Vulnerable road users: a new driving approach
A harsh reality for soft mobility
When we talk about soft mobility, we expect peaceful, quiet, calm and safe travel. However the reality is different. When it comes to safety, there are many reasons why cyclists, scooter riders and other alternative modes of transport have reason to falter when they take to the road. The 2024 road accident report in France highlights the worrying proportion of vulnerable users who lose their lives on the roads of France or are regularly seriously injured.
Among the users at risk are scooters, which remain a real problem for road safety. In fact, 10% of scooter drivers who are victims of an accident suffer lasting consequences. This is an alarming figure that is constantly increasing.
Who becomes vulnerable to whom?
It is all about cohabitation. The challenges of road safety for the decades to come are to teach users, from light vehicles to heavy goods vehicles and including alternative modes of transport, to share the road environment. It’s a new driving approach and habits to be built between the most and least vulnerable users.
All interactions must now be reviewed and re-evaluated to ensure that all movements are carried out in a fluid and safe manner. What about the regulations that were mainly designed for light vehicles? The new forms of mobility, which are increasingly popular, cheaper, lighter and more environmentally friendly, are above all more exposed to the dangers than a vehicle protected by its bodywork.
Speed, a crucial issue
Roads need to be transformed and this involves defining high-risk road safety zones by analyzing accident and behavior data. Speed is a major issue in ensuring the coexistence of users and providing a more peaceful space for travel, especially when we consider that 60% of deaths and 48% of injuries occur on roads outside built-up areas. An approach based on accidents and behavior is therefore necessary for any development project, particularly thanks to data that makes it possible to better target areas not yet identified as accident-prone.
