Wednesday, April 22, 2015
Increase in hot weather likely to see motorcycle thefts rise
AS MORE motorcyclists take to the roads in the warmer weather, experts are warning about a 20 per cent rise in motorcycle theft this summer. Sales of new motor- cycles increased by 11.5 per cent in 2014, meaning there will be more motorcycles on the road in 2015, and thieves see them as an easy target. Robin Broughton, of insurance underwriter Ageas, said: “The spring and summer months see more motorcycles on the road, providing more opportunities for organised and opportunistic thieves as owners roll-out their bikes after the winter hiberna- tion or invest in a new machine. “The speed with which a motor-
cycle can be stolen and the bra- zenness of some thefts, with ve- hicles often being stolen in broad daylight, makes it dangerous to assume that these crimes are con- ducted under the cover of dark- ness. Far from it; more visibility gives rise to more thefts and it’s vital the motorcycling commu- nity are aware of the steps they can take to both reduce the risk of theft and increase the likelihood of the bike being recovered intact if it is stolen. “Sadly, motorcycles are four timesmorelikely to be stolen than cars, with 26,000 taken a year and we know that 40 per cent of vic- tims of motorcycle theft decide to leave the motorcycling communi- ty as a consequence.”Incweather
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Smart motorways still a confusion for motorists
DRIVERS still don’t know how to properly use so- called ‘Smart’ motorway systems one year after they were introduced, claims the Institute of Ad- vanced Motorists (IAM). England’s first ‘all-lane running’ section of motor- way, with no hard shoul- der at all, opened on April 14 last year between junc- tions 23 and 25 of the M25. Meanwhile, ‘complete schemes’ with variable speed limits and on-de- mand hard shoulder run- ning have been operating on parts of the M1, M4, M5, M6, M42 and M62. The IAM conducted a
survey on the introduc- tion of Smart motorways last year, which found 71% of drivers said they would feel less safe on a motorway with no hard shoulder than a motorway with one. Some 40% of respond-
ents said they were scep- tical that new monitoring systems on Smart motor- ways, such as traffic de- tectors and CCTV, would protect them if forced to stop in a running lane. Sarah Sillars, IAM chief executive officer, said: “There are many different motorway users out there
and some are still con- fused and nervous about using Smart motorways – if they are aware of them at all. She added: “Highways England must analyse incident data on a con- tinuous basis and ensure that any lessons learned from the real world use of SMART motorways are implemented quickly. Ulti- mately, the smartest way to build awareness would be to allowlearner drivers to use motorways under expert supervision.”
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Side street cycle lane leads to confusion for road users
A CYCLE lane in a Chelten- ham side street is causing amusement and confusion as it is just seven metres in length. The lane, located at the junc-
tion of Suffolk Parade and Suffolk Square, has recently been repainted, bringing it to the attention of road us- ers and local residents and causing confusion, as it leads cyclists the wrong way into a one-way street. Area highways manager
for the council Jason Humm told the Gloucestershire Echo: “The road markings in Suf-
folk Parade have been there for some time and have been refreshed recently. “They legally allow cyclists
to go through the ‘no entry’ point and then travel the op- posite way to the traffic on the one-way street.” The street is just 113 metres
in length, however, and there is a gap of over 60 meters be- tween the tiny cycle lane and a slightly larger one at the opposite end of the street, so that cyclists and other road users have to share the road space for the majority of the time.
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represents road users on the strategic road net- work (consisting of most motorways and signifi- cant trunk A roads) said in their report Road User Needs and Experiences, issued last month: “While some drivers were aware of smart motorways, some were not. Even those who have driven on smart motorways were not al- ways familiar with the term, nor did they under- stand clearly how they op- erated.”
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