MAG warns “Lives Depend on Getting Automated Vehicles Right”
The Motorcycle Action Group warns that self-driving cars could put riders at risk unless the Government sets tougher safety standards.
The Motorcycle Action Group (MAG) has issued a stark warning to the Government over the future of automated vehicles, saying motorcyclists will pay the price if safety standards aren’t set high enough.
MAG has submitted its response to the current consultation on automated vehicle safety principles, highlighting what it calls a “critical gap” in regulation. While the law requires self-driving tech to match the performance of a “careful and competent human driver,” there’s no measurable definition of what that actually means.
And with riders accounting for 315 of the 1,695 road deaths in 2023, despite making up less than one per cent of road traffic, MAG argues the bar for “competent” driving is already too low.
To address the issue, MAG is calling for the adoption of the Speed, Space, Surprise, Consequence (SSSC) model developed by Stephen Haley, author of Mind Driving. The framework sets out measurable standards for speed control, hazard anticipation, and decision-making that prioritise vulnerable road users.
Colin Brown, MAG’s Director of Campaigns, said:
“The government has set ambitious goals for automated vehicle safety. We’re offering a practical framework to make sure those goals are actually delivered. When automated vehicles can clearly demonstrate superior performance in protecting motorcyclists, that proves the technology works.”
MAG also wants the Government’s safety principles to be rewritten with riders explicitly in mind. Too often, “vulnerable road user” language has meant motorcyclists are overlooked in favour of pedestrians and cyclists. Given that bikes share the full speed range and all road types with cars, MAG says failing to recognise motorcyclists specifically risks disaster.
The group is also proposing annual performance reports, scenario-based testing, and continuous monitoring of automated vehicles to ensure motorcyclists aren’t sidelined once the technology hits the road.
Brown added:
“We now have the opportunity to set higher standards not only for machines but for humans too. If automated vehicles can anticipate hazards better than people, why should we accept lower standards from human drivers?”
Mag isn't the only group urging the government to get this new legislation right. Earlier this year, it was the National Motorcycle Council's turn on the government megaphone, with NMC Executive Director, Craig Carey-Clinch, saying:
“It is essential that the Government gets this right. A thirst for growth cannot come before safety, particularly for the most vulnerable on the UK’s roads and ‘fast tracking’ inevitably means compromises. We urge the Transport Secretary to carefully consider her next steps and not fast track pilots before the Statement of Safety Principles is fully developed and implemented to a proper timescale under the AV [Autonomous Vehicle] Act.”
The consultation on the Government’s Statement of Safety Principles closes on 1 September 2025.
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Simon (AKA Toad) has been working within the motorcycle industry for more than twelve years, and a member of the motorcyclist family since birth. Growing up around British-built single and twins, it was inevitable that a life on two wheels was on the cards, from a very early age!
