London Mayor “to ensure the most dangerous zero star-rated lorries are removed from our road"
The Mayor has committed to seeing the most dangerous lorries off the capital’s roads by 2020, via Transport for London’s (TfL) Direct Vision Standard. This standard, a world first, will use a ‘star rating’ from 0 to 5 stars to rate construction and other heavy goods vehicles (HGVs) based on the level of vision the driver has directly from the cab.
Despite making up only 4% of London traffic, lorries are disproportionately involved in London cyclists’ deaths. Between January 2008 and July 2015, 56 of the 99 cyclists killed in London were involved in incidents with lorries.
Cycling UK responded to the TfL consultation ‘Further improving lorry safety in London’ in February 2016 and called for TfL and all 33 London boroughs to express a preference towards direct vision lorries in all future bids for planning applications and publicly-funded contracts.
Furthermore, Cycling UK urged TfL to adopt a road map for the widespread introduction of direct vision lorries which would make their use a contractual requirement by 2020 for TfL and the boroughs, with a commitment to ban lorries which do not meet direct vision standards from London roads by 2025.
Duncan Dollimore, Cycling UK’s Senior Road Safety and Legal Campaigns Officer, said: “Cycling UK is delighted that the Mayor is committed to introducing a road map that will see unsafe lorries off our roads, and safer direct vision lorries the norm. We would now urge TfL and the 33 London boroughs to make safer lorries a contractual preference for all future bids to hasten their uptake.
“Cycling UK called for this back in February through our ‘Safer Lorries’ campaign, and we see today’s announcement as a first step towards removing all unsafe lorries from our roads. We sincerely hope London’s innovative solution to the lorry problem will catch on, and rapidly spread throughout the whole country.”
Notes to editors
- Cycling UK, the national cycling charity, inspires and helps people to cycle and keep cycling, whatever kind of cycling they do or would like to do. Over a century’s experience tells us that cycling is more than useful transport; it makes you feel good, gives you a sense of freedom and creates a better environment for everyone. www.cyclinguk.org
- Cycling UK, through its Safer Lorries campaign in February 2016, called for London to introduce a roadmap which would phase out unsafe lorries by 2025: https://www.cyclinguk.org/press-release/2016-02-17/ban-unsafe-lorries-l…;
- Direct vision lorries differ from traditional lorries, in that they give drivers a lower seating position in the cab, similar to the front of a London bus. This provides a much greater improvement in terms of driver visibility and consequently other road user safety.
Press contact information
Cycling UK Press Office
Email: publicity@cyclinguk.org
Telephone: 0844-736-8453
