On Saturday 28th September 2013, 44 year old Sally Low from Archiestown in Moray was killed as she rode along the B9102 Grantown on Spey to Craigellachie. She was hit by a car. The driver was left uninjured.

Sally was the twelfth cyclist to be killed in a road traffic collision that year.

But, what made Sally’s untimely death even more poignant was that just a week beforehand, she had posted on Facebook a detailed account of a "near miss" with another vehicle whilst cycling with her son.

In her post, Sally recounted how she had been cycling safely and had taken the appropriate action to allow an approaching vehicle from behind her room to pass her but despite this considerate measure, the driver still felt the need to blast his horn. This alarming behaviour caused Sally to assume her son, who was riding behind her, may have got into some trouble and quickly spun around to check before slipping on loose gravel and coming off her bike. Her account highlighted an attitude problem. Why would a driver blast his horn in anger at a cyclist behaving with courtesy?

Many cyclists have written to us describing a different "culture" that exists in Europe and other countries where cyclists are afforded greater civil law protection due to their vulnerability to injury.

"I am a keen cyclist and see a marked difference in behaviour towards cyclists in other European countries, particularly in cities, who have this law."

"Having ridden in Europe and experienced their driving attitudes, the contrast is staggering."

Sadly, Sally’s account is one which we know many other cyclists can relate to. If you’ve been involved in a "near miss" whilst out on your bike, please feel free to share your experience by completing the short survey below.

It is our belief that the introduction of presumed liability laws would result in a significant improvement to the way all vulnerable road users are treated and would engender a culture of mutual respect whereby those in control of faster moving heavier vehicles understand the potential damage they can cause to fellow human beings.

Please help us to help you by completing the short survey below. You can also join our Facebook Group here.

 

Create your own user feedback survey