C2C2C Update

UPDATE Thursday, 30^th June

A somewhat sharper pair of eyes than mine pointed out a few discrepancies in my numbers yesterday – thank you.

Dutch data: David Hembrow of the a view from the cycle path blog, in a post in April (19 April 2011) cites Dutch Government statistics that the number of cyclists killed on Dutch roads was 185 in 2009 and 162 in 2010.

I also quoted the number of UK cyclists KSI’d – killed or seriously injured rather than fatalities.  This report on BikeRadar suggests that the number of cyclists was 136 in 2007, 115 in 2008 and 104 in 2009. (It was taken from this DFT document - Reported Road Casualties Great Britain: 2009. The DFT also publish a factsheet – Road Accident Statistics Factsheet No. 4- January 2010 which reports the various numbers of casualties per billion passenger kilometres for different forms of transport (2007).

Bus or coach     0
Car                   2
Pedestrian       36
Pedal cycle     32
Motorcycle      97

This indicates that on the basis that the average distance cycled per year is 68Km there would be one fatality per 500,000 years. (I cycled around 12,000Km last year which means a fatality every 2,800 years – although at one level that is a meaningless statistic. )

Also the accident statistics bear out the fact that cycling in Amsterdam is very safe. Indeed in the Netherlands the total number of bicycle deaths is around 160, whereas in Great Britain it is around 115, with the number of cyclists being killed increasing. Why is this? Fewer cyclists in the Netherlands wear helmets, more people there cycle and although the population of the Netherlands is less (around 1/4) and they cycle in total around 14.9 billion Km in total per year. In the UK it is around 0.2Km. So here in the UK the total is around 4.5 billion Km.

Corrected numbers

UK: 115 cycling deaths per year, total cycling distance: 4.5 billion Km

Netherlands: 162 cycling deaths per year 14.9 billion Km

Which implies that you are 2.3 times safer in the Netherlands (based upon fatalities per

The blog also quotes the cyclists injured per 10 million Km as US – 35, UK 6, Netherlands 1.4. Which implies that you are 4.3 times safer in the Netherlands.

So you are safer in the Netherlands despite the apparent disregard for cycling helmets.

Cambridge Guided Busway

I also got an answer on whether larger vehicles will fit down the high-quality cycle path alongside the concrete tracks of the CGB. The Cambridge News reported on “Fire Service guided busway trials to begin”. Police vehicles and ambulances will use the cycle path whilst fire engines will take to the concrete tracks. This means that fire-engine drivers are being trained in driving down the concrete tracks.

The Cambridgeshire Police Helicopter is definitely being phased out.

It also turns out that men are more likely to be hit by lightning than women – we are more reckless apparently. Yes I have cycled thunder and lightning – but didn’t really have much choice.

Also some of you might have seen that the picture on the web page tab now has a KTPT design in green. (It works on one of my computers but not on my laptop!)

And finally they were trying out different bikes at the Cambridge Science Park – Part of Travel Plan Plus.