Highway Code revisions welcomed by equestrians
This weekend, the latest edition of the Highway Code will be published and following years of the BHS Safety Team lobbying and collaborating with Cycling UK, DVSA, Living Streets and the Department for Transport (DfT), as of 29th January, motorists should now follow the guidance to:
pass horse riders and horse-drawn vehicles at speeds under 10 mph
allow at least two metres’ space
These changes are significant and will help to keep horses, riders, handlers and carriage drivers safer on UK roads. But there is still a way to go. There is a huge amount of education to be done with drivers – especially those newly behind the wheel – (The BHS Safety Team will be at the Motor Schools Association national conference) and the reporting of incidents remains paramount.
Please encourage as many equestrian friends and family members to download our Horse i app and use it! We need to know about near misses as well as incidents, and we need as much detail as possible so we can lobby government and identify hotspot areas.
We appreciate the time volunteers have given to help make a difference by getting involved with Dead Slow initiatives, lobbying their local MPs and helping the Safety Team secure the new proposed updates to the Highway Code.
Let’s celebrate the success of the input the BHS has had with these changes. Apart from the 10 mph and two metres’ guidance, other important details include the fact that equestrians are viewed alongside cyclists in the new hierarchy of road users, the inclusion of semi-feral equids such as New Forest and Dartmoor ponies, and the fact that the BHS Ride Safe award is referenced as best practice.
The BHS was described in Parliament by the Transport Minister as a “formidable campaigning engine”, and we are a force to be reckoned with. We couldn’t have secured these changes without a massive team effort. If you are not currently an active member, maybe now is the time to get involved with one of our many safety, welfare, access and education campaigns.
