CYCLING campaigners are to demand the Scottish Government increases its efforts to tackle the rise in cyclists being killed in road crashes after another fatal accident.
The latest collision happened on the B9102 near the Dandaleith junction north of Craigellachie in Moray, at 9.25am on Saturday.
A woman cyclist, as yet unnamed, died at the scene, but the driver of a car, a Vauxhall Corsa, was not hurt.
Twelve cyclists have been killed this year in Scotland so far, compared to nine last year.
Sally Hinchman, of the Pedal on Parliament cycling safety lobby group, says more pressure must be put on the Scottish Government to reduce the danger levels on Scottish roads.
"One of the big problems is we don't get to hear the detail of how these accidents came about," she said. "The police will investigate criminality. But there is no real analysis of why the accident came about, in terms of looking at the roads, to highlight the blackspots.
"In Sweden and the Netherlands examinations of the roads or junctions are carried out, traffic speed is analysed and maps are drawn up which show the black-spots. But this mapping doesn't happen so much in Scotland. Sweden has a Zero Death policy. That's what we need here."
Ms Hinchman added: "We need to record all the cycling accidents, not only those which result in death. And we need to change our thinking. If a helicopter crashes they are grounded until investigators are sure it's safe to fly. But if someone is killed on a bike on a road it is seen to be just one of these things. If we had this many deaths on a plane, the nation would be stunned. Because it's happened to cyclists, we just seem to accept it."
Pedal on Parliament, which began on a social media forum, argues 60mph is an unsuitable speed for many of Scotland's minor roads and car drivers often don't have the time to see cyclists round a bend or over a hump.
The campaigning group highlights the fact victims are often experienced cyclists. "They are not people who are going out there taking risks," said Ms Hinchman.
"The onus of responsibility is always on the cyclists, but they have little protection, beyond a crash helmet and a yellow vest."
Fellow Pedal On Parliament campaigner David Brennan argues education will help, but money has to be spent on Scottish roads. "You'll always have good and bad drivers. Ultimately, safety is about speed limits and infrastructure. There are good signs coming from the Scottish Government, with £20m being spent over two years, but we want £100m, a small part of the transport budget."
A Transport Scotland spokesman said: "We are investing £58m on cycling infrastructure, training and road safety projects through Cycling Scotland, Sustrans and councils over this spending review. Funding of £20m goes directly to councils for cycling, walking and Safer Streets projects."
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