Cycling group presents petition calling for change in law

Round-the-world cyclist and adventurer Mark Beaumont has handed over a report and petition to the Scottish Parliament on behalf of the Road Share campaign group, calling for the introduction of presumed liability into Civil Law on Scotland’s roads.

The report provides evidence supporting the inclusion of new liability laws within a package of measures to ensure that the drive to increase active travel is matched by improved safety and protection for vulnerable road users.

Along with the report, Mark Beaumont, presented a petition of more than 8,200 names calling on the Scottish Parliament to introduce presumed liability into Civil Law on Scotland’s roads.

The research found that the UK is increasingly lagging behind its European neighbours who have introduced road traffic liability laws in recent decades. A recent OECD report showed that successful cycling promotion depended on having the right legislation in place.

The campaigners argue that the current situation where vulnerable road users who cause the least harm are also the least protected by the law, does not sit comfortably for a mature and socially conscious nation. Walkers and cyclists seriously injured in a road traffic accident and the families of those killed typically battle through the legal process for well over two years before receiving compensation.

Brenda Mitchell, the founder of the campaign and a personal injury lawyer with Cycle Law Scotland, said: “Motorised vehicles bring the most harm to a collision involving a cyclist or walker yet this is not reflected in our current road traffic liability laws that expect those injured or the families of those killed to go through an often harsh and protracted legal process to gain much needed treatment, care and compensation. This is a matter of social justice.

“Presumed liability laws provide an incentive to exercise care and would be the catalyst we need for cultural change that values the protection of the vulnerable and places them at the centre of the legal process.

“Scotland has the opportunity to put an end to the grave injustice suffered by many vulnerable road users and introduce its own forward thinking system. I hope that our research offers another compelling reason for this government to embrace the good sense of what we are proposing.”