‘Staying Alive at 1.5’ is the goal of cyclists’ campaign
Cycling is a common means of transport in Ireland. It’s popular for several reasons: it’s great exercise, it’s cheap and it cuts down on travel time, especially during rush-hour.
But cyclists are also a vulnerable category of road user. Every year there are several cycling fatalities on Irish roads and countless collisions involving cyclists.
We at Pi Cycles recently became aware of a group who were inspired to raise awareness after the death of a cyclist on Wexford’s roads. Phil Skelton, founder of ‘Staying Alive at 1.5’ is campaigning for the law to be amended in Ireland to bring a safer passing distance between cyclists and vehicles. If this law comes to fruition then it will bring Ireland alongside many other countries such as Portugal, USA, France Spain and Germany, who have passed a similar law in providing safer roads for cyclists.
First and foremost, the purpose of this campaign is not to paint motorists in a bad light. Cyclists hope that other road users overtaking are obeying the road rules and keeping their distance, but unfortunately at the moment that distance is not defined. This creates a situation where cyclists take to the roads with a great degree of uncertainty.
This should not be the case if we are to follow government policy in increasing the amount of journeys carried out by bicycle.
This 1.5 metre rule would help to create an environment of safer cycling across the board giving cyclists a 1.5 metre cushion when being passed by a motorist. It is also a great piece of legislation to educate the public about how much space to leave when safely passing a cyclist. Put simply, government and the Gardaí would have a standard to measure what is a safe overtake in relation to cyclists.
Furthermore the passing of the safe overtaking law would acknowledge cyclists as legitimate road users, a point not shared by some motorists.
Pi Cycles are supporting Staying Alive at 1.5 as we are passionate about safer riding. We really do hope that cyclists and motorists in Ireland will help Phil in getting behind the group as safer cycling should be paramount with all riders.
More information can be found on their Facebook page: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/stayinaliveat1.5 and their website: http://www.safecyclingireland.org