The Stop at Red Campaign

[sam]

One of the problems of our poor public image is that no one actually expects me to stop.

I always stop at red lights  and I always wait until green before moving off.  However, as I approached a red ped light on the Pershore Road the other morning a woman on the crossing shouted at me "You're supposed to bloody stop!"

I suppose I should have responded with "I just thought I'd get to the lights before I did that", but she'd gone before I could do much (except stop - which had been the plan anyway). The car driver in the out side lane along side me gave me a real dirty look and I expect both of them will now remember yet another 'bad' cyclist.

The experience left me very pissed off indeed.

In my experience, the red-light-jumpers (and pavement-riders, and riders on pedestrial crossings etc) are not restricted to London, but they are more prevalent there. Their actions are seriously prejudicing other road users against cyclists generally, and I belive it is our responsibility as law-abiding cyclists to do something about it. I see this campaign as being about putting our own house in order. As a motorist - a member of the RAC and a few enthusiast motoring organisations - I see similar campaigns within motoring.

It seems to me that driving and drivers are ubiquitous - almost everyone does it. Changing behaviour within that group as a whole is a bit like herding cats, but it can be done - look at the seatbelt and drink-driving campaigns. There are still recidivists, but they are generally frowned upon by all of society. Speeding is becoming less and less acceptable; there's a way to go yet, but that culture change is well under way. These behavioural changes have been demanded of motorists by society, the majority of whom are motorists.

Cycling (particularly road and utility cycling) is not ubiquitous. It is seen by the rest of society as an activity carried out by enthusiasts. Where that activity affects other, non-cycling, members of society, they look to the responsible people and organisations within that group of enthusiasts to deal with the problem - quite rightly so. The same would be expected of horse riders for instance, or the participants of any activity seen as peripheral to society and carried out by an enthusiastic minority but negatively affecting the greater society. It's our problem and we are best placed to deal with it. This campaign is one of many ways we can demonstrate to greater society that we are predominantly a responsible group and care about how our activities affect others.

The idea that because some motorists are worse-behaved and potentially more dangerous than cyclists, therefore we have nothing to feel guilty about, is irresponsible and avoids dealing with the problem. It runs the risk that others (non-cyclists) will feel they have to take the matter in hand themselves, which is likely to result in a less than optimum solution.

I am proud to be a law-abiding cyclist, and I have no problem telling those who aren't the error of their ways. There is a small element who see cycling as an extreme sport to be carried out on the open road; we need to be rid of them.