Say goodbye to ‘Cyclists Stay Back’ stickers
The stickers were intended for vehicles with blind spots, in particular lorries weighing 3.5t and over, but they have appeared on vehicles that do not have significant blind spots like taxis, vans and buses.
Concerns about impact
CTC is concerned that the design of the stickers and displaying them on vehicles without significant blind spots is having an adverse impact on driver behaviour.
The wording ‘cyclists stay back’, which implies that it is the cyclist’s responsibility to stay behind all vehicles at all times, has led to incidents where drivers have accused cyclists of behaving contrary to the rules of the road.
Overtaking on the left side is perfectly lawful where traffic is slow-moving or stopped. If there is no chance for that traffic to turn left, then it can be the safer option. What’s more, telling cyclists not to pass on the left side of the road makes no sense, given that most cycle lanes are located there.
TfL’s response
In a letter sent to TfL in February this year, a consortium of cycling organisations, including CTC, LCC, RoadPeace, the Road Danger Reduction Forum, the Borough Cycling Officers Group, and the Association of Bikeability Schemes, requested that TfL instruct bus, van and taxi operators to remove the signs and re-word the signs remaining on HGVs.
TfL responded by saying it would be too expensive to remove the stickers from these vehicles, but that it was willing to take a second look at the sticker design.
The cycling and road safety organisations had prepared for a confrontation with TfL at the meeting on June 25 but were pleasantly surprised at TfL’s willingness to cooperate.
These stickers were intended as a warning to cyclists of the dangers of cycling alongside large vehicles, not as a prohibition. The new design, which we expect to see in London by the end of the summer, will better reflect this message."
Rhia Weston
CTC's Road Safety Campaigner
TfL officials acknowledged that something must be done about the many vehicles displaying the stickers unnecessarily, but said they do not have the power to order operators not party to the TfL-led Fleet Operator Recognition Scheme (FORS) to remove them.
TfL have, however, already sent instructions to all FORS members on the correct usage of the stickers and have agreed to make the instructions available on the TfL website. Anyone wanting to let an operator know the correct way to display the stickers will be able, in future, to direct them to this area of the website.
TfL also agreed to redesign the stickers following consultation with cycling organisations. The stickers will be re-issued to operators by the end of the summer, along with instructions on how to correctly display them.
The stickers will remain on buses, but with different wording to those on HGVs. The bus stickers will politely request that cyclists let a bus pull in to a bus stop rather than ordering cyclists never to pass buses on the inside.
