London Safer Lorry scheme

tootsie323

Just read this article in the BBC. What side of the story holds more weight, or are these simply two views on the same solution?

Boris Johnson (Mayor, London): "We are ahead of any other part of the UK in closing the legal loopholes that allowed many HGVs to operate without basic safety equipment"

Natalie Chapman (Freight Transport Association): funds used to launch the scheme would be better spent on targeting "a small proportion of lorries that don't comply with existing regulations"

Thanks for any feedback that may clarify the above.

iPete

[url=http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=19692241#p19692241]tootsie323[/url] wrote:

Natalie Chapman (Freight Transport Association): This'll eat into our profits.

Basically this.

No amount of money is going to stop people dithering up the inside of them, so may as well make the lorries safer.

Changing their hours would be the next logical step.

RussAlf

They came to my work and i sat in one, it changed my attitude towards them, ive always approached them with caution but even more so now. Cyclist definitely need to be educated about the dangers of them.

IMO its the trucks themselves that are the bigger problem, once you sit inside one you realise how out of date the design is to be driven in todays congested town/city centres, the visibility is about 10% of what it should be.

thistle_

[url=http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=19693868#p19693868]RussAlf[/url] wrote:

They came to my work and i sat in one, it changed my attitude towards them, ive always approached them with caution but even more so now. Cyclist definitely need to be educated about the dangers of them.

IMO its the trucks themselves that are the bigger problem, once you sit inside one you realise how out of date the design is to be driven in todays congested town/city centres, the visibility is about 10% of what it should be.

I sat in one of the 'upgraded' lorries they were using on Crossrail. They were saying that even with all these mirrors and cameras no driver is going to be able to look at all of them and concentrate on driving :?

I don't think it's part of the new regulations, but these lorries shouted at cyclists when the lorry driver indicated left. This irked me becuase:

• Most lorry drivers (like other drivers, and cyclists) rarely indicate before turning
• In my experience, lorry drivers overtake cyclists then turn left across them in which case the cyclist has nowhere to go anyway

The Rookie

Well if you are alongside it gives you the chance to hit the brakes.....

As for the conflicting comments, both apply, Boris is right and Natalie has a valid point, but some operators breaking the rules shouldn't be used as an excuse by another to!