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Heads-up: the AA says many Boris bikers need helmets as they are unsafe

Cyclists angered by AA's helmet giveaway

Ross Lydall
15 Apr 2011


An AA scheme giving away 5,000 high-visibility bicycle helmets and jackets has enraged some cyclists.

The motoring organisation was handing out the items at Waterloo Place, off Pall Mall, this morning and Lincoln's Inn Fields in Holborn this afternoon after it found in a survey that less than five per cent of Boris bikers used a helmet. The Raleigh Missile helmets sell for up to £27.

But cyclists said the AA should direct its energy at improving motorists' behaviour rather than creating the impression that cycling is unsafe.

Jim Gleeson said: "Maybe cyclists could reciprocate by giving out free eye-glasses and copies of the Highway Code to drivers."

Transport for London, which oversees the Boris bike scheme, does not require riders to wear a helmet. None have died but around a dozen have reported injuries.

AA president Edmund King said: "You see some people on Boris bikes who are not proper cyclists. They need a helmet more than most. They're weaving all over the place."

Reader views (58)

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The only thing looking streamlined on a London cyclist is the Helmet , and they have absolutely no safety record you can refer to , they are just a manufacturers gimmick , given away when you buy a bike,crafty manufacturers !!!?.

- Davey_Buoy, Chertsey, 17/04/2011 13:48
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About a dozen injuries? Is that all? Boris Bikes have been used about a million times and over many thousands of miles.. It sounds more to me as if the helmets are a waste of energy by the AA.

The AA could be rational. Cyclists are not that hard to see during the day. Perhaps if it turned its efforts to positive instruction to motorists on how to drive around cyclists in a safe and courteous manner?

This doesnt make the cyclist safer. Norwegian research even suggests that helmets put cyclists at 14% more of a risk from motorists. Have the AA just put a target on their back (or head)?

- DJC, Hampshire, 17/04/2011 13:38
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Cycling over pedestrian crossings, ignoring traffic lights, riding on pavements and always complaining, oh to be a cyclist

- Peter, Richmond, 15/04/2011 23:13

well said,i drive in london every day from est to west and north to south,the only cyclists i see are aragant and down right dangerous!if drivers drove in the way that most cyclists flout the high way code it would be bedlam!

- four eyes, londinium, 17/04/2011 10:46
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Drivers kill more because there are more of them and their vehicle weighs a couple of tons and is going much faster than the average cyclist. It's simple physics, nothing to do with drivers being more dangerous.

It's common sense really that you've got a bunch of cyclists with no requirement for any training or minimum age or safety checks on their "vehicles" or any requirement to have any ID marks similar to registration numbers.....who do you think is going to be the most irresponsible and incompetent and dangerous?

Somehow the pro-cycling lobby seem to think that they're the ones who are in the right. There's lies, damned lies and statistics. Cyclists regularly take huge risks. As I've said in other posts I'm a Bus driver and during rush hour, unless I'm almost touching the kerb, and by that I mean a few centimetres from it, some pillock of a cyclist will try and squeeze up the inside. Guaranteed. Now if I turn left and squash them that'll probably go down as my fault. The mirrors in Buses don't have the blind spots that HGVs do and if you look in the mirror, as you should do if you're turning left, then you should see them. But the law of averages suggests someone's not going to; after all you're maybe only inches from the kerb....there's no room for anyone, surely?? So it goes down as my fault, but really wouldn't you say the cyclist shouldn't have been there? that they were monumentally MORE stupid than anything they're blaming the driver for?

- Kevin, Watford, 16/04/2011 20:55
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Bloody marvellous isn't it!
If someone was giving away £5 notes, some miserable scroat would find it offensive and start mouthing criticisms. If that kind of cyclist finds giving out free safety devices offences I most strongly suggest that they (the offended) don't use them. In the interest of Darwinism (survival of the fittest) we might just get a better class of cyclist (surviving) if these people refrain from all types of protection. Personally taking steps to protecting your head against injury has nothing to do with what the other parties do. It also is just about impossible to compel motorists - all motorists - to be always safe. I strongly believe that people such as those raising these objections should not be allowed to breed.

- norman Speight, London UK, 16/04/2011 17:25
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Mmm let se see.

Drivers kill over 3,000 people a year.
Cyclists kill between 1 and 2.

Some of the posters here whining and crying about cyclists should direct their fake indignation at the idiocy of the average car driver.

- Nick B, London, 16/04/2011 14:18
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Why do professional cyclists have helmets? Because the insurance companies refused to cover them unless they did! I have had a few falls where I'm certain the helmet saved me from something far worse.
In the Pyrenees and the Alps I've hit over 45mph. Id never go without a helmet.
Who are these idiots who complain about helmets? I assume the same who complain when I cyclist undertaking gets knocked off their bike or killed.

- Terence, Hennebont France, 16/04/2011 12:32
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According to the "Cochrane Collaboration" review of available scientific papers on the efficacy of cycle helmets (Cochrane Collaboration reviews are the source most trusted by doctors themselves) all you can say about them is that significantly fewer helmeted cyclists hospitalised have head injuries than non-helmeted. The reviews do not, and cannot, tell you how many of those head innjuries would have caused the cyclists to be hospitalised in the absence of other serious injury, or how serious those head injuries were - they could have been cuts or scratches - or how many head injuries there were as a percentage of all hospitalised cyclists.

But in fact we know that only a small proportion of cycling injuries are head injuries (compared, say, with limb fractures, collarbones etc) and the risk of head-injury per hour on a bike is comparable to that walking or in a car (slightly higher than walking, slightly lower than in-car) and the risk per mile is materially less on a bike than walking.

What this is really about is a not-very-subtle way of reinforcing the false message that when cyclists are injured by cars, they are agents of their own misfortune because they are not helmeted, or not visible enough, when the true reason is that motorists don't pay enough attention.

But, in fact, cycle helmets are only rated for falls of about 1 metre at speeds up to 12mph, and are ineffective against being struck by motor vehicles at speed.

- Paul M, London UK, 16/04/2011 09:27
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Cycling over pedestrian crossings, ignoring traffic lights, riding on pavements and always complaining, oh to be a cyclist

- Peter, Richmond, 15/04/2011 23:13
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Maybe next time the AA can hand out lights for there bikes, only saw 3 tonight coming home without lights, probably another dozen or so riding around me but couldnt see them.

- Mr S.Port, London, 15/04/2011 22:48
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I fell off my bike a few years ago when a motorist decided to suddenly go right to turn around as he was lost. He didn't check his mirrors and I swerved to miss colliding with his suddenly braking car. I slid and fell off at quite high speed, and fell with a crash on my left side; my head hitting the street first. To cut a long story short, when I left hospital, my helmet was smashed where it hit the ground, and the Royal Free doctor said that undoubtedly the helmet saved my skull by breaking. I was lucky to live. So don't believe all this gush about how helmets are no good. Ok I sometimes feel a pillok in one, but I would rather be an alive pillok than a dead one.

- pip, london, 15/04/2011 22:35
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The London Evening Troll at it again eh? What a rag.

- Diddly Oompah, London, 15/04/2011 20:20
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I ride a bike and we will always be a tiny minority. Unlike 30 million drivers, the economy would not notice if we all packed in biking.

But human flesh amongst heavy fast moving machinery would be banned if it were anything else. Read my lips fellow bikers: what we do is take a great risk by doing it and no-one would miss us if we didn't either.
So live with it.

- Keith Peat, Skegness UK, 15/04/2011 18:46
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I haven't read the comments here. There are far too many and I can probably list the topics they cover - cyclists are ALL arrogant and sanctimonious, they are the most dangerous things on the road, they should be taxed, registered, insured and fined heavily at all times, blah, blah, blah.... Anyway for the record as a regular cyclist I thought it was brilliant that the AA were handing out free helmets. I was not "angered" in the slightest. I would have taken 1 if I'd seen them

- Headhunter, London, 15/04/2011 18:36
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Sebastian Shakespeare's comment in tonight's Standard says it all about dangerous cycling. How very true. Every day I see cyclist's jumping red lights and crossing zebra crossings (while cars wait). Pedestrians should come first.

- Michael, Kensington, UK, 15/04/2011 18:34
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And there we have it. The response from "We're all being Brainwashed, Camden Town" perfectly encapsulates the egocentric attitude of some cyclists.

"When did a bike accident on the roads ever do anything to harm anyone but the cyclist?"

No consideration of the repercussions (psychologically, emotionally and legally) for drivers involved in an accident that's not their fault. No consideration of the sort of pile-up that could be caused taking drastic action to avoid a cyclist who's riding recklessly.

"As for people who ride on pavements, they never bother me much. It's them who have to wobble and wave around when they can't get through pedestrians"

Well, they bother me. Because most of those I've encountered haven't been wobbling their way through the crowd like they're on a leisurely cycle down the South Bank; they've been hurtling round corners, up onto the pavement at crossings or down hills expecting the pedestrians to take evasive action.

"Even then I was the injured party... that pedestrian was stood perfectly unharmed..."

It could've been SO different. You can't use a best case scenario to try and prove a point.

"Cyclists go through red lights and across pedestrian crossings because they KNOW they aren't at risk of killing anyone"

The exact sort of arrogant assumption that makes people hate cyclists. It doesn't matter what sort of vehicle you're in, that sort of attitude leads to accidents. But then you'd probably still blame the other party.

- Robbo, Hammersmith, 15/04/2011 18:01
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Human flesh among heavy metal machinery on the move would be banned under elf'nsafety rules if any other activity. AA are now selling bikes so I have a feeling this promotion could be more about that than bike safety.

I hope AA remember who their biggest payers are and that this will come totally out of its new cycling wing and not from drivers!

- Keith Peat, Skegness UK, 15/04/2011 17:54
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That'll teach Edmund King.Driving expert, Plumber, Insurance salesman and now bike seller. So this wasn't anything to do with AA going into the bike business Edmund? Yeh right!

I hope these hats are not going to come out of Insurance Premiums & breakdown recovery Edmund.

Serves him right. Stick with the drivers Edmund they are your biggest customer.

- Keith Peat, Skegness UK, 15/04/2011 17:47
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hey i am angry too. if i had known i could get a free helmet i would have been first in the queue, does anyone know if the AA are going to repeat this? my helmet has seen a lot of wear and has seen better days, so would love a new one. do let me know.

- keithy boy, london, 15/04/2011 17:05
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Hey let's just live and let live. We are most of us at one time or another both a "motorist" and a "cyclist". We are all members of the same population. Unfortunately, the nature of the motor vehicle is that it puts a physical metal barrier between one and the other - the strongest among us will overcome that "barrier" (and boldly lead the others)...

- Darren Williams, Hertfordshire, 15/04/2011 16:58
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As an AA member I'd rather have a discount off my sub than feel that £27 is being handed out to total strangers/ If they exist to serve the motorist, as they claim, as other posters have guessed their motive here must be indirectly to disparage cycling. Not with my cash, thank you! I'll be changing breakdown assistance provider from now on.

- mdj e10, london uk, 15/04/2011 16:49
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I have seen a lot of tourists recently wobbling along on Boris Bikes. Bearing in mind it is advisable to ALWAYS wear a helmet and a high visibility jacket, these should be automatically part of the package.

I can't believe the number of anti-cycling comments on here. Yes some cyclist can be annoying. So can lots of drivers. When did a bike accident on the roads ever do anything to harm anyone but the cyclist? As for people who ride on pavements, they never bother me much. It's them who have to wobble and wave around when they can't get through pedestrians, I've never seen a cyclist hit a pedestrian except I myself did when they stepped suddenly and unexpectedly into the road in front of me. Even then I was the injured party, having flown over my handlebars, nearly run over, that pedestrian was stood perfectly unharmed holding my handlebars in the upright position in which the bike had 'hit' her! Cyclists go through red lights and across pedestrian crossings because the KNOW they aren't at risk of killing anyone and it is actually a good idea to be ahead of the lights in front of the stopped traffic to make yourself very visible. Of course cyclists can be daft, criminal, stupid, or idiotic, but CARS KILL and severely maim people all day every day.

- We're all being Brainwashed, Camden Town, 15/04/2011 16:46
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Jim Gleeson said: "Maybe cyclists could reciprocate by giving out free eye-glasses and copies of the Highway Code to drivers."
--------------------------

Perhaps cyclists would also care to read the Highway Code? There's a nice little section in it with rules specifically for them. Rules which include stopping at pedestrian crossings and red lights(Rule 71), and not riding up the inside of vehicles indicating to turn left (whether moving, or sitting at traffic lights (Rules 72 & 73).

And then there's Rule 64 - not cycling on the pavement. Only this morning I was sworn at for not getting out of the way of a cyclist coming towards me on the pavement. Forgive me, but I thought the pavement was a pedestrian right of way!

- Rupert Rigsby, Bleak House, 15/04/2011 16:33
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Here we go again. Cyclists getting high and mighty, relishing being in the Narnia-Limbo fantasy world that is being between a pedestrian and motorist, so no rules apply to them. Just admit that sometimes you're in the wrong and you need protection for the consequences that follow.

- A. Pedestrian, London, 15/04/2011 16:30
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As head injuries are the biggest cause of death in fatal car accidents I hope the AA will be handing out helmets to drivers as well.

- Tim, London, 15/04/2011 16:08
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Some advice to all cyclists.

"If you are involved in an accident make sure that you inform the police even if you think you are ok at the time, some injuries may not be obvious at first....."
Dc, London, 15/04/2011 14:17

....And if you are involved in an accident with a pedestrian, please stop and give your details rather than whizzing off at high speed as did the red-light jumper who whacked into me........

- A pensioner, London, England, 15/04/2011 16:06
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Its ironic the number of times whilst cycling that I have been cut up by motorists with a few mountain bikes on the back of their cars.

- Terry, Hennebont France, 15/04/2011 16:02
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A pensioner, London: part of question can be answered with, “Last year, [2009] Jim Fitzpatrick, then Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at the Department for Transport, said in a written reply to a question in the House of Commons that 29 pedestrians had been killed in Britain in accidents involving cyclists between 1998 and 2007, compared to 7,692 who were killed in collisions with motorised vehicles.” Others will state 0.5 of a person!

Question for pro cyclists: when was the last time that you saw a cyclist stop first at a pedestrian crossing in order to give way to a pedestrian waiting to cross?

- BJ, East London, 15/04/2011 15:25
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Cyclists are angered! What a joke! I am sick & tired of hearing from he cyclist lobby. The majority of cyclists in London ignore the rules,are a danger to themselves & others.

- Anthony, London, 15/04/2011 15:24
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Just got back to the office from lunch. And lo and behold a cyclist riding their bike and wired to their MP3 player.....
Bravo!
I suppose it will be the motorists fault if the cyclist collides with a car because he does not hear a car approaching....

- An officer and A Gentleman, Hyde Park, London, UK, 15/04/2011 15:17
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Davey_Buoy, Chertsey - Stop being a selfish muppet. You don't own the road, and 2 wheel bikes, whether motorised or not, are all allowed on the roads. With an attitude like yours, it's no wonder some cyclists cycle on the pavement. Also, horses are allowed on roads too.

Some motorists/cylists/pedestrians you just cannot help. They do what they want, when they want. That does not mean they all have to be tarred with the same brush.

- Dom, London, United Dustbin of Europe, 15/04/2011 14:54
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How can anyone just go wobbling down a really busy street on two wheels looking like a circus clown,and not expect to have the occasional accident , roads are for traffic , Lorries , Buses , Cars and other stable four wheel transport.

- Davey_Buoy, Chertsey, 15/04/2011 14:27
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@Paul, Berkhamsted, 15/04/2011 13:17
@Jo, Kilburn, 15/04/2011 12:39
@Hamilton Straker, Ealing London, 15/04/2011 12:58
@adrian, London, 15/04/2011 13:28

RE: efficacy of bicycle helmets.

A recent review of the body of literature into the efficacy of cycle helmets to their wearers post-crash has shown that they have zero net benefit, there is no benefit to a cyclist with a helmet compared to one without a helmet. This doesn't take into account the effect helmet wearing has on the behaviour of the wearer and on other road users, generally believed to increase the risk of being involved in a crash. The facts are not on the side of helmets.

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=ArticleURL&_udi=B6V5S-52592GF-1&_user=494590&_coverDate=05%2F31%2F2011&_alid=1718329396&_rdoc=1&_fmt=high&_orig=search&_origin=search&_zone=rslt_list_item&_cdi=5794&_sort=r&_st=13&_docanchor=&view=c&_ct=21&_acct=C000024058&_version=1&_urlVersion=0&_userid=494590&md5=3c1e6fb1ee4adc196e7868769f0e0807&searchtype=a

- mr_colostomy, Manchester, 15/04/2011 14:18
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Some advice to all cyclists.

If you are involved in an accident make sure that you inform the police even if you think you are ok at the time, some injuries may not be obvious at first. Likewise any damage to your bike may not be obvious so you will need a police report for any compensation claims.

Always get the other persons details and ask for proof. Many drivers are uninsured and will try and fob you of with fake details.

Get a photo of the vehicle involved.

Make sure you get plenty of witnesses and again get them to provide their details.

Always obey traffic laws, ensure that any accident you may be involved with is the other persons fault.

- Dc, London, 15/04/2011 14:17
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I'm all for motorists being better educated with regards motorists. Makes perfect sense. How about cyclists being better educated too? Things like 'red lights mean stop', 'pavements are for pedestrians', 'signals', that sort of thing. Education is definitely a 2 way street.............

- Rascal, Slough, 15/04/2011 14:05
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Paul Humphreys, I completely agree. My particular bugbear is the moronic cyclists who like to overtake lorries and buses on the inside and are also prone to overtaking other cyclists on the inside. I had a bad shock just yesterday when one of these helmeted egomaniacs overtook me just as I was turning left. They are completely oblivious to everyone else on the road and have the gall to blame drivers for their own stupid selfish behaviour. Its true that bad drivers exist but I've been put at much greater danger by other cyclists than I ever have by car drivers.

- Eleanor, London uk, 15/04/2011 13:56
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Does anyone have any stats as to cycle hire journeys against reported collisions - I thought that there has been about 5 million cycle hire journeys and it would be interesting to see how many collisions/collisions involving injuries that have happened. Data can then be taken from these results to see if the wearing of a helmet would have prevented any injury. If, say, on 75% of journeys users have not worn a helmet and/or reflective jacket will encouraging users to wear either of these have much effect? Given that it is very easy to damage a cycle helmet (simply dropping one lessens its effectiveness in any collision) having these available for hire wouldn't be practical.

Much stronger case for helmet wearing if the data shows some injuries could/could have been prevented.
Much stronger case for helmet wearing if the data shows some injuries could/could have been prevented.

- Roger, London, 15/04/2011 13:50
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Driving home last night - it's dark, cyclist on the road, dressed in black, no lights, jumping from pavement to road, riding through red lights....And the cyclist lobby wonder why cyclists are being knocked off their bikes....For Gawdsake start taking some responsibility for your actions instead of blaming motorists all the time.

- An officer & A Gentleman, London, UK, 15/04/2011 13:49
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Interesting and not totally unexpected comments to this article. As a keen cyclist, I'm appalled at the number of my fellow riders who wear dark clothing, have inappropriate shoes on and are often without lights at dusk/night. Yes, car drivers need to keep an eye out for cyclists, but for their part cyclists need to understand that they also have a duty for their own safety and this is about being seen, cycling safely, creating their own space on the road and generally following the same set of rules that other road users follow.

- Mike, London, 15/04/2011 13:41
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As a cyclist I am getting really fed up with the number of untrained and dangerous cyclists on the road! Several times I have nearly been knocked into and it's only been down to my own skill that i've avoided an accident. As for traffic lights I always stop and make sure I block the way through so that the less educated morons on 2 wheels have no choice but to stop.

- Paul Humphreys, Essex, 15/04/2011 13:36
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If they really want to help cyclists, the AA should actively discourage its members from breaking speed limits or using a hand-held mobile while driving, and encourage them to give cyclists space and not to encroach onto the Advanced Stop Lines at junctions.

@ Mike "And helmets don't save lives, regardless of the cause of an accident, do they?" - a helmet won't save you from being killed by a left-turning lorry. Proper training and awareness might.

- Arfur Towcrate, Staffycher, 15/04/2011 13:35
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Glad someone is using their brains and offering these. How many cyclists wear helmets. Do children wear them?
Well done AA for coming up with this even Boris Johnson with all these bike schemes could'nt come up with this.
How many cyclists don't stop at red lights, when they are supposed to?

- adrian, London, 15/04/2011 13:28
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"Cyclists angered by AA's helmet giveaway"... Urm, well not quite, this whole non-story is based on one sarcastic comment made by a single individual, who, I am sure, was not speaking for the millions of cyclists in the UK. What tosh.

- NJ, London, 15/04/2011 13:26
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It's a shame cyclists get killed but they position themselves on the inside of lorries which are turning left. Stop being idiots and stop creeping up on the inside of traffic. Simple.

By the way I ride a bike, a motorcycle and a car so I'm not biggoted.

- Dan, Bromley, 15/04/2011 13:25
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I am a car driver, though mainly a bus and pedestrian type these days as I hate driving.

I used to dislike cylists as most were terrible, did not keep up with the speed of the traffic and thought they could do whatever they liked, and was often closing my eyes on the way home (not whilst driving!) as I saw many swerve between cars, buses and motorbikes with no regards to their own safety, especially when turning left.

Recently the majority of cyclists I have observed have been far better, even the ones of Barclays bikes and the ones who have gone through red lights have done so with caution after ensuring there were no pedestrians crossing. The number of bad drivers I have seen has increased unfortunately.

I really wish there was more defensive driving/cycling enforced as with a bit of thought for your own safety and for the lives of those who are not encased in a metal box the roads of London could be much safer.

- SMB, London, UK, 15/04/2011 13:21
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@Dc, London, 15/04/2011 12:45

Are you really such a wild conspiracy theorist as to believe that they planned this giveaway specifically to "send out the message that Cycling in London is dangerous and to make people think twice about jumping on a bike"? That is absurd.

I don't know about the mentality of every single Londoner, but speaking from my point of view if somebody gave me a free cycle helmet that would make me MORE likely to get on my bike.

As for your comment about there being plenty more drivers out there breaking the law. No s@$t, Sherlock!

But that doesn't make cyclists devoid of responsibility; free to pass the buck as Jim Gleeson seemed so desperate to do.

My point was simply that there are those cyclists who make mistakes, cause accidents or ignore the rules too. It's not just drivers.

I wouldn't be surprised to find, given the cars to bikes ratio on London's streets, that the proportion of drivers and cyclists respectively who are reckless and flouting the laws was pretty similar.

- Mike, London, 15/04/2011 13:17
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@David, London: "No car driver has ever been killed by a bicycle" - that's because a car is a metal box which protects its occupants - it is naive to say that a cycling helmet doesn't save lives because a correctly fitted one clearly does. Mind you, if more drivers were reminded that the car they are driving is a lethal weapon, they might drive more responsibly.

- Paul, Berkhamsted, 15/04/2011 13:17
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Does anyone know the statistics for pedestrians injured/killed by cyclists?

- A pensioner, London, 15/04/2011 13:12
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If you drive you wear a seat belt, if you cycle you wear a helmet. basic safety. Rather than bickering like idiots, look at the facts, they save lives!

- Nat, London, 15/04/2011 13:10
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I would accept what ever is given . If one cares to stand at any junction and watch the standard of cycling, more than half of them should be off the road .These idiots get on there bikes and think they own the road . They need to be seen and as they tend to cycle on paths pavements and sometimes on the actual highway, the vests and helmets might just save taking up a bed in hospital and 6ft in a cemetary .

- Hamilton Straker, Ealing London, 15/04/2011 12:58
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There are no higher incidences of head injuries among cyclists than among pedestrians. The incidence of head injuries to cyclists is less than that of car drivers.

Why, then, decide that cyclists should wear helmets? If the AA wants to save lives it needs to give helmets to car drivers and pedestrians.

And no, helmets on cyclists have no record of saving lives.

I drive a car and a used to motorcycle as well as cycle. There are idiots doing all of those things. No car driver has ever been killed by a bicycle. Many cyclist have been killed by motor vehicles.

I give cyclists a wide berth when I'm driving, what's the problem with doing that?

The anger of people like Mike never ceases to amaze me and is probably the cause of many unnecessary accidents.

We have roads, they are perfectly easily shared. No sector of road users is perfect. Grow up, be careful and don't blame all problems on someone else.

- David Thorpe, London, England, 15/04/2011 12:53
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Had a slanging match the other day with a cyclist who nearly ran into me while I was crossing on a green man. The light was clearly red and the rest of the traffic had managed to stop so I proceeded to ask if he was colourblind or just stupid.

Sadly there are too many cyclists like this on the road. Of course many don't flout the law at all, but as long as these idiots keep jumping red lights and haring through zebra crossings the whole cycling community won't be taken seriously by pedestrians and motorists.

- DC, London, 15/04/2011 12:51
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- Mike, London, 15/04/2011 12:18

Come on, are you really that naieve to think that the AA care about cyclist safety. This is all a ploy to send out the message that Cycling in London is dangerous and to make people think twice about jumping on a bike. And as for your comment about cyclists not obeying the Highway Code, I assume you must walk around London streets with your eyes closed as there are plenty more motorists breaking the law and killing people than cyclists, why aren't you getting upset about them.? Or is this some sort of envy thing going on?

- Dc, London, 15/04/2011 12:45
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It might be worth checking your facts LES, cycle helmets give a net zero benefit to their wearers, making this give away nothing more than an attempt to shift the blame for those injured by negligent motorists whom their organisation represents onto their victims; cyclists.

- Mr Colostomy, Manchester, UK, 15/04/2011 12:45
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I am sick of cyclists ignoring safety and the highway code. I have nearly been knocked down on 3 occasions by riders ignoring red lights and pedestrian crossings and constantly see them trying to squeeze their way in between cars waiting at junctions. They should be forced to take a test before being allowed on public roads and made to wear helmets and high-viz jackets at all times. And, NO, I'm not a car driver, just a pedestrian who is sick and tired of the selfish, dangerous and arrogant attitude of idiots who are allowed to ride bikes on public thoroughfares.

- Jo, Kilburn, 15/04/2011 12:39
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Saw a cyclist yesterday that actually stopped at a red light. What next one that stops at a pedestrian crossing, or does not drive into the traffic on a one way street. Facts are of course most cyclists are as stupid as most car drivers. As the poet said,
I wished i liked the human race, I wish I liked its stupid face

- Alan., England ., 15/04/2011 12:36
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'AA president Edmund King said: "You see some people on Boris bikes who are not proper cyclists.'

I see a lot of folks in cars who are not proper motorists. Perhaps we should arrange for a grand and much-publicised giveaway of Highway Codes?

- ericonabike, Leicester, 15/04/2011 12:23
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The arrogance of the cycling lobby never ceases to amaze me. Instead of simply appreciating the gesture from the AA to make the casual cyclist safer, they have to take a pop at drivers.

Because cyclists never make basic human errors, do they? And they all obey the highway code immaculately, don't they? And helmets don't save lives, regardless of the cause of an accident, do they?

- Mike, London, 15/04/2011 12:18
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  • Cameron: Help Somalia and head off terror threat to UK Cameron Somalia David Cameron today warned that extremists in Somalia could "poison" the minds of young Britons unless the world acts to repair the war-torn...
  • Cameron and Boris: Rethink plan to close The Mall for three months St James Map Exclusive: The Mall is due to shut for more than three months for the Queen's Jubilee and the Olympics, prompting fears of a summer...
  • 'End London's Punch and Judy politics' Gus O'Donnel The former head of the Civil Service said today that more candidates should run for London Mayor to get away from the "Punch and Judy...
  • Why a London Somali chose to run the most volatile capital in Africa Somalia As the world's statesmen gather in London to discuss whether to take military action in Somalia, the man plucked from Camden to be mayor of...
  • Who pulled the plug on Adele? Suzi Aplin James Corden has blamed producers for the decision to cut Adele's Brits acceptance speech short because of an overrunning TV schedule
  • St Paul's campers urged to leave peacefully as they lose eviction appeal St Paul's The St Paul's protest campers face immediate eviction today after losing a final court battle. Three Court of Appeal judges threw out their...
  • Emergency crews stage Tube terror attack drill Tube terror drill Emergency crews responded to a mocked-up terror attack on the Tube during a security test for the Olympics
  • Mayor poll 'may end up in court over vote fraud' Ken Boris split The battle between Boris Johnson and Ken Livingstone for the London mayoralty could end in the courts because of electoral fraud fears,...
  • 35 years for rape and murder of mother-to-be Nikitta Former nightclub bouncer Carl Whant was jailed for at least 35 years today for the rape and murder of pregnant teenager Nikitta Grender
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