Quote of the Week

Bradley Wiggins got knocked off his bike by a car last week in a classic example of motorist’s SMIDSY (Sorry Mate, I Didn’t See You). A Guardian article concluded with a quote from a British MP, a member of the UK’s Opposition Labour Party, who, at the time of making the comment (January 2012), was a shadow environment minister. Step forward Tom Harris, Labour MP for Glasgow South, speaking in a House of Commons debate on the Civil Aviation Bill on 30 January 2012.

Mr Harris responded to the news that the Minister of State at the Department for Transport, Mrs Villiers, had been knocked off her bike with the following gem,

“I trust that when she returns to her duties after that speedy recovery, she will use her ministerial car rather more often and her push bike rather less often.”

Yes, that’s the Labour Party’s shadow environment minister. You couldn’t make it up.

Quote of the Week

In response to a suggestion from Team GB’s golden bike boy Bradley Wiggins that cycle helmets should be made compulsory, transport commentator Christian Wolmar noted,

“Making car drivers wear helmets would save far more lives (than making cyclists wear helmets) as some 50% of car occupant deaths are the result of head injuries.”

Wolmar also points out that cyclists, the victims, seem to get the blame for their misfortunes - unlike car drivers who have ‘accidents.’ Here’s another interesting take on the “Liddites” from the Transport Retort blog.