Today with David McCullagh
HGV’s and Cyclists: do we need better protection for people on bikes
20 Apr 2026
Transcript generated automatically by AI and may contain errors.
Chapter 1: What new safety measures are being introduced for HGVs in Dublin?
Last week, Dublin City Council agreed to back new safety measures that will improve visibility for truck drivers and offer greater protection for cyclists. The proposal would see the phased introduction of a direct vision standard for HGVs operating in Dublin city centres starting from next year. So what exactly does this mean for HGV drivers and for cyclists?
To discuss this, I'm joined by Ger Highland, President of the Irish Road Haulage Association, and by Colm Ryder from the Dublin Cycling Campaign. Good morning to you both. Colm, I might go to you first. Can you just explain to us briefly what these new measures would mean?
Well, it will certainly make a difference to the overall...
Chapter 2: How will the direct vision standard impact HGV drivers?
safety of pedestrians and cyclists within the city. I think Ger will probably agree that certainly the issue of technology on trucks needs to be improved and can be improved even more than it is at present. There are issues with blind spots with drivers and obviously within narrow city streets and areas that are constrained.
It is a particularly difficult issue as opposed to on major motorways or roadways.
Okay. And what would these measures require trucks to do or owners of trucks to do?
Well, it's in terms of bringing in the so-called direct vision standards for heavy goods vehicles.
Chapter 3: What are the current safety features in HGVs operating in city centers?
And that's the important element. It's a technology related to trucks. Obviously, in terms of the trucks, the selling of the trucks to users of those trucks, to delivery truck users, et cetera, is what really counts.
Now, I was watching a video of the council meeting where this was discussed and it was pointed out by officials that this would affect only a minority of vehicles, the very large vehicles. It would only affect them within the canals and it would only affect them at certain areas. But I suppose the other argument is that if the standards are in, they're likely to be applied on a wider basis.
But do you think it'll make a difference to cyclists and pedestrians?
Well, when you look at the overall issue of collisions, etc., related to pedestrians and cyclists, I mean, HEVs are certainly, they are overrepresented within those overall statistics nationally, not just in cities and towns. But obviously, within cities and towns, that's where you get a high proportion of pedestrians and cyclists.
improving the overall technology in trucks will help to make some kind of a difference.
Okay, well I'll bring in Ger there. Morning Ger. Morning, thanks for having us on. Thanks for joining us.
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Chapter 4: How do HGVs and cyclists contribute to road safety issues?
Can you give us an idea of the safety elements that HGVs operating in the city centre have at the moment?
Okay, well prior to this, a lot of our members and a lot of the transport community have invested in camera systems on their trucks. We have audible warnings when vehicles are turning left. We have sensors on the passenger side at the front corner of our trucks in a lot of cases that will tell us when somebody comes into the periphery of that vehicle.
So we have, as an industry, invested heavily in safety and safety features. And I have to say here that Nobody gets up this morning, goes out and decides they're going to be involved in an accident. But in fairness, you know, safety begins first and foremost with oneself. We, as I've said to you, have invested heavily.
But we see every day, not everyone, but there is a lot of cyclists that we see that when our trucks are turning left, they come up on our inside even though the indicator is on. There is very little high-vis jackets being worn. There is very little safety helmets being worn.
And we see an awful lot of cyclists now with headphones and earphones in, and they can't even hear the audible warning on the truck. Like, I have trucks here that when you put on your left-hand indicator, the first thing that happens is there is a speaker on the outside of the vehicle that says, caution, caution, this vehicle is turning left.
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Chapter 5: What challenges do cyclists face when sharing the road with HGVs?
Right. Now, if a person has a pair of earphones or a pair of headphones, they're not going to hear that.
I'll raise that with Colm in a moment, but you've outlined the safety features that you've invested in and that you have. What would these new rules mean for you, Ger?
Well, sure, they mean a heavy investment again in vehicles. But as I said, a lot of our vehicles have this investment anyway. So if it's brought in on a phased basis, it'll be brought in with new vehicles that's coming on our road.
So as you update your fleece, you'd incorporate more safety features into them?
Yes, well, there's more safety features incorporated in new vehicles now anyway. But a lot of us would have retrofitted stuff such as cameras, audible warnings, sensors on the left-hand side of our truck that will tell us when somebody comes in to the vicinity of that truck.
And that makes a difference, does it?
It does make a difference, yes. It definitely makes a difference. But as I said to you, first and foremost, people have to look after their own safety.
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Chapter 6: What are the responsibilities of truck drivers in ensuring cyclist safety?
As I've said to you, the amount of people that we're seeing that will not stop at traffic lights, will not stop at pedestrian crossings, will undertake a truck on the left-hand side, even though the truck has an audible warning, even though the truck has its indicator on and is turning left. People just seem to be trying to get ahead of the truck all the time.
Well, they probably feel threatened by the truck, in fairness, not due to necessarily the behaviour of the driver, but just the size of the thing.
Well, absolutely. But my view on that is if you feel threatened by something, you move away from it. You don't move closer.
Right. OK, well, I'll bring Colm in there. Colm, I mean, obviously not all cyclists, probably not even a majority of cyclists are careless in their behaviour, but some of them are.
But look, that's an issue with all vehicle users, whether it be car drivers or truck drivers or cyclists on the road. Unfortunately, that's something, it's human behaviour that we can't regulate for that. But in general, as you say... The vast majority of cyclists certainly have to be careful, and particularly because they are in a vulnerable position on the road.
And this is just borne out by statistics generally in relation to the number of people that are involved in fatal and serious injury collisions.
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Chapter 7: How can mutual understanding between cyclists and truck drivers improve safety?
And of course, within cities, you're going to get more pedestrians, you're going to get more cyclists. Therefore, drivers of HGVs, of large trucks, have to be that more particular and more careful. And for Ger, and I know he means it well, but in terms of saying, oh, well, they can get out of the way if they see these big trucks or if they hear the audible signs on the trucks.
I mean, it's not something that's easily done on a busy main road at any particular time.
No, but in fairness, I think the point Ger was making was that sometimes cyclists, even though a truck is indicating that it's going to go left, sometimes cyclists go on their inside anyway. Now, that's surely not very sensible.
No, of course it's not. Particularly it's not sensible. No, I 100% agree with that. That's not the issue. The issue is being that the driver of a truck certainly needs to be trained to understand how they can affect the danger to cyclists and pedestrians too as well. And just to say that we in the Dublin Cycling Campaign have worked with the truck companies over the years, some of the
one of the major supermarket truck systems, the Musgrave truck system. We worked back a number of years ago with them in looking at the difference between cyclists and drivers by juxtaposing cyclists actually sitting in the cabs of trucks and truck drivers getting on bicycles and seeing what the difficulty was there and getting that feeling overall.
And we would obviously push very strongly for cyclists
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Chapter 8: What is the stance on mandatory safety gear for cyclists?
for this kind of system to be part of what's called the Certificate of Personal Competence, which Gerard would be well aware of, that all truck drivers require. So the training for truck drivers.
And did you find that had much of an impact on the behaviour both of cyclists and of drivers?
It certainly gave a much better understanding of the particular issues involved. And yes, it did make a difference. We haven't actually formally measured the particular issues, the drivers that were involved at the time and how their effect on the road but that it is without a doubt it has been borne out by European statistics that it does make a difference.
Okay. What about the point Colm about cyclists with headphones on or whatever and not being able to hear not being able to hear the audible warnings Ger was talking about I mean obviously you need to be aware of your environment whether you're cycling or walking or driving or whatever.
100%. 100%. And look, you can only sort of give those instructions and ready out to people and say, look, be safe, be seen, be aware of what's on the road. There may be, what, 3% of cyclists who would be careless, something of a low figure. I don't have an actual figure on it. It's not something that's measured.
Okay. Ger, at that point that Colm was making about perhaps cyclists just being in the cab of a truck to see what it's like and perhaps truck drivers being on a bike, that kind of mutual understanding might help us all to be a bit better on the roads? Yes.
Well, absolutely. And as Colm alluded to, our drivers and our members, they all do a CPC course every year and safety is a big issue of them, CPC courses, but also safety. A lot of our drivers are cyclists as well in their spare time, so they know exactly what they're talking about and where they're coming from.
But I would just ask Colm, what would his view on it be if it was made mandatory for all cyclists to wear a high-vis jacket and a safety helmet?
Okay, well, Colm, I'll put that to you.
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