What proportion of the road safety budget is spent on improving cyclists' safety?

[Custom24]

What proportion of the road safety budget is spent on improving cyclists' safety?

It's a serious question, although I appreciate there may not be a definitive answer.

Thanks
Mark

 

[Andy_R]

A serious answer, in a non serious manner....that much....(pinching thumb and first finger together)

 

[ushills]

From my experience 3 parts of F'all.

 

[Custom24]

Let me explain the reason for asking the question.

I was recently talking to someone who wondered if basically too much money and attention is given to cyclists' safety, compared to other road users. It's a reasonable question, but he had no evidence beyond just a feeling that cyclists are disproportionately represented, both in the media and in policy.

I'm uncomfortable discussing such notions without any evidence at all, as the conversation is emotional and pointless.

I suggested one way to look at it was that in 2010 6% of all road fatalities and 12% of KSI's were cyclists (and these figures were higher in 2011) . Purely from a utilitarian point of view, and discounting any of the benefits of cycling, it would be interesting to know if the proportion of the safety budget was wildly different from these percentages, either much lower or much higher.

This might give an indication of the policy proportion. Media would be another matter.

 

[growingvegetables]

When it costs £30 million to build one single mile of motorway - 50p for every man, woman, and child in the UK - I kinda think it's up to your questioner to come up with something more solid?

 

[dellzeqq]

this is the kind of completely silly calculation beloved of cycling campaigners. The question is - is any item of expenditure justified?

Over two hundred million quid has been thrown at LCN+ in London - and it's all been wasted. The LCC is now looking for segregated cycle lanes and they might get lucky - but if they get their way and half a billion quid gets spent on cycle lanes that will all be for nothing.

Similarly the Scottish government is about to throw four hundred million quid at the Aberdeen bypass - another monumental waste of money. And people are agitating for almost a billion and a half to be spent on the A14 upgrade - an utterly stupid waste of money.

So.......in a general kind of way, spending on roads is foolish. Putting a few quid in to bus lanes is fine, but chucking billions at trip generation is a waste.

 

[dellzeqq]

the A14 is an easy one Reg - it's a strategic route gone commuter. Close half the junctions, and your container will get from Felixstowe to the M6 in no time.

Take, for example, junctions 52 to 45 and 42 to 39. They've no business being there. Same with 30 to 25. Why is there a junction at Spaldwick?. Only about ten percent of the traffic on the A14 is strategic - cut the commuter traffic, cut the Tesco traffic, cut the retail park traffic and bring the road back to its original purpose. Where there's no parallel road (which is rare) people would just have to change their habits or lump it.

 

[Nigel-YZ1]

Once you have the answer to the OP question there's the next question: How much of this money goes on schemes actually useful to cyclists?
A whole load seems to be spent on stuff we cannot use or wouldn't wish on our worst enemy.

 

[psmiffy]

Why is there a junction at Spaldwick?.

Because there has always been a junction at Spaldwick - when the A14 swallowed up the Spaldwick bypass - The A14 or whatever it was before was just a fairly main road serving all the villages between Thrapston and the A1 - so put it back to its original purpose?

Too late - something has to be done with it - preferably including parallel roads for local (esp agricultural traffic) and probably making it a full blown motorway all the way between the M6 and Felixstowe

 

[dellzeqq]

Because there has always been a junction at Spaldwick - when the A14 swallowed up the Spaldwick bypass - The A14 or whatever it was before was just a fairly main road serving all the villages between Thrapston and the A1 - so put it back to its original purpose?

Too late - something has to be done with it - preferably including parallel roads for local (esp agricultural traffic) and probably making it a full blown motorway all the way between the M6 and Felixstowe

you can't have everything in life. Either it's a strategic road or it's not. If it's a strategic road then the cheapest way forward is to close the junctions. The good folk of Spaldwick would have to take another route.

 

[psmiffy]

you can't have everything in life. Either it's a strategic road or it's not. If it's a strategic road then the cheapest way forward is to close the junctions. The good folk of Spaldwick would have to take another route.

I have to agree and they can take their tractors etc with them - however, having commuted along that piece of road for the last month and had to attempt to find another route on the two occasions it was closed that is easy to say but difficult to do

 

[dellzeqq]

blimey! I wouldn't take a bike on that road for all the tea in China. Chapeau!

 

[psmiffy]

Actually I was in the car - but when i was a kid I used to ride to Cambridge along there

 

[Red Light]

blimey! I wouldn't take a bike on that road for all the tea in China. Chapeau!

No need to. You can cycle down alongside the guided busway instead and very pleasant it is too. And a lot of people have transferred to the guided bus with the result that it is packed full at peak times. Investing the money is more buses, car parks near the bus stops and feeder cycle routes would be far better IMO. The trouble with road upgrades is all the evidence is they just increase the journeys and traffic till they are at the new capacity vide the M25.

 

[dellzeqq]

There isn't one - that's the problem. The A14 is fairly unique in that there are no parallel roads.

some of us have maps, Reg, and know how to use 'em