national cycling proficiency scheme

[CAESAR AVGVSTVS]

As a kid I wasn’t allowed to ride on the road until I’d passed my national cycling proficiency. Ive not seen any groups of kids being trained to use the roads lately. My wife is extra carful around cyclists because she used to ride herself.
I think it would do no harm if something similar to the national cycling proficiency scheme was imposed as part of the learning to drive a car. That way the car drivers would have a clear understanding of what the cyclist has to go through. I refuse to ride during the so called rush hours. Or I’d say more like “rush two hours” twice a day! Just to dangerous.

 

[sheddy]

Here https://www.bikeability.org.uk/

Good point about the prerequisite, do any other countries do this ?

 

[Badger_Boom]

The reasons are lost in the mists of time but I somehow failed the cycling proficiency test back in the early 80s. The three days I spent on the course always seemed useful though.

 

[ebikeerwidnes]

I did the CPS thing - my Dad would not let me use my new bike on the roads until I had passed it
and then he insisted on me going for a short ride around some roads with him driving behind just to check before I went out on my own

The last 3-4 years before I retired I was a teacher in a local Primary School - every year I was there there was a Bikeability scheme run for any kids whose parents wanted them to do it. I could always tell when it was on because the Year 5 (and PE) teacher came in on her very smart mountain bike so I wasn;t the only teacher who had a bike locked up in the bike shed!

I did note that the class size was a lot smaller than the size of the class!

 

[AndyRM]

Some kind of cyclist awareness should be built into the test somehow, I agree. My instructor was very clear on how to pass safely (not just for cyclists, but other vulnerable road users) before he even knew I was a cyclist, but there's no guarantee that all instructors will be the same.

Another thing I'd do is make the theory test a whole lot harder. Unless something has changed since I did it 8 years ago, it's worryingly easy.

 

[ebikeerwidnes]

Some kind of cyclist awareness should be built into the test somehow, I agree. My instructor was very clear on how to pass safely (not just for cyclists, but other vulnerable road users) before he even knew I was a cyclist, but there's no guarantee that all instructors will be the same.

Another thing I'd do is make the theory test a whole lot harder. Unless something has changed since I did it 8 years ago, it's worryingly easy.

anyone know the pass rate??

 

[AndyRM]

anyone know the pass rate??

It's only around 50% apparently, so maybe it's harder than I'd thought...

 

[matticus]

Another thing I'd do is make the theory test a whole lot harder. Unless something has changed since I did it 8 years ago, it's worryingly easy.

and yet: https://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money...rd-low-Learners-just-44-2-chance-success.html

 

[Electric_Andy]

I did cycling proficiency in primary school, probably 1991 or thereabouts. We weren't allowed to cycle to school unless we had done it.

My son did do bikeability a few years ago in primary school but there didn't seem to be any roadcraft involved; sounded more like they rode around cones and then walked around a mock junction in the plyground and learned how to stop, look and listen. Which is better than nothing, but nowehere near what we did. We had to do training in the playground, then go out on our bikes and were observed negotiating junctions (major to minor and minor to major). I think it was 3 - 5 hours at an hour a week IIRC

 

[presta]

I think it would do no harm if something similar to the national cycling proficiency scheme was imposed as part of the learning to drive a car.

I've been arguing this for years over on Twitter, it gets a bit of support occasionally but mostly it's ignored.

Drivers who cycle are half as likely to claim on their motor insurance. It's not difficult to see why, 83% of cyclists drive, but only 30% of motorists cycle, so the balance of ignorance is all one-sided. Cyclists know perfectly well what the roads look like through the windscreen of a car because they drive one, but motorists have little or no idea what it's like to be on the receiving end of the treatment they mete out to cyclists.

I think making cycling a prerequisite for obtaining a driving licence would probably have the single biggest effect on road safety.

 

[T4tomo]

I've seen kid's out on the road around here quite obviously doing Cycling proficiency training / testing. My kids schools didn't do it, but we rode a lot on the roads together when they were young, so they knew what they were doing.

 

[ebikeerwidnes]

I did cycling proficiency in primary school, probably 1991 or thereabouts. We weren't allowed to cycle to school unless we had done it.

My son did do bikeability a few years ago in primary school but there didn't seem to be any roadcraft involved; sounded more like they rode around cones and then walked around a mock junction in the plyground and learned how to stop, look and listen. Which is better than nothing, but nowehere near what we did. We had to do training in the playground, then go out on our bikes and were observed negotiating junctions (major to minor and minor to major). I think it was 3 - 5 hours at an hour a week IIRC

When they did it at the school I worked at then the teacher brought her bike in because they took the kids out around the local roads at the end of the test
I think they even went on the busier roads for a short distance

 

[Alex321]

Some kind of cyclist awareness should be built into the test somehow, I agree. My instructor was very clear on how to pass safely (not just for cyclists, but other vulnerable road users) before he even knew I was a cyclist, but there's no guarantee that all instructors will be the same.

Another thing I'd do is make the theory test a whole lot harder. Unless something has changed since I did it 8 years ago, it's worryingly easy.

But apparently, even being so easy, it is one of the harder ones around the world.

 

[Dogtrousers]

A trip down memory lane

 

[Drago]

I've got an idea.

Teach people to drive properly, not just the bare mininum required to scrape a test, introduce a national syllabus with separate modules that all drivers must lass before applying for a test, and then punish them ruthlessly for breaking the law, say a 28 day ban for minor speeding and the punishments get worse from there.

They'd soon start behaving themselves.