Global Road Deaths

Working for change » Safer Streets » Lorry Danger Reduction

Lorry Danger Reduction

Working with others (CTC, LCC, and Living Streets) we are campaigning to reduce the danger to vulnerable road users from heavy goods vehicles (HGVs) on our streets.

HGVs pose a particular danger to others in the urban environment. Originally designed for long distance motorway driving where it was more important to see vehicles in the distance, HGVs now also operate in cities where they need to be able to share the space safely with road users such as cyclists and pedestrians.

However, the design of the lorry means that the driver is often unable to ‘see’ cyclists and pedestrians near by, and in fact they operate with known and ‘accepted’ blind spots. Due to the sheer size and bulk of the vehicle, the impact of an HGV with a pedestrian or cyclist will often result in a fatality.

HGVs, and in particular construction vehicles, are disproportionately involved in collisions with pedestrians and cyclists. Currently there is a growing groundswell of concern and outrage, particularly within the cycling community, at the number of cyclists being killed and seriously injured by lorries. In 2009, of the 13 cyclists killed in London, 9 involved HGVs. In 2010, 3 cyclists were killed by HGVs in one month.

In London, we believe the situation may get worse with the expected increase in the number of cyclists on the roads now that the cycle hire scheme is up and running, and the recently introduced cycle super highways. This will be further aggravated with the increased lorry traffic from construction projects associated with the Olympics and CrossRail. Lorry deliveries are anticipated to increase from 650 to 1000 per day during this time. 

We are working to reduce the threat from HGVs through our involvement on TfL’s Share the Road working group, the Metropolitan Police's Cyclist Fatality working group , TfL's Cycle Safety working group and the HGV Campaigns group (focusing on cyclists and pedestrians) run by LCC, CTC and RoadPeace.

The HGV campaigns group believe there are many low cost and effective measures which could be put in place immediately which would drastically reduce the risk from lorries to vulnerable road users. 

Take action

• As a cyclist, educate yourself, and never cycle on the inside of a lorry
• Get your MP to sign the EDM calling for HGV Safety
• Report near misses with HGVs

• If you experience or witness bad HGV driving, write to the company and tell them about it
• Write to your local authority and ask them to follow Lambeth's example of good practice with HGV driver cycle awareness training.