How safe is Birmingham for cyclists?

This year, to save money and petrol I became a city cyclist. Commuting to work, I quickly realised Birmingham wasn’t particularly the safest place to cycle, or sometimes very pleasant. I put in a FOI request to find out how many fatal road accidents involving cyclists there were in the West Midlands. The results are back and it’s relatively small (8 in the last 3 years – can send PDF) however, this isn’t the full story.

I’d like to perform a more accurate analysis of the risk by finding out firstly how many drivers there are on the road compared to cyclists in the West Midlands. I’d also like to just focus on Birmingham from now on. I’d also like to conduct a practical analysis and record my cycling routes through Birmingham. I’d like to incorporate other peoples cycle routes and stories and intend to publish this on www.dandavies23.com and www.hashbrum.co.uk

Of course these figures also don’t take into account serious injuries and close shaves. I want to map not only the locations of the accidents but also identify blackspots or potential hazards not only with statistics but also with hands on experience. Finally discuss how they might be improved.

Government figures announced a sharp national rise in these figures yesterday. I want to find out have we can prevent this locally.