RAC welcomes TFL child cycling training pledge
The RAC welcomes the move by Transport for London (TfL) to prioritise cycle training for children across the capital.
Under the new scheme every child will be offered free cycling training as part of a new Delivery Plan for Young People.
RAC head of external affairs Pete Williams said: “TfL deserve applause for this initiative which will help equip young Londoners to be safe and healthy cyclists and to raise awareness of road safety generally. The Bikeability training scheme has proved itself as a worthy replacement for the old Cycle Proficiency Test and it is fantastic news that every school child in the capital will now be able to benefit from this essential safety training.
“In 2012 a total of 1,045* children were injured as pedestrians and 175 as cyclists in London which equates to 12% of these accidents for all ages. Sadly, five of these children were fatally injured.
“The RAC has just launched our own Child Road Safety Campaign with Horace a new road safety mascot for the 21st century created by Aardman and endorsed by the Department for Transport’s THINK! campaign.
“We are encouraging school children across the UK to use their creative skills to make their own road safety animation movies telling key road safety and cycle safety messages to their fellow pupils. We believe that it is every child’s right to receive suitable training to equip them to keep safe on and around our roads and to help them become safe and responsible road users. Visit rac.co.uk/childroadsafety to find out more about our road safety animation competition and ‘Like’ Horace’s Facebook page facebook.com/HoraceChampion
