Addison Lee chairman provokes controversy with his views on London cyclist deaths

I've just posted a brand new blog entry looking (tangentially) at this issue and what it can tell us about the complex relationship between cyclists, motorists and money. It's here: http://invisiblevisibleman.blogspot.co.uk/2012/04/general-theory-of-cycl...

I've just checked whether my company uses Addison Lee at all. I've urged them to stop doing so if they do.

Well written piece Simon. Surely there is some legal issue with his inciting people (I use the term loosely having long seen the skill level of his drivers, Neanderthals is probably nearer) to break the law? Quite obviously a narrow minded idiot looking for publicity to which end I hope it backfires on him and AL.

Apart from that I passed my cycling proficiency test when I was younger so I am trained

I find it hard to understand why people like this speak of cyclists like a separate species.

Part of the process of becoming a qualified driver should involve at least one lesson on a bike in town traffic.

Their account is now under review in my company and I suspect very shortly also at a group level. Not surprising, seeing as some of the people who run it are regular cyclists.

Emailed my thoughts to the company....doubt they'll get read. Just amazes me that anyone can hold such arrogant and ill educated views. He needs to get his own house in order and look at his drivers before making daft statements liike that. Tw@!

This is what really gets me about this:

"Should a motorist fail to observe a granny wobbling to avoid a pothole or a rain drain, then he is guilty of failing to anticipate that this was somebody on her maiden voyage into the abyss."

A good motorist should leave sufficient space when overtaking to allow for this kind of unexpected maneuvre. If a vehicle overtakes another vehicle, it does so by temporarily moving into the outside lane or the other carriageway. Why should they not do the same when overtaking a cyclist just because the cyclist has a narrower profile? A rain drain is about 30 centimetres wide for crying out loud! If you are close enough to hit someone avoiding one of these then you are TOO CLOSE!

The fact is that the majority of motorists do indeed overtake "wide", but if they do hit a wobbling "granny" then it is their fault for not driving carefully and they should be punished.

The problem we will now have is that there will be more vehicles in the bus lane that have just enough space to get between cyclists and a lane of congested traffic, which will lead to more accidents. I recommend all cyclists cycle directly in the middle of the bus lane from now on; if AL taxis want to overtake they can rejoin the normal traffic.

The irony of his "If you want to join our gang, get trained and pay up", when that's exactly what cab drivers are saying to him re: bus lanes is unfathomable.

You may also want to email customerrelations [at] addisonlee.com and give them your thoughts. I'm sure they will love having their email blocked with endless rants.

My company spends upward of £8K per month on AL cabs. We have now switched to another supplier. While his thoughts on training cyclists make sense, the tone and intent of his words is clear and reflected in the sub-standard driving that a number of his drivers display.

John Griffin, wave good bye to £100K a year.

I hope many follow suit. Idiot.

Well Mr Griffin, you might do well to realise that many of your corporate customers are also cyclists.

Whilst I do agree that there are some cyclists who simply aren't skilled enough to ride on London's busy roads and would do well to practice elsewhere first, your comments smack of Mr Toad at a time when we need to encourage more people to cycle. Not have them quaking in their saddles worried about one of your black beasts knocking them off because they now share the cycle / bus lane.

Simple protest from me.... you can kiss our account goodbye. We might only spend £2k a year with your company but if 1,000 other small London firms like ours make the same decision, you'll soon take note.

Hey everyone, long time cyclist, first time poster.

I live in London, I have a car that I use once a month for visiting family up north and I have a bicycle which I use to get to work every day. While the chap from AL is clearly of a genetic relation to the chap from Ryanair, I agree with the bottom line of the article which is "As more and more cyclists start to use the roads for the first time, they should have some training on the rules of the road."

As a cyclist through London every day, I've lost count of the number of times I've nearly been knocked off my bike. I'm fairly certain that had I not had countless driving lessons (and cycling proficiency lessons) which taught me how junctions work and how to recognise, anticipate and avoid hazards and make correct observations before manoeuvres, then I'd probably have landed in hospital a couple of times, and come off my bike a few more.

Having also driven through London several times, the idiots on the road aren't (usually) actively picking on cyclists, they're just idiots. Spotting a car up ahead that's been waiting to turn right and is getting impatient to the point that they might make a break for it ahead of you is just as important to a cyclist as it is to another driver. Same with learning to look over your shoulder and indicate before changing lanes, which is especially important when avoiding a stopped bus in a bus lane in London.

If you're in a car and you bump another driver at a junction then it's usually superficial damage. If you're a cyclist and the same accident happens then it can be fatal. All the more reason why we should have some training.

Nice one Simon.

The man's a buffoon! His is a very oddly written article. Loving the laughably hysterical tone ("cyclists are *throwing* themselves...", "they *leap* onto a vehicle...", "Maiden voyage into the abyss"...how old is this bloke?)

He's managed to take an issue that probably deserves some considered airtime (whether novice cyclists are wise to brave the streets of London before they've learned the necessary roadcraft etc) and transform it with his emotive, badly chosen words into something that will only serve to widen the rift between motorists and cyclists - and probably harm his own business in the process.

Then there's his coup de grace: “It is time for us to say to cyclists, ‘You want to join our gang, get trained and pay up’.” Which gang's that then you plum? Ill-informed attention whores R us? No thanks.

The company I work for has agreed to no longer use Addison Lee and are switching to Green Tomatoes.

Hey Lex, welcome to the forum. I don't think anyone is objecting to the idea of better training for any/all road users, it's more the rest of his rant and the tone which have riled people.

Wasn’t there some other older fellow, not too many years ago, that sang a song about “you wanna be in my/our gang”?

He's an arse - that's a given. Yet after reading all this, i can't help but be reminded of the ever increasing amount of idiots - on bikes- who cut me up - while i'm on my bicycle (commuting into London as I have been since1993), roll past me when i'm stopped in the correct position at a red light, forcing me to pass there wobbly selves again and again, as then persist in repeating there mistake, reach ridiculous speeds in any built up area ignoring pedestrian crossings, pedestrians and in general - rules of the road, all with only one selfish ignorant thought which is 'me me me', least not the canary brigade who think wearing brightly coloured garments is an excuse to not bother with common sense while on there bikes. Apart from that, he's an arse.

I think there is a big point to be made about training here.. why should road systems be places where the most vulnerable - the pedestrians, horse riders and cyclists - need to learn defensive techniques to accommodate the risks others pose?

Why can we not just engineer those risks out of the equation altogether!? That must surely be a massive solution, and Griffin's advocacy of infringing any safety margin cyclists have is simply wrong.

As I said elsewhere this week - licencing, insuring and taxation of motorists has not stopped an average of 2000+ people (not even cycling related) from dying on our roads.

I know I'm late to the party. Emailing the customer relations department is all well and good. But they don't sound like the sort of company that will take much notice. The sales line is another matter. sales [at] addisonlee.com spamming that and stopping sales would soon get someone's attention.

One for the more militant minded maybe.

All the best,

Bruce.

i was quite amused when addison lee popped up in the middle of this vid -> http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p00r6nxw

This gentleman should read rule 44 of the Highway Code:

You should never:
drive dangerously
drive without due care and attention
drive without reasonable consideration for other road users

Not to mention observe road signs!

God forbid that someone should be seriously injured by an Addison Lee vehicle whilst it is travelling in a bus lane, but if they were would that mean Mr Griffin personally or the company as a whole could be open to criminal charges.

I have never been able to understand why cabbies, who after all are just working like the rest of us, are able to use bus lanes to assist them to make money. They must be the biggest group of tax dodgers in the country and we are allowing them to get away with it. I did therefore agree with John Griffin when he felt it was totally unfair for only black cabs to have the privilege of using bus lanes, however he has proved himself to be unworthy of any support for his crass comments, and I sincerely hope his stupid remarks regarding cyclists will have a huge impact on the success of his company. I agree with OldRidgeback that Addison Lee drivers leave a lot to be desired and would like an investigation into how many have a UK licence and how many have actually taken a driving test.

Is this becoming Addison Lee's "Ratner" moment?

Maybe he should go out as a cycle courier for a month? I really think he should do that, because then he would be in a much better position to argue a viewpoint. Might be a good for him.

Why are taxis still allowed to use bus lanes? Why are they still allowed to drive around without any passengers wasting finite resources and polluting? Why are taxis still considered to be public transport when they are clearly private same as ordinary road traffic? Why dont we have a system of taxi stands like other large cities and banish taxis to the ordinary traffic lanes? Could it be something to do with money and politics???

Well written peace Simon.

Am no lawyer but was wondering if Mr Griffin has acted in a manor that could be regarded as incitement to commit a crime/illegal act. Further should an incident occur (due to his encouragement of an illegal act) is he then passably liable to prosecution under joint enterprise.

There can be no free speech defense as he committed his business resources to defending drivers who will intentionally commit an illegal act where they would not have done so if he had not made his promise. Therefore he must have intend people to brake the law in support of his business objectives.

Courier company boss is asshole! Shocker!

Not the first one and certainly not the last, in my experience.

Interview with the Addison Lee boss shortly to be broadcast on Radio 4's PM program