consequence TfL are encouraging cyclists "Never cycle up the left side of a lorry stopped at a junction.". 


You envisage that TfL mean don't squeeze up the inside of a lorry in the kind of narrow situation below (at the junction coming off Lambeth Bridge into Lambeth - though why on earth TfL recently painted the cycle logos where they did is quite beyond me), 



 But do TfL really intend that a cyclist shouldn't continue in a clearly provided mandatory cycle lane they've installed such as the one in this video? 

If vehicles or lanes are so poorly designed that a driver just can't see whether a neighbouring lane is clear or not then there's clearly a huge problem and I don't believe it should be the responsibility of the cyclist to resolve it. I know the cyclist is the one who will lose in a collision, but I believe that we should have a society where children, adults with learning difficulties and executives in city banks should be able to cycle around without having to second-guess whether a lane provided for their use is usable. 
Conditions for cycling and walking in London have got to improve. That's why I'll be at the vigil taking place this Tuesday 20th December from 6pm at Kings Cross. Please come along too.