10 signatures reached
To: Scottish Government
Cyclists need to take responsibility
Make new rules for cyclists:
They must wear fully reflective clothing (not only high visibility as once theses are old or been washed the reflective quality fades)
They must have lights on the front, back and sides of their bicycle.
They must become identifiable by way of a registration number.
They must allow traffic and parked cars the same clearance as cars are expected to allow them.
Why is this important?
As people are encouraged more and more to take to the busy city streets on their bicycles, it's time for new laws to be put into place.
It should be law for all cyclists to wear at very least a fully reflective jacket. More often than not cyclists are wearing little more than an old high visibility vest with faded reflective strips which makes them blend in to the surroundings. The cyclist who wears the modern design of safety wear eg. a jacket made fully from reflective material, is much easier to spot.
Lights are essential and the mandatory amount of lighting needs to be increased. A cyclists with non reflective clothing and the minimum amount of lighting (small light to back and front) is almost invisible on city roads. A person travelling on a bike between parked cars and moving traffic wearing only old or no high visibility and with only a small red light can easily be mistaken by a driver using his mirrors as a reflection of lights from the multitude of traffic surrounding them.
Cyclists should be identifiable. I often hear of cyclists scratching vehicles as they wind in and out of traffic (which in a car would be considered as dangerous driving), I have heard of cyclists spitting at cars and drivers, and I've witnessed first hand incidents caused by a cyclist who has managed to escape the scene with no comeback. A registration number would give pedestrians and driver the means to hold a cyclist responsible should they be involved in any sort of incident.
Cyclists should not be overtaking cars within 1.5m of the side of a vehicle . Every vehicle has blind spots and a cyclist travelling close to the side of a car are putting themselves in huge danger of being hit.
The law needs to change to pass the responsibility of cyclist safety back to the cyclist.
No driver goes out planning to hit a cyclist - and cyclists should be made to take responsibility to be as visible as they can be.
