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With 3.3 million UK workers now cycling to work every day, more than half would welcome the introduction of road-safety training according to a nationwide survey of cycling commuters conducted by Cycleguard.co.uk.
According to Cycleguard’s survey of cyclists 53 per cent would be interested in taking voluntary training to increase their confidence on two wheels and help them to spot potentially dangerous situations before they become a problem.
Of those who would be interested in attending a voluntary road-safety course, a majority would pay an average of £12 for a half-day course, while 40 per cent believed training should be provided free of charge.
In Amsterdam, widely viewed as a model for safe cycling, safety measures introduced for cyclists include diplomas for new cyclists and free lessons for adults who have never cycled before.
Cycleguard’s findings have prompted the specialist insurance provider to join forces with the IAM (Institute of Advanced Motorists) in support of voluntary training courses for the UK’s growing band of cycling commuters. The IAM offers a range of training courses for cyclists aimed at enabling more confident cycling in all traffic conditions, and has recently published a guide to better, safer cycling.
James Pickering, managing director of Cycleguard said: “We’ve seen an enormous boom in commuter cycling over the past few years, but infrastructure has yet to catch up and roads still favour motorists. Cycle-training is by no means a panacea, but our research seems to show it as being a good way to help give cyclists the necessary smarts and confidence to enjoy cycling to work.”
