West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner David Jamieson today responded to the Transport Secretary’s comment that ‘cyclists are not road users’.
Mr Jamieson, a former transport and road safety minister, said: “Of course cyclists are road users. Cyclists, motorists, equestrians, pedestrians: we are all road users.
“Mr Grayling’s comment was ill-informed and undermines the mutual respect all road users should have for each other to ensure our roads are safe.
“There is no place for attitudes such as Mr Grayling’s, who has, in one clumsy comment, disregarded the safety of the millions of cyclists who regularly use our roads.”
Mr Jamieson’s comments come on the same day he attended a cycling forum to discuss road safety, cycling initiatives and West Midlands Police’s ‘ close pass‘ scheme.
At Transport Questions in the House of Commons, Labour MP for Cambridge Daniel Zeichner asked Chris Grayling about a remark he had given in an interview that ‘cycle lanes cause problems for road users’.
Mr Zeichner asked: “I was wondering if he could clarify for the house exactly who he thinks road users are?”
Mr Grayling told him: “Where you have cycle lanes, cyclists are the users of cycle lanes and the road users are the users of the road. It’s very simple.”
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