As you know at Right To Ride we deal a lot with road safety and riders issues and concerns.
Unfortunately after Mondays rider fatality and with another fatality today (Tuesday – in which the driver of a car has been reported as also having lost their life) this brings in total for 2014 – eight riders who have been killed on our roads.
However it is just not riders who are dying on our roads, with these two fatalities, five people have died on our roads in other vehicles in the past four days and others including pedestrians have been seriously injured.
As being rider focused we can only reach out to riders to err on the side of caution when out there, with anticipation, getting your eyes up and scanning ahead.
As we previously stated not so long ago in June, “For other vehicle drivers – we don’t know what the answer is however for and including riders – as posted up recently on the PSNI Traffic Police Facebook page – a picture of an old Northern Ireland driving licence with the inscription on the back – Care – Courtesy – Consideration Save Lives – which is still as relevant today as it was back then!”
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Police urge everyone to wake up to road safety
2nd July 2014
Head of Road Policing Superintendent Gerry Murray says the tragic loss of lives on our roads this year has to be a wake up call to everyone in Northern Ireland.
“Since the start of the year 40 people have lost their lives on our roads and within the last 24 hours the family and friends of two more people are grieving the loss of a loved one. The sad reality is that many of the deaths and serious injuries on our roads could be avoided.
“Speed is the number one cause of fatal collisions so we really need people to understand that by slowing down and altering their speed to suit the conditions of the road they can potentially save a life. As well as slowing down we need drivers, cyclists, pedestrians and motorcyclists to pay more attention, to respect other road users, and to take personal responsibility for their own safety.
“People need to start really thinking about the consequences of their actions. Bikers, drivers, cyclists and pedestrians all have the right to use the road but with that right is a responsibility to do so safely. As a Police Service we are routinely and actively on the lookout for people who are likely to cause a collision but enforcing the law is not the only answer to reducing road deaths. We all have a part to play.
“So before you get behind the wheel of a car today, get on your bicycle or motorcycle, or stick on your running shoes, stop and think – how many people have to die on our roads before you decide to take greater care?”
Environment Minister Mark H Durkan said: “I offer my sincere sympathies to the families of those who have died. The increase in road deaths this year highlights that using the roads is the most dangerous thing that most of us do most days. Whenever we use the roads, we all need to keep our focus at all times and ensure that we adopt safe and appropriate behaviours.
“By treating the road as a shared space and taking care, we can all reduce the risk of being involved in a collision.”
Orignal Source – Click Here
VIP protection police moved to road duties as Northern Ireland’s death toll rises
According to the Belfast Telegraph – PSNI officers who normally protect VIPs are set to be drafted into roads policing over the next week as Northern Ireland experienced five crash deaths in four days.
It is understood that the move will be just for the summer months.
Orignal Source – Click Here