Vulnerable road users – what you need to know

Anyone driving for work, and the company which employs them, has a responsibility to ensure that their vehicle moves safely around other road users, in particular vulnerable road users.

Sharing space on the roads

Commercial vehicle drivers have an obligation to be careful of the safety of other road users and are now held to a higher standard in law.

Recent changes to the Highway Code created a hierarchy of road users, with those who could do the most harm bearing the greatest responsibility for road safety. That means commercial vehicle drivers have specific personal responsibility for ensuring the safety of those more vulnerable than themselves.

Fleet Managers – your duty of care

Fleet organisations have a duty of care to ensure that fleet drivers are educated in how to drive safely around other road users.

This is important even if a driver spends most of their time on the strategic road network, and not on urban or rural roads.

All fleet drivers should make sure they read and understand the new Highway Code rules, because they represent the standard used in court to determine whether a driver has acted appropriately and competently. The Highway Code changes follow on from years of vulnerable road users (VRUs) – particularly cyclists, and elderly and young pedestrians – being disproportionately killed or injured by commercial vehicles.

One in three fatalities and 39% of pedestrian fatalities involve an at-work driver.

VRUs include all pedestrians, cyclists, horse riders and motorcyclists, as well as those in mobility scooters and one-scooters.

In 2022, 396 motorcyclists, 99 cyclists and 415 pedestrians died in reported road traffic collisions. That means that 910 out of the 1,760 people killed on the roads, or just over half,were not enclosed in a vehicle at the time of their deaths. A further 28,000 people received serious or life-changing injuries.

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Vehicles don’t crash. People do.

As head of Commercial Vehicle Incident Prevention at National Highways, Mark Cartwright, recently said:

“Vehicles don’t crash. People do. They just happen to be in a vehicle at the time.”

Whatever mode other road users are using, commercial vehicle drivers have a responsibility to move safely around them and to protect that person’s wellbeing as well as their own.

Remember: we are all vulnerable road users at times, as are our loved ones. Whatever vehicle we drive, we are also pedestrians, cyclists or using mobility aids at other times. When you pass a vulnerable road user, remember: that could be you.

What Fleet Managers can do:

• Read the Driving for Better Business legal update on the changes to the Highway Code – safety responsibility is on those whose vehicles can do the most harm, so ensure your drivers take particular care when moving around those who are more vulnerable than they are
• Ensure you share the two second rule with your drivers so they always have time to respond to the unexpected
• Make sure your drivers give vulnerable road users a very wide berth when overtaking them on the road – give them at least as much room as you would when overtaking a car
• Pedestrians, cyclists and motorcyclists are particularly vulnerable to vehicles turning left. Your drivers should not assume that other road users understand their sight lines, so always check left before pulling away.

Other Road Users – what does this mean for your drivers?

Here are some helpful reminders and tips that you should be sharing with your drivers on a regular basis:

• Remember that other road users, including van drivers and motorists, may be ignorant of the areas of limited vision in an HGV. Minimise blindspots and take extra care when pulling out or turning
• If you don’t drive an HGV, be aware that a truck driver may not be able to see you if you are directly alongside
• As a commercial vehicle driver, you are a professional on the road. You have skills and experience many road users do not. Use it to protect them, even from their own mistakes
• Anticipate other road users’ movements and presence, driving slowly enough to give yourself time to respond safely
• Pay particular attention at junctions, especially when turning left
• Give VRUs plenty of space when overtaking
• Be patient
• When you are walking or cycling, pay attention to how it feels when a driver comes too close or fails to stop for you – and remember that feeling when you next drive
• Always open your drivers’ door with your left hand, so that you have to look back before exiting the vehicle. This will prevent you opening the door onto an oncoming cyclist or motorcyclist.

Information supplied by Arvals’ partner Driving for Better Business (www.drivingforbetterbusiness.com)

The DfBB "Van Drivers Toolkit" can be found here - Home - Van Driver Toolkit