“Watch out for cycling.
Watch out for bicycles.
This is the "two-way" message (like the cycle paths of the same name) of the prevention campaign that Road Safety will be relaunching this week as part of the national "May by bike" operation.
This poster campaign recalling the rules that apply to “all” road users, already released last fall, will in fact be aimed at both cyclists and motorists.
Two populations who accuse each other of dangerous behavior on the road and reciprocal "endangerment".
The strong increase in the number of urban cyclists, which began during the strikes of December 2019 and then amplified by the health crisis, has been accompanied by a sharp increase in accidents involving non-motorized two-wheelers.
According to figures from Road Safety, the number of cyclists injured in the summer of 2020 jumped 15% nationally compared to the previous summer.
In Ile-de-France, where cycling has literally exploded, the increase is even more impressive.
24 cyclists lost their lives there in 2020, ie… 41% more than in 2019!
The trap door open without looking
This alarming percentage remains lower than that of the increase in cycling (estimated at over 60% in the capital). The return of the sunny days and of the entire peloton of “neocyclists” in the streets requires the relaunch of a prevention campaign. For motorists, it will take the form of posters recalling, in a humorous tone, a few "simple actions" to be observed for the safety of cyclists. Starting with a check in the rearview mirror before opening the door ... in front of a two-wheeler running alongside the cars. The change in travel habits requires, according to the expression of Road Safety, an "awareness" for motorists of the need for a new sharing of the road.
This observation, professionals learning to drive have already integrated into their "software".
"This has obviously become a very important aspect of training," confirms Pascal Augé, manager of a large driving school member of the CER group, which has been installed for 50 years in rue Bobillot (13th arrondissement).
“The message that trainers must constantly send to students is hyper-vigilance towards all those who are grouped together under the term vulnerable users.
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New lessons in driving schools
“This was already the case before the explosion in the number of cyclists, especially in Paris where there are a lot of motorcycles and scooters for a long time. What is new, however, is that the increase in risky behavior on the part of certain users of new mobility has tended to rub off on all the others ”, estimates the driving school manager. “The rise of the lines on the right for example
(Editor's note: strictly prohibited for motorized 2-wheelers but also for bicycles)
has become widespread. Now, when you are stopped at a traffic light, it happens everywhere! We must adapt the driving lessons to this reality… but without making our students panic. "
The driving education program has thus been expanded with a few “chapters”. In particular on the wrong way cycle, yet authorized for more than 10 years but which continue to surprise the motorists who see arriving cyclists in front of them in small streets which they thought were one-way. “New forms of mobility” have also appeared in code courses and may be the subject of questions during the examination. And then there are these new reflex gestures, such as opening the door "Dutch-style" (with the right hand to force the driver to turn around and check that no cyclist is in sight), which are now taught to French learner drivers.
“Systematically,” insists Pascal Augé. “I don't know if it's part of the compulsory lessons. But it's a matter of common sense, ”notes the professional, specifying that the multiplication of new road users has not revolutionized the teaching of driving ... Even if it has complicated it a bit. In any case, there is no question for the driving school manager to invite his 10 trainers to avoid areas where proximity to cyclists is difficult, such as the Place d'Italie very close to his agency. .
"Our role, on the contrary, is to confront our students with the real traffic conditions", he concludes. "That is the instruction. But in fact, we all manage to bypass corners for cyclists with beginners ”, nuance, anonymously, a driving school instructor from the 12th arrondissement who cites the new Place de la Bastille as an example, where the cycle paths and pedestrians are difficult to read. “Me, I already have trouble finding my way around. So, you can imagine the young people who have hardly ever driven! For them, cyclists can turn into a nightmare. "
Yoan, a young man who comes out "a little tired" from two hours of driving lessons in the streets of the capital, confirms that his instructor has not stopped warning him against cyclists. “Especially at crossroads. He tells me to look everywhere because cyclists can cross any way, ”notes the learner driver, bordering on annoyance. “I know it… I do it when I'm at Vélib '! "
