Survey finds 36% blame "poor standards of cycling" for accidents

A YouGov survey has found that 36% of people believe "poor standards of cycling" are the most common cause of road accidents involving cyclists, with just 22% attributing the cause to "poor standards of driving by motorists".

Coming in the wake of a spate of tragic cycling fatalities on London's roads, the survey asked for views on several issues that have been subject to recent media debate. The findings included:

- 89% would support a ban on cyclists wearing headphones while cycling

- 85% would support making the wearing of cycle helmets compulsory

- 66% would support a ban on lorries in city centres during commuting hours

- 55% percent of respondents believed that the government should do more to promote cycling - an identical result to the same question asked in a survey last July.

Cyclist safety has been high on the agenda following the recent deaths, with Chris Boardman penning an open letter to the Mayor of London, Boris Johnson calling for a ban on heavy goods vehicles in the capital during commuting hours.

Responding to calls for a review of cycling safety in the capital, the Mayor suggested that rule-breaking cyclists were at fault. Johnson stated: "there's no amount of traffic engineering that we invest in that is going to save people's lives."

The Mayor was accused of "dodging responsibility" for the accidents by a London assembly member, while Roger Geffen, campaigns and policy director for the CTC, described as "grossly insensitive" the mayor's attempts to "deflect blame on to cyclists".

The poll results suggest a degree of support for the mayor's views regarding blame for cycling accidents. On the issue of helmets however, the majority appear to contradict the Johnson's stance. In a radio interview in April this year the mayor said he would not be "bullied" into wearing a helmet while cycling, and stated that he had no plans to introduce helmets for users of the Barclays Cycle Hire Scheme.

Of the 1867 respondents to the YouGov poll, 60% identified themselves as regular motorists who did not ride bicycles, 25% were neither regular motorists nor cyclists, while just 12% regularly cycled and drove a motor vehicle.