DfT On Rack For Bus Blunder

As with the chocolate teapot and inflatable dartboard, the front-mounted bike rack doesn't sound like a good idea. But the Department for Transport has still spent £179,000 on researching its suitability for UK buses.

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10th June 2004

The DfT commissioned the Transport Research Laboratory in Berks to test a variety of devices in pedestrian impacts. The idea was to offer alternatives to the car by letting buses carry cycles. But, perhaps predictably, the study concluded: "Fitting racks would dramatically increase the risk of life-threatening injuries."

Yet a DfT spokesman defended the trials. "You have to do tests and come up with hard facts," he explained. Other measures are said to be under consideration.