HEAVY GOODS VEHICLE (HGV) ACCIDENTS WITH CYCLISTS

1. PROBLEM

A few years ago, London experienced a concerning increase in deaths among cyclists involved in road accidents with HGVs. This led to calls for widespread reductions to HGV traffic on London’s roads for all types of HGV.

2. INITIAL APPROACH

The assumption was that by decreasing HGV traffic overall, the incidents of fatal accidents with cyclists would be reduced by the same proportion.

3. DISCOVERY

RepGraph studied data from the National Accidents Database (STATS19) and focussed on the precise characteristics of fatal accidents in London involving HGVS and cycles. It was surprising to learn that the vast majority of these accidents involved construction HGVs such as tipper trucks and skip lorries. At the same time, a disproportionately smaller number involved goods carrying vehicles such as articulated lorries. RepGraph also found that the accidents involving constructions lorries nearly always occurred when the vehicle was turning left.

4. OUTCOME

The RepGraph findings were confirmed by a separate study commissioned by TfL and conducted by Loughborough University into the modelling of blind spots on construction HGVs. As a result, TfL introduced a series of safety measures to improve the nearside blind spot visibility of construction HGVs along with an education programme to inform both cyclists and lorry drivers about the causes of these fatal accidents.

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