London Mayor gets rocket from bike safety campaign

London Mayor Sadiq Khan has received a rocket from bike safety campaigners, demanding he make motorcycling safety a priority in the capital.

The London Assembly Transport Committee report ‘Motorcycle Safety in London: Update report’  highlights key motorcycling safety issues, and makes recommendations to the Mayor and Transport for London with the aim of reducing the dangers faced by motorcyclists in the capital.

The report makes these statements:

•     Motorcyclists face an unacceptable level of risk on London’s roads
•     The rate at which motorcyclists are injured in road traffic collisions is disproportionately high
•     Motorcyclist casualties in London have not fallen since TfL published its Motorcycle Safety Action Plan in 2014
•     The Plan is now outdated and needs to be renewed with new safety measures
•     The condition of road surfaces is crucial for safe riding

As a fix, the report recommends that all motorcyclists should be able to ride safely in bus lanes, TfL need to update the safety plan to bring it into line with 2018 needs and reinstate plans to develop a ‘London Standard’ or an equivalent measure for motorcycle safety training.

A spokesman said: "The new Mayor’s Transport Strategy and other recent announcements suggest the Mayor recognises the unacceptably high level of risk motorcyclists face on London’s roads. However, we need to see further tangible action to reduce this risk.

"The Motorcycle Safety Action Plan needs to be updated. We are now beyond the implementation date for all the actions in the previous plan, and there is no evidence that riding a motorcycle is any safer. We need a fresh look at this from the Mayor and TfL, bringing together all planned measures with clear timings and outcome measures."