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MAG represents riders' interests at DRL seminar
A representative of British motorcyclists has criticised the proposed Europe-wide implementation of daytime running lighting (DRL) at a recent seminar on the issue.
Motorcycle Action Group (MAG) chief executive Trevor Baird told car manufacturers in attendance that, instead of pressing for DRL to be made compulsory in all vehicles, they should concentrate on redesigning car A-pillars, which can often hide other road users.
He cited his own experience back in 1984 of fitting police motorcycles with DRL technology as an example of its ineffectiveness, claiming that despite these alterations, many motorists simply could not see the bikes on the road at all.
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Mr Baird commented afterwards: "I fitted hundreds of these kits, yet car drivers still pulled out on the police motorcyclists.
"Consider that the police motorcyclists not only had the DRL lamp, but also a large white fairing and fluorescent clothing. I stated that it wouldn't matter if a rider had a Christmas tree strapped to his helmet, car drivers would still not see motorcyclists."
The MAG man was glad to see that his reservations regarding the matter are shared by key figures such as the European Commission's road safety head Dr Stefan Tostmann and Ian Yarnold from Britain's own Department for Transport.
His stance is also shared by the Federation of European Motorcyclists Associations, whose general secretary Aline Delhaye also spoke at the seminar and claimed that it is "ethically unacceptable" for DRL to be promoted when it puts riders' lives at risk.
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