NIK is having a closer look at the safety on local roads. This is where most people die in accidents. The statistics are alarming. According to the data of the Polish Red Cross, in the past 17 years there have been nearly a million accidents with more than 110 thousand casualties and over one million injured. Only last year bike riders participated in more than 4.5 thousand accidents. Most of them took place in developed areas. This is the cyclists that suffered most in those accidents – 300 of them died on the roads in 2012.
The NIK audit was preceded by an experts panel, a conference organised by the NIK Branch in Poznań. It was attended by scholars, construction engineers, local government officials, police officers and also journalists dealing with the road traffic issues. One of them was Sławomir Bajew from Radio Merkury in Poznań – a great fan and promoter of bike riding.
Sławomir Bajew talks about the best ways to improve road safety
Rowerem po jezdni
Bajew underlines that bike riders should keep at least 75 cm distance from the kerb in the city. Riding a bicycle too close to the road side causes a lot of dangerous accidents. Another useful solution are the so-called advanced stop lines or bike boxes before junctions that let bikes stop safely in front of cars. The first bike box was created in Wrocław in 2010. On the other hand, drivers should remember not to approach cyclists too much. It happens that the letter get aggressive in such cases. “People have to keep in mind, though, that cyclists are not protected by the car body and the consequences of a potential accident are often dramatic for them” – explains Bajew.
That is why, the journalist has no doubts that mutual understanding, kindness and imagination are the key to safe co-existence on the road. “If I ride my bike safely, I will force others to behave safely on the road. But if I ride recklessly, jump in the queue, cut them off, then bike riding may appear an extreme sport”.
Bajew, known for commuting to work by bike for many years now, says that a chain reaction is needed here. The more people on the road behave in a reasonable, kind and responsible way, the greater will be their impact on other traffic participants, and so the road traffic safety will improve. “We should start with ourselves, without looking at others” – he urges and adds with conviction: “And we need to be patient. These things take time”.
