Cohen, T. 2024. Implications of a “Road User Hierarchy” for Road-Safety Law. Tira, M., Tiboni, M., Pezzagno, M. and Maternini, G. (ed.) XXVI International Conference on Living and Walking in Cities. Brescia, Italy 06 - 09 Sep 2023 Springer Nature. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-62478-0_35
| Title | Implications of a “Road User Hierarchy” for Road-Safety Law |
|---|---|
| Authors | Cohen, T. |
| Editors | Tira, M., Tiboni, M., Pezzagno, M. and Maternini, G. |
| Type | Conference paper |
| Abstract | The UK’s Highway Code is a de facto manual for road use. In 2022, a revised version was released including a hierarchy of road user responsibility, imposing the greatest duty of care on those in charge of vehicles capable of causing greatest harm in the event of a collision. In the context of a brief survey of walking, road safety, and prevailing traffic law in the UK, it is asked how this hierarchy might be turned from well-intentioned words (as now) into a means of improving road safety. A possible way forward is presented in which penalties for traffic offences would be based, in part, on the momentum of the vehicle involved. The possible benefits and disadvantages of this approach are discussed, leading to a tentative conclusion that it would lead to a net reduction in injury. The paper concludes with discussion of recently released sentencing guidelines that appear to follow broadly the idea proposed. |
| Keywords | Walking |
| Vulnerable road users | |
| Road safety | |
| Traffic law | |
| Justice | |
| Moral philosophy | |
| Year | 2024 |
| Conference | XXVI International Conference on Living and Walking in Cities |
| Publisher | Springer Nature |
| Accepted author manuscript | File Access Level Open (open metadata and files) |
| Publication dates | |
| Published | 17 Sep 2024 |
| Journal citation | pp. 427-438 |
| Book title | New Challenges for Sustainable Urban Mobility: Volume II: Proceedings of the XXVI International Conference on Living and Walking in Cities, 2023 |
| ISBN | 9783031624773 |
| 9783031624780 | |
| 9783031624803 | |
| Digital Object Identifier (DOI) | https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-62478-0_35 |