Waste industry praises Safer Lorry Scheme

The Safer Lorry Scheme bans all vehicles weighing over 3.5 tonnes from the capital’s roads if they are not fitted with sideguards to protect cyclists.

The measure – which was first proposed by Mayor of London Boris Johnson in early 2014 – is intended to prevent cyclists from being dragged under a lorry’s wheels in the event of a collision (see letsrecycle.com story).

The Mayor’s decision follows a spate of cyclist fatalities and injuries in the city over recent years, some of which have involved waste industry vehicles (see letsrecycle.com story).

London-based O’Donovan Waste Disposal – whose members met with the Mayor at the Safety Lorry Scheme announcement – today welcomed the launch but added a ‘ban alone’ was not enough to stop accidents.

Incidents

Jacqueline O’Donovan, managing director, said: “While the introduction of the Safer Lorry Scheme is extremely welcome and will no doubt have a positive impact on all road users across the capital, this alone is not enough to cut incidents involving HGVs and other road users to an acceptable level.

“To ensure that everyone has the best chance of travelling safely, we need to combine the introduction of enforced HGV safety equipment with more training and education for both drivers and cyclists.”

Ms O’Donovan said that the firm already invests heavily in driver training, but also takes part in the Exchanging Places programme – which enables cyclists to experience a HGV driver’s view of the road to get a better understanding of blind spots around the vehicle.

The Environmental Services Association (ESA) also agreed that the sideguards should form part of a wider plan.

An ESA spokeswoman said: “These changes have been communicated well in advance, and the industry has had sufficient time to prepare and take steps to equip fleets accordingly. The new requirements are a positive step, but should of course form part of a broader set of actions to improve cycle safety.”

Cab-doors

The Mayor’s Office today confirmed the sideguards were only the start of changes to HGV safety in London, with ‘direct-vision’ cab-door windows also to be introduced.

Bigger side windows in the lower panel of the cab door, it added, give the driver direct vision of any cyclist who may be alongside them, and can be fitted to most lorries “for around £1000”.

It continued that greater planning powers will be administered by the Greater London Authority, which will minimise the number of left-turns HGVs can take in the city en-route to major construction projects.

The Mayor said: “We are ahead of any other part of the UK in closing the legal loopholes that allowed many HGVs to operate without basic safety equipment, and I am delighted that over the 18 months since we announced the Safer Lorry Scheme the vast majority of operators have got the message and fitted safety equipment to their vehicles in anticipation of the ban.”

Extensive trials are also now being undertaken at the Transport Research Laboratory of a variety of electronic sensors for lorries, aiming to alert drivers to cyclists’ presence. If it is shown that any of these devices offers significant and consistent benefits, it may also be required for them to be fitted to lorries in London.