Road safety – Motorized two-wheelers in town: European examples –

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Motorized two-wheelers in the city: European examples

Road safety - Motorized two-wheelers in town: European examples -

Main interest of the Technical Day on the place of motorized two-wheelers in the city organized yesterday in Paris, the interventions of representatives of four major European cities: London, Barcelona, ​​Rome and Athens.

The interventions of representatives of four major European cities, the main interest of the day of reflection organized yesterday by the City of Paris and financed by the Group of mutual insurance companies (GEMA), made it possible to see what was happening elsewhere than in the capital, particularly retrograde with regard to motorized two-wheelers, especially in the bus lanes. Exchange of experiences.

London: motorcycles tested in bus lanes

The pragmatic approach of Chris Lines, head of the road safety department at Transport for London and former biker, found that on the three experimental bus lines, where motorized two-wheelers have been allowed alongside bicycles for a few months, no further aggravation of the accidentology is to be deplored..

"The biker lobby was asking us to be able to ride in the bus lanes so we tried, but I’m not sure this is the right solution"says Chris Lines."For the moment, the fallout in terms of accidentology is neutral, but it is too early to draw definitive conclusions. Cyclists are against it and we have to admit that cycling is much more politically correct … Personally, I gave up riding after a friend of mine broke his spine. And today, I have the means to afford a car !"

Bus lanes or not, the number of motorized two-wheeler accidents remains worrying in the British capital. "We have almost reached our target of 40% reduction in the number of fatalities and injuries for other categories of users, but for motorized two-wheelers the curve continues to grow with an increase of 31% between 2002 and 2003", deplores Chris Lines before explaining that"as motorized two-wheelers are more and more numerous in the city, it is in a way logical that they have more and more accidents, even if they are not responsible in 50% of cases".

In the Kingdom of video surveillance and the city center paying (110,000 payments of £ 5 per day, of which motorized two-wheelers are exempt), prevention is however far from neglected. The program Bike Safe, a training course run by police bikers, is very popular"near civilian motorcyclists and mopeds do not pose"no problem"according to Mr. Lines, thanks in particular to the minimum age of 16 and to real compulsory training. Finally, an awareness campaign entitled" Don’t look, see ", broadcast on television and in the cinema, encourages motorists to pay particular attention to motorized two-wheelers.

Barcelona: motorcycles are part of our traditions

For Pere Navarro, Commissioner for Transport and Mobility at Barcelona City Hall, "the motorbike is one of the characteristics of the city, it is part of our traditions". The Catalan capital, where several competitions are held each year including a Grand Prix (read, has 230,000 motorcycles, or one motorcycle for 2.6 cars."20% of private traffic in the city is by motorcycle. The motorized two-wheeler is a vehicle designed and manufactured for the city, unlike the car", believes Mr. Navarro."The European Union has never made it a priority subject, while all the cities of Europe are concerned.". Parking on the sidewalk is allowed"only in demarcated areas"- an idea that seemed to appeal to the City of Paris – and all new public and private buildings with parking lots (offices, cinemas, homes, etc.) must provide"one motorbike place for three car places, to avoid 200 motorbikes parked anyhow on the day of the inauguration !"

Regarding cyclos, Mr. Navarro regrets that we can drive one "from 14 years old, whereas one cannot buy tobacco or alcohol before 18 years! You have to set up a small, simple permit", he believes, because"driving a cyclo is very dangerous in large cities. I also propose to prohibit the transport of a passenger on a cyclo if the driver is under 18 years old. But it’s not easy to discipline users of motorized two-wheelers !"

Rome: more than half a million motorized two-wheelers

Historic city if ever there is one, the Italian capital has considerably restricted the place of motor vehicles in the city center. "With 340,000 cyclists and 230,000 motorcycles, Rome is the city with the highest number of motorized two-wheelers in Europe.", explains Maurizio Tomassini, Head of the Innovation and International Programs Department."In the past, we promoted the scooter without thinking about the consequences and today the scales are no longer in their favor.".

An annual control of polluting emissions has therefore been put in place as well as incentives to buy cyclos meeting the Euro 2 standard or 4-stroke, while a project to ban certain areas from the most polluting vehicles is to study. Finally, with more than half a million motorcycles and cyclos against 1.3 million cars, the Italian capital is currently studying the possibility of opening its bus lanes to motorized two-wheelers..

Athens: motorized two-wheelers are a chance for the city

The prize for enthusiasm undoubtedly goes to Thanos Vlastos, professor at the National Polytechnic University of Athens. "I do not agree to discuss motorized two-wheelers as a problem", he says straight away,"because on the contrary, they are a chance for the city! And we must not forget the pleasure of driving, because a motorcycle or a scooter is not only a means of connecting point A to point B !". The system of even and odd plates, supposed to solve the chronic pollution of the Greek capital, does not concern motorized two-wheelers but"bikers must accept that there are certain days when they cannot enter the center", estimates Mr. Vlastos who considers that today,"the world of bikers concerns all of society. They are no longer marginal, and that’s why politicians are interested".

The Athenian bus lanes, narrower than in Paris (3.20 m against 4.50), are prohibited for taxis but open to motorcycles under certain conditions. "But this is not the right solution, the bikes should have cycle paths before putting the motorcycles in the bus lanes", says Mr. Vlastos."Besides, few bikers use them". The construction of"small corridors leading to airlocks allowing motorcycles to take the lead at each crossroads"is also planned"but after the Olympics".

"Tomorrow the motorcycles will be clean and they will only have advantages! We must reduce the place of the car and increase that of motorized two-wheelers so that cities are better and more dynamic", summarizes Mr. Vlastos before embarking on an improbable lyrical flight on the bike,"unique means of transport where the passenger is embraced with the driver: the motorcycle has an erotic character that must not be lost, unlike the car where we lock ourselves, where we armor and where we separate from others for security reasons. It’s a disaster for the city !"

Eric MICHEL

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