Ben Howlett – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ben Howlett on 2016-01-20.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 19 October 2015 to Question 11881, if he will discuss with the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency the reasons for that agency not approving the pilot scheme for bike racks on the front of buses in Bath in 2015.

Andrew Jones

The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) rejected the pilot scheme because the design created significant additional hazards from the original bus design. These included both the structure of the bicycle rack when folded and deployed, projections of any bicycle on the rack, and a significant reduction of vision for the driver to the nearside front with a bicycle on the rack. These features were considered to increase significantly the likelihood of accidents and potential severity of pedestrian injury.