Footage shows boy hit by bus

BBC NEWS | Scotland | Footage shows boy hit by bus

Stuart Field sent me this link. He wrote to the police thus:

Sent: 29 September 2008 22:04
To: FCC Duty Officer
Subject: Video on BBC of bus hitting boy

Hello,

I've just watched your video on the BBC of a bus hitting a boy who vaulted over a barrier.

Obviously the boy was wrong to do this, but there was no comment about the bus encroaching on the cycle lane.

Is this allowed in Scotland? If so, I'll take extra care next time I visit your country!

Regards,

Stuart Field

The reply was:

Dear Mr. Field,
Unfortunately at this location the lanes are narrow and as such larger vehicles have no option but to encroach into the cycle lane or they would have to wait until both lanes were clear before they could proceed. The congestion this would cause in the town centre would not be acceptable and the alternative would be to remove the cycle lane completely.

As road safety officer I accept that the above is not ideal but I believe affording cyclists some protection is better than none at all. When there is a cyclist in the cycle lane we find that large vehicles and car driver have to follow the cyclist in any case as there is insufficient room for them to pass when there is traffic in the right turn lane.

Yours sincerely

Scott McLachlan
Sgt 34
Operational Support Services
Police HQ
Cornwall Mount
Dumfries DG1 1PZ