by Joe Jeffrey

The AA’s ‘Think Bikes’ campaign aims to raise awareness of road users on two wheels

An AA patrol has received an international road safety award for a campaign he developed to remind drivers to do a ‘double-take’ for those on two wheels, as failure to look properly increasingly contributes to road accidents.
 
Tony Rich from Warrington, Cheshire, received the FIM (Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme) Road Safety Award for the AA Think Bikes campaign at a star-studded event in Jerez, Spain, attended by FIM MotoGP world champion Jorge Lorenzo.
 
The FIM Road Safety Award focuses on improving road safety for riders of motorcycles, scooters and mopeds.
 
The international judging panel appreciated the simplicity of the concept, which uses small stickers for the side mirrors of a vehicle to remind drivers to do a ‘double-take’ for those on two wheels. There is a bicycle sticker for the passenger side and a motorcycle one for the driver side.
 
Failure to look properly has increased significantly from being recorded in a third (32%) of road accidents in 2005 to 44 per cent last year.
 
Tony had the idea after the tragic death of a family friend, Jack Bellis, 19, in a motorbike accident in October 2012. The ‘Think Bikes’ campaign started out as a legacy to Jack Bellis before Tony approached the AA, his employer, for support. The campaign launched last March, thanks to funding from the AA Charitable Trust, with the support of sporting legends Chris Boardman and John McGuinness. It has now gone global with support from the FIA and has been rolled out in 24 countries from Italy to Iran.
 
Tony Rich said: “It was an amazing evening in Jerez and we really appreciated the support of Jorge Lorenzo and the other motorcycling world champions.
 
“Motorcyclists are disproportionately represented in casualty stats but they don’t just appear from nowhere. It’s alarming that failure to look has increased significantly in the last ten years. Drivers need to ‘Think Bikes’ at all times; and the campaign helps reinforce awareness that the road is a shared space.
 
“It takes just a second to check your mirrors but the consequences of failing to do so can last a lifetime. If Jack’s legacy can save just one life, it will all be worthwhile.
 
“We would encourage all drivers to use the free stickers and do a ‘double-take’ in their mirrors for cyclists and motorcyclists.”
 
Think Bikes stickers are available free of charge to organisations and individuals by emailing publicaffairs@theaa.com

Meanwhile, check out the video below.

by Joe Jeffrey

The debate on men/women drivers continues by way of AA-populous survey

Women are four times more likely to concede men are better drivers than they are – if the results of a new AA-populus survey are to be believed.

Among those female motorists questioned in a new survey from the AA, 28 per cent conceded that their partner is a better driver – four times more than when the questions was put to men.

The above said, findings also revealed that over one third of female drivers said they are safer behind the wheel than their partners (37 per cent), with just 13 per cent accepting their partner is safer.

Of the 24,739 AA members questioned last month, the survey also found that five per cent of men in the North East of England are least likely to concede their partner is the better driver, whilst eight per cent of those in East Anglia, London and Northern Ireland were most complimentary.

In stark contrast, women most likely to consider themselves as better drivers were found to be in Wales (35 per cent), the North West (31 per cent) and Yorkshire/Humberside (30 per cent). 31 per cent of women in the West Midlands were more inclined to accept their partner is a better driver than them.

AA president, Edmund King, said of the AA-populous survey’s findings: “Women are still more likely to be in the passenger seat and more likely to think their partner is a better driver despite the trend showing women making more car trips as a driver while the trend for men declines. The accident figures still clearly show that males are more likely to be involved in crashes.

“You may be a more confident and sharper driver than your partner, more skilful with the controls, reading traffic, manoeuvring and taking opportunities, but it doesn’t mean the person in the seat beside you shares your self-assurance.
“We wanted to find out, not only how partners regard each other’s driving, but whether they differentiate between being a ‘better’ driver and being a ‘safer’ one. And clearly they do – particularly when it comes to men versus women. It may be the cause of arguments or may lead to other car occupants sitting in silence, feeling uneasy or even scared.”

What do you think? Is your partner the better driver or will it take hell to freeze over for you to agree with the above findings?

by Joe Jeffrey

Figures released highlight stark rise in untaxed cars on the road

Figures released from the Department for Transport (DfT) have revealed that the rate of unlicensed vehicles in traffic has increased to 1.4 per cent in 2015 from 0.6 per cent in 2013, since the abolishment of paper tax discs in October 2014.

560,000 unlicensed vehicles are said to be in use, equating to approximately £80 million a year in vehicle excise duty being lost – a figure at its highest since 2007, despite some of this figure set to be recovered through enforcement action or car owners paying arrears at a later stage.

Changes in October 2014 saw the requirement for car drivers to display a valid tax disc scrapped, with reminders of when tax is due instead sent by email. Those who pay via direct debit see their road tax automatically renewed.

However, with the above said, new measures also mean that any existing vehicle taxed automatically would end as soon as a vehicle changes hands, with a refund issued to the previous owner and the onus placed on the new owner to pay tax on the car immediately.

A spokesperson for the DfT said: “There is therefore potential for evasion rates to increase if the new keeper fails to understand or comply with the new arrangements.

“However, this situation can only arise where a vehicle changes hands, and the DVLA have been issuing reminders to all new keepers who have not taxed their vehicle.”

DVLA chief executive, Oliver Morley, said: “Almost 99 per cent of all vehicles on the road are correctly taxed: that’s around £6 billion in vehicle tax passed to the Treasury every year.

“We write to every registered vehicle keeper in the UK to remind them when their tax is due and we have introduced a range of measures to make vehicle tax easy to pay. At the same time we are taking action against those who are determined to break the law.”

by Joe Jeffrey

GEM, RAC Foundation and Institute of Advanced Motorists speak on new GMC ruling surrounding GPs reporting unfit drivers

Road safety and breakdown recovery organisations have spoken out on the General Medical Council’s (GMC) decision to call on GPs to report patients who who are not ‘medically fit’ to drive.

The GMC this week strengthened its advice, pointing out that doctors play an important role in keeping the wider public safe by contacting the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) to report those who many cause a potential threat behind the wheel owing to either age or illness.

In new draft guidance, the GMC said doctors have a public protection duty to inform the DVLA when patient continues to drive against advice, with an aim to enable doctors to balance both legal and ethical duties of confidentiality with wider public protection responsibilities.

The guidance states that doctors must disclose information if there is a need to protect individuals or the wider public from the risks death or serious harm.

Now, amidst fears of many losing their licence, GEM Motoring Assist has let to the GMC’s defence to support new measures set to be implemented.

GEM chief executive, David Williams MBE, said: “Thankfully most people accept that there are good reasons why certain medical conditions or drugs make it unsafe for them to be driving. But there are some who see it as their right to drive, regardless of what risks they may be posing, to themselves and to others. 

“It is in situations such as this that doctors must place public safety above patient confidentiality.

“GEM wants everyone to drive safely for as long as possible, but anyone of any age whose ability to do this is compromised by a medical condition or certain drugs must heed the advice of a medical professional and not drive. If they choose to ignore these warnings, then they are creating an unacceptable risk, not only for themselves but for anyone who happens to get in their way. Public safety must be the priority here.”

Steve Gooding of the RAC Foundation, meanwhile, highlighted the potential concern faced by many once these new measures are put into place, saying: “Thirty-seven million drivers depend on the car for getting about and for those with serious medical conditions there is a real fear around losing their licence.

“But with the right treatment, many illnesses will not lead to people having to hang up the keys.

The Institute of Advanced Motorists (IAM) also weighed in on the issue, with director of policy and research, Neil Greig, saying: “Clarifying the role of GPs is a very positive road safety move.

“Our research shows that drivers are much more likely to listen to a medical professional giving them advice about giving up driving than to their friends or family.”

Now it’s over to you. What’s your opinion on this? Could you be affected by this new policy?