One thing that is very apparent to me over the last 25 years of riding in and out of central London is that the introduction of cycle lanes has in actual fact taken the natural 'safe' road space we once had. With a larger area of road 4 wheeled vehicles will fill only a certain area within its lane the rest of it was once 'our area' ,now we have been squeezed and potentially more vulnerable than those who the cycle lane was put in for. And why TFL and all other councils can't get together and make all bus lanes open for motorcycle usage is beyond understanding.
Their ultimate aim is zero personal transport and that included motorcycles. They have no intention of helping and in some ways perhaps that’s good because their help is often fatal for the recipients.
Why though It isnt a bus or a taxi so why should it use the lanes And what difference does it make you are just going to filter through if there is traffic anyway
@@highlandrab19 MAGs point of view is that a motorcycle is just as vulnerable as a cycle and they have access to bus lanes. I would rather ride in an empty bus lane than riding through heavy congestion. Michael MAG National Political Officer
As a MAG member and someone who's dyslexic. I find these videos very useful. Yes I get the road and I read the smaller bits but being dyslexic the larger article take time and don't sink in so we'll. Please keep the videos going as it brings me up to speed . Even if I do shout at the lap top when I'm watching them . Keep up.the good work and I'll keep fighting our corner
Also look how motorcycles are treated with regards to road tax, a 600 cc and over costs 111 pounds no matter how green it is, compare that to a car some car pay nothing.
With regards to the safety, I always point out that motorcycles are one of the safest forms of transport on the roads, there are far fewer pedestrians killed by motorcycles than cars and if anything the motorcycle rider becomes the victim of the bad car driver. So why do they always want to blame the victim, would they blame the granny for being mugged or do they blame the mugger. Motorcycles are far safer for everyone else than cars and reduce congestion and thrid party injuries. If govt wants to reduce road deaths and injuries then surely it would make good sense to promote the use of motorcycles for road safety reasons alone.
Council's speaking negatively of motorcyclists in the context of injuries and KSI, safety in general should be pointed to the highway code and hierarchy of road users, reminded that eith motorcyclists being vulnerable road users, the council should discharge their own duty of care and be educating drivers higer up in the hierarchy of road users to take proper care for motorcyclists, rather than placing 100% of the onus for safety on the rider. It seems that the thinking is that motorcyclists choose to expose themselves to the risk... but so do cyclists.
Lads my son is at college with are paying between 3 - £5,000 a year to insure modest hatchbacks, whereas my son paid £900. His fuel costs are a fraction of theirs. CBT was far cheaper than driving lessons. They complain about the weather. After buying winter gear, they'd still be saving a lot of money. Awareness is our biggest enemy. The lack of if by other road users. The old "Think once. Think Twice. Think Bike!" ads were great but did they have any impact? I've long been of the opinion that the more of us there are, the more aware others would be. Getting the lads to save a few hundred, maybe a grand, a year might tempt a few more
I am not from the UK, it is probably the same in my country. My question is: is this bad? Not being on the radar may have some benefits. Example: many cities I visit in my country have no motorcycle parking spaces. Yet, usually if you leave your bike in a suitable spot that is not blocking anything, you're fine. And there is no parking fee. I like that. My fear is that (as an example), if a council creates official motorcycle parking spaces, they may start to charge for it... Riding under the radar may not be so bad...
My local council is aware of motorcycles, they have introduced parking charges for motorcycles throughout the borough yet do not provide parking with any form of security. I’ve read that NE Somerset Council is charging motorcyclists same rates as cars which are based on emissions, Euro4 compliant 20 year old GSA charged same rate as a 3 litre Range Rover.
None of this will make any difference the only thing that will Is if every motorcycleist puts on the census religion MOTORCYCLIST then we will have a legal rights.
I live in Tyne and Wear so I use Bus Lanes every day...But when I visit other counties its madness in busy traffic and adds to the danger of having to filter.
Transport planners from all over the country attend an annual conference ‘Transport UK’ - and if you offer to become a speaker, you will get your message in front of the people you need to reach fairly effectively.
Honestly I would pay for parking if it was secure. Glasgow has removed a majority of its bike parking furniture. I generally don't feel safe leaving my bike on the street where there is nothing to chain it too.
Hi Colin, from an old SOC friend. Councils recognise bikes exist but are still working on the EU plan for zero deaths on the roads by 2050. They see powered 2 wheelers as something to be discouraged plus this is why speed limits are being reduced for all wholesale. Swale council is also proposing to charge motorcycles for parking as well. The real problem is consultations. Kent County Council's transport consultation got about 400 replies, with a large proportion from biased green groups and parish councils that they invite to respond! Of the individual responses 75% were from pensioners (hardly representative)and overall the response was 0.00024% of the population. However, silence on consultations is taken as agreement.
The word 'motorcycle' appears only once in the 2023 Warwickshire LTP4, only then only when referring to Private Motor Vehicles (in the sub heading section) that they wish to discourage the use of. In fairness, in the county of Warwickshire, motorcycles can park for free where any car can (but the car might have to pay), including parking permit bays, on streetside and in most car parks that they own (or the local town councils do). Most off street car parks have motorcycle bays, but motorbikes can park in normal parking bays and some towns have big motorcycle only parking areas. Of course, some of the car parks are not owned or operated by the council. The mad rush to EV of course is the real elephant in the room that even MAG refuses to address. Top down, forced conversion to a wholly unreliable, massively dangerous and polluting EV alternative is the insanity of governments the world over. Lock your EV motorcycle in the garage under or attached to your house, and die in the inferno it will create when the battery goes up.
I think all learner drivers first should partake in the CBT as classroom lesson ie road markings, signs, positioning etc before actual riding would be beneficial to learners & car drivers. Jmo
This has been a pet rant of mine for many years, I believe that before you can get a car license, you should be required to take a motorcycle CBT. In this way you will have more perspective on what it's like to ride on two wheels and how defensively motorcyclists have to ride.
@@B0M0A0K When riding behind cars you can so often tell if the driver of a car is also a motorcyclist - road sense is 1000% higher than almost all car drivers. All should have to spend at least 12months on a motorcycle before they are allowed behind the steering wheel of a car and RTAs would be decreased by such a huge margin.
Perhaps motorcyclists should organise boycotts of places in a rolling campaign to show the strength of the biker pound. I wonder how much financial impact that sector has in the likes of Wales. Hitting them in the pocket is usually the only way to get their attention. We just have to decide if we want their attention frankly. Hello! I’m from local government. I’m here to help😮
Perhaps it’s a good thing that they’re ignorant of motorcycles. If you think that the problems motorcyclists face are bad you should see the solutions that the council’s would come up with!😂
