Journalism and cycling

Seth Brundle · 07-12-2018 10:56am

magicbastarder wrote: »

maybe the RSA should be split. i assume a lot of their business is in running the driving tests, so it's probably a culture oriented towards cars.
maybe we need a CSA and PSA section within them - or is there one already?

Is it that difficult to have a road safety body with actual knowledge of how to improve road safety?
Creating various new bodies won't solve the issue of ignorance.

Macy0161 · 07-12-2018 11:07am

Seth Brundle wrote: »

Is it that difficult to have a road safety body with actual knowledge of how to improve road safety?
Creating various new bodies won't solve the issue of ignorance.

But they also have licencing and testing, which isn't the same thing really. And is leading to them being motorist focused - as seen by what they deem to be a "Road Safety Expert", when the person is really a "Car Driving Expert".

Tell me how · 07-12-2018 11:21am

Macy0161 wrote: »

Judging by the comments, it has played well with the intended audience - motorists!

As you can see from the qualifications as to what they expect of their experts, the RSA is too motorist focused to be effective, hence all the victim blaming nonsense "safety" campaigns.

Most comments on Twitter to the Tweet the RSA sent out are very negative towards the piece.

magicbastarder · 07-12-2018 11:27am

Seth Brundle wrote: »

Is it that difficult to have a road safety body with actual knowledge of how to improve road safety?

i know, i'm conflicted about it. if you go to the RSA site, it's pretty much all about motoring on the front page. but then, most of the risk is created by motor vehicles, so maybe that *should* be their focus.

but with what (assumption alert) must be quite a significant part of their budget being made from driving tests and licences, the corporate culture in there is almost certainly massively skewed towards assuming motoring as a default.

you can see that in the communications they send out.

LeoD · 07-12-2018 9:42pm

magicbastarder wrote: »

but with what (assumption alert) must be quite a significant part of their budget being made from driving tests and licences, the corporate culture in there is almost certainly massively skewed towards assuming motoring as a default.

In 2016, the RSA had a total income of just over €73m - €70m came from driver testing, vehicle testing (private and commercial) and driver license fees - the remainder came from things like digital tachographs, driving instructor approval, sponsorship & dangerous goods carriage fees. They are a motoring organisation, there to serve the motor industry. When it comes to road safety, they are a waste of space. Actually, they are worse than a waste of space because all they do is perpetuate the myth that motor traffic is hard done by and non-motorised traffic - ie: foot and cycle - are a nuisance on the road that needs to be tolerated.

tomasrojo · 07-12-2018 10:42pm

Their funding model and their attitude bring to mind the Upton Sinclair quote: "It is difficult to get a man to understand something, when his salary depends on his not understanding it."

Breaking up the RSA: certainly, the campaigning duties and the statistical analysis duties should belong to completely separate bodies. Campaigners, especially when they're "saving lives", have the wrong mindset to do impartial analysis.

Corca Baiscinn · 07-12-2018 11:35pm

What Username Guidelines wrote: »

Screw it, I've been cycling in and out of Dublin for 10-ish years, I can most certainly use anecdotal crap to reword the article. Hell, most of it I didn't even have to change, just swap around a bit.

Brilliant! Your NUJ card is in the post +Institute of Advanced debunking myths about drivers card!

[Deleted User] · 08-12-2018 12:36am

Well thanks to the RSA we'd be well prepared if a yellow vest movement were ever to break out here now wouldn't we

tomasrojo · 08-12-2018 9:01am

Enfilade wrote: »

Well thanks to the RSA we'd be well prepared if a yellow vest movement were ever to break out here now wouldn't we

Funny!

I was going to post something in the Hi-viz thread, but it's quite an exhausting place to be these days. It wasn't as snappy as your post.

zell12 · 08-12-2018 11:48am

Letter in Indo

[Deleted User] · 08-12-2018 11:52am

Unlike the RSA "expert" that fella was willing to sign his name to what he'd written. Fair play to him.

Duckjob · 08-12-2018 12:44pm

Excellent letter whose author, unlike the "RSA Expert", demonstrates some actual understanding of road safety.

Duckjob · 08-12-2018 1:12pm

magicbastarder wrote: »

what's really head scratching is that a head of communications should be good at understanding what will and won't play well with an audience.
that article is so ham-fisted and counterproductive that the talk about whether they're qualified to talk on road safety surely must be eclipsed by the fact that they don't seem qualified to do their own job.
it's the sort of article that you expect the main role of the head of communications would have in its publication would be to prevent its publication.

QFT.

If this article has achieved anything, it has exposed mind-boggling incompetence not only on the part of the person who authored that "piece", but also on the part of the organisation as a whole.

When you have a state body set up with a mission to making the roads safer for all, it's a bad enough reflection on them to think that the roads would be no more dangerous if they were disbanded.

It's an even worse reflection on them to think that the roads would actually be safer were they no longer around to inject their self-branded "expertise" into the national conscience.

Muahahaha · 08-12-2018 11:22pm

The article on the RSA Twitter account has a fair old backlash to it in the comments below. Hopefully between that and the letter to the Indo the RSA expert might learn something from their misguided article.

In other news WTF is this ???

https://twitter.com/DCCTraffic/status/1070222202312843269

Its like they said they would protect the cycle lane but still allow for cars and delivery vans to park up in it. Good jesus, talk about a half baked solution

Seth Brundle · 08-12-2018 11:29pm

I'd say they're regretting that article (and rightly so).
The feedback is spilling into other threads and distracting from their original messages...
https://twitter.com/wideboyy/status/1071151202371600384

https://twitter.com/DublinVelo2019/status/1070446647627431936

Seth Brundle · 08-12-2018 11:31pm

Muahahaha wrote: »

In other news WTF is this ???

https://twitter.com/DCCTraffic/status/1070222202312843269

Its like they said they would protect the cycle lane but still allow for cars and delivery vans to park up in it. Good jesus, talk about a half baked solution

I'm guessing that it prevents moving traffic from using the bus lane. It just ignores that the cyclists now need to move into moving traffic to avoid the parked vehicles.

Valerie Matthews · 08-12-2018 11:31pm

Quite a contraversary point

AndrewJRenko · 08-12-2018 11:51pm

Muahahaha wrote: »

Its like they said they would protect the cycle lane but still allow for cars and delivery vans to park up in it. Good jesus, talk about a half baked solution

Which is exactly what happens:

https://twitter.com/bewkhewker/status/1070289889495838721

[Deleted User] · 08-12-2018 11:55pm

There a gas response to a guy called Craig in the comments on the Orca kerbing with a picture

[Deleted User] · 08-12-2018 11:57pm

From stickybottle

http://www.stickybottle.com/latest-news/orcas-cycle-lanes-dublin/

Thinkingaboutit · 10-12-2018 10:04am

Some really funny looking bicycles these days. :pac:

Hurrache · 10-12-2018 11:08am

Obviously can't say how it happened, but based on the placement of the cars you could take a reasonable guess
https://twitter.com/DubFireBrigade/status/1072065815447592961?s=19

AndrewJRenko · 10-12-2018 11:30am

Hurrache wrote: »

Obviously can't say how it happened, but based on the placement of the cars you could take a reasonable guess
https://twitter.com/DubFireBrigade/status/1072065815447592961?s=19

I passed by that this morning, at the entrance to the girls school - looked pretty serious at the time, so good to hear it was minor injuries only.

Fian · 10-12-2018 1:50pm

AndrewJRenko wrote: »

I passed by that this morning, at the entrance to the girls school - looked pretty serious at the time, so good to hear it was minor injuries only.

I cycle past there every weekday. Accident had been cleared before i arrived this morning.

It is downhill and with the entrance to the school I have had a few close calls where traffic heading into town helpfully leave a gap and cars swing into the school without considering that cyclists might be coming down in the cycle lane inside the stopped traffic.

Hope cyclist recovers well.

mr spuckler · 10-12-2018 2:29pm

Enfilade wrote: »

From stickybottle

http://www.stickybottle.com/latest-news/orcas-cycle-lanes-dublin/

I walked down Leeson st at lunchtime today and my optimism around these Orcas faded quite quickly.
first they don't start at the junction with Hatch st lower, they start almost half way down towards Stephens Green.
second there was a Fastway van and a motorbike parked in the cycle lane where the orcas are.
third, almost every single one showed varying levels of damage from being hit by vehicles.

as we've seen so many times before, without enforcement the value of these initiatives fades very quickly.

magicbastarder · 10-12-2018 2:46pm

magicbastarder wrote: »

maybe the RSA should be split. i assume a lot of their business is in running the driving tests, so it's probably a culture oriented towards cars.
maybe we need a CSA and PSA section within them - or is there one already?

am i correct in thinking RoSPA is the body responsible for road safety in the UK? they certainly don't seem as motorist focussed as the RSA (going by their website anyway) but do offer advanced driving and motorcycle training.

https://www.rospa.com/

TheChizler · 10-12-2018 3:29pm

What's the idea behind the orcas? Is it that it stops vehicles driving in them easily? So while you still have all the problems of vehicles parked in them, you're at least protected from moving traffic?

check_six · 10-12-2018 3:33pm

TheChizler wrote: »

What's the idea behind the orcas? Is it that it stops vehicles driving in them easily? So while you still have all the problems of vehicles parked in them, you're at least protected from moving traffic?

I haven't seen these things in the flesh. Can you cycle over them I wonder? Or are they a bit of a low lying trip wire?

zell12 · 10-12-2018 3:37pm

check_six wrote: »

I haven't seen these things in the flesh. Can you cycle over them I wonder? Or are they a bit of a low lying trip wire?

http://www.rediweldtraffic.co.uk/products/cycle-lane-products/orca-cycle-lane-product/

Macy0161 · 10-12-2018 3:38pm

Fian wrote: »

where traffic heading into town helpfully leave a gap and cars swing into the school without considering that cyclists might be coming down in the cycle lane inside the stopped traffic.

It looks like there's a yellow box, so whatever about the cars swinging in, those stopped shouldn't be blocking the yellow box. Another example of poor design.

Journalism and cycling

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