MAG NEWS – OUR REGULAR COLUMN BY THE MAG CHAIR-NONGENDER SPECIFIC PERSON
UNFORTUNATELY, IT’S WE WERE NOT QUITE THE SUMMER OF THE HOPING FOR IN TERMS PARTICULARLY RETURN OF EVENTS, AS ALL-WEEKENDERS SUCH MANY RALLIES, AND WITH ALIKE RIDERS AND NON-RIDERS IT SEEMS WE STAYING IN THE UK, ROADS TO SHOULD EXPECT OUR BE BUSIE
ASthe Government didn’t make any significant amendments to the Covid-19 restrictions hoped for from 21st June, many of the events scheduled for the end of June/beginning of July’ve been cancelled, not for want of trying by those who put them on, many of whom do so voluntarily, and’d already seen their 2020 events cancelled at late notice. Fingers crossed that those organisers and venues’ll be able to host events in 2022 as the Government’s telling us ‘we need to learn to live with the Coronavirus’. I’m sure I’m not alone in remembering how the foot-and-mouth outbreak saw the end for many of the smaller regular rallies of the time, and in being concerned that suffering a third year with little to no income could have devasting effects on some clubs and groups.
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Regular readers’ll be aware that MAG has a seat on the Department for Transport (DfT) Road Safety Delivery Group (RSDG), as it is imperative that the voice of the rider’s heard whenever decisions’re being made in relation to highways. This is just one of the ways in which MAG gets involved with decision-makers, and we’ve ongoing concerns regarding segregated road space, especially when large portions of the roads’re given over to a single transport mode with the rest of the traffic squeezed into the ever-decreasing remaining space. This situation sees riders put at increased risk, plus adding to congestion as they’re no longer able to filter.
With this in mind, along with the flawed concept of ‘Vision Zero’ (a concept that embraces the idea, and ideal, of zero accidents), plus a desire to lead the conversation, Colin Brown, MAG’s Director of Campaigns & Political Engagement, has put together a concept document entitled ‘Welcoming Roads’, which’s been submitted to the DfT Road Safety Delivery Group. This document’s intended to generate a conversation between all road users, to enable the limited space available to be used to best effect, and to acknowledge that everyone needs to respect each other rather than believing they own the road, and we’ve already received a positive response from horse riders. You can see more details at https://bit.ly/WelcomeRoads2021
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Elsewhere, Colin’s still waiting for the final police force to respond to our Freedom of Information request before updating and releasing the second issue of our National Police Force Motorcycle Theft Rankings. The pandemic and national lockdowns’ll undoubtedly’ve affected these figures. However, it remains important to report the statistics on a regular basis to build up a picture over time regarding motorcycle theft, to see how different police forces’re performing on dealing with it and, somewhat worryingly, to try and educate some of the forces on how to identify a motorcycle!
We remain eager to get the formal meeting we’ve been requesting for some time with Kit Malthouse, Policing Minister, to discuss all aspects of motorcycle crime. You can help us by contacting your MP, and asking them to apply pressure to the Minister to meet MAG. We’ve prepared a template letter to help you (https://bit.ly/KitTemplate), but it’ll have more impact if you write something in your own words. If you need to find details to contact your MP, visit https://members. parliament.uk/FindYourMP We’re also preparing for another significant push in the autumn on motorcycle access to bus lanes. This issue, which came out as the most important when we surveyed riders for their top five priorities, remains a war of attrition. In preparation for the campaign we’re asking riders to inform us whether their local authority has bus lanes, and whether motorcycles’re permitted access to them. Astonishingly, in this day and age, there’s no central reference point to get an answer from regarding which local authorities have bus lanes, so we’re turning to our members and riders in all parts of the country to report back on the state of play in their local area. A quick email to centraloffice@mag-uk.org is all it takes, and we’d rather be told 20 times about each local authority than not at all, so please don’t assume someone else will do it. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Lembit Öpik, MAG’s Director of Communications & Public Affairs, remains busy engaging with everyone from members through to politicians, even though physical meetings remain restricted at this time. He’d like me to remind you all that Parliament’s heading for its Summer Recess (22 July–6 September), returning for just a few weeks before rising for the conferencing season (23 September until 18 October). He tells me there’re genuine concerns, even from current Conservative Party MPs, regarding the rush to electric-powered personal transport, and also that Keith Prince, Deputy Chairman of the Greater London Authority Transport Committee, has a Zero electric motorcycle on test. MAG members will get to read a review from Keith in a future issue of our members magazine, The ROAD. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
At the time of going to press, both the Yorkshire Pudding Rally and Stormin’ the Castle were still hoping to go ahead. However, please DON’T turn up on the gate to either event expecting to get in – Pudding’s already a sold-out event, and Stormin’ is pre-book only due to Covid-19 restrictions. Please keep an eye on social media and website pages for the latest details on any event you plan to attend. The organisers’re looking forward to seeing you, and working hard to keep up-to-date with all the latest information. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------Remember you can support MAG by becoming a member for as little as £25 a year, and to all of you who are members – ‘Thank you!’ Whether you’re someone who gets active with our campaigns/events or you simply pay your annual subscription, every member is important.