Motorcycle industry accuses London Mayor of putting riders’ lives at risk

The Motorcycle Industry Association (MCIA) has gone on the offensive and accused the London Mayor, Sadiq Khan, of putting hundreds of thousands of motorcycle and scooter riders’ lives at risk by failing to properly include them in London’s transport strategy.

According to the MCIA, by ignoring the benefits of two-wheeled transport and failing to properly include them in London’s transport strategy, Transport for London (TfL) has put riders’ lives at risk as reduced lane widths to accommodate cycle lanes makes filtering more dangerous. In addition, the MCIA has accused the Mayor of failing to orchestrate a consistent policy on bus lane access for riders and also ignoring the environmental benefits offered by powered two wheelers (PTWs).

“The Mayor clearly has his own agenda around motorcycles and scooters, which was not made clear to the riders who elected him following his promise to champion their contribution to reducing London’s congestion,” said Tony Campbell, CEO of the MCIA.

“At a recent meeting with the Motor Cycle Industry Association, the Mayor said that he agreed PTWs had an important part to play. In doing so he also agreed to review his Transport Strategy, taking into account the feedback he had received during the consultation period. It is more than disappointing that the Mayor has decided to yet again ignore what is clear common sense for transport policy.”

Mayor of London; ‘manufacturers need to do more’

On Tuesday, January 23, the Mayor of London, called a summit of motorcycle manufacturers and industry representatives to task them with the job of reducing motorcycle crime. Read more from our story last month.