危ない自転車 運転マナー欠如が事故を招く

The Yomiuri Shimbun (Oct. 24, 2012)
Rising tide of bicycle accidents calls for education, enforcement
危ない自転車　運転マナー欠如が事故を招く（10月23日付・読売社説）

Bicycling through gaps between pedestrians at high speed. Furiously ringing a bell at people walking ahead. Such dangerous and reckless behavior by bicyclists continues without end.
　歩行者の間を猛スピードですり抜ける。前を歩く人に向かって、ベルを激しく鳴らす。自転車の危険で無謀な運転が後を絶たない。

Urgent measures must be taken to make bicycle riders obey traffic rules.
　自転車の利用者が交通ルールをきちんと守るよう、有効な対策を講じることが急務だ。

There were about 140,000 accidents involving bicycles last year, accounting for 20 percent of all road traffic accidents and reflecting a recent uptrend in the percentage of such accidents.
　自転車がかかわった事故は昨年１年間で約１４万件に上った。全交通事故に占める割合は増加傾向にあり、昨年は２割に達した。

Accidents include those between bicycles and automobiles, bicycles and pedestrians and bicycles and bicycles. Showing a remarkable increase are accidents involving bicycles and pedestrians. Last year saw 2,800 such accidents, a 50 percent rise over the past decade.
　自転車と自動車、自転車と歩行者、自転車同士という事故パターンがあるが、増加が著しいのは、自転車が歩行者に衝突する事故だ。昨年は２８００件に上り、この１０年で１・５倍に増えた。

According to the National Police Agency, accidents in which bicycle riders are at fault have been significant. Behind such accidents are reckless cycling on walkways, ignoring traffic signals, drunk riding, riding with a passenger and bicycling while talking on a mobile phone.
　警察庁によると、歩道での暴走、信号無視、飲酒運転、２人乗り、携帯電話で話をしながらの運転など、自転車側に落ち度のある事故が目立っている。

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Pedestrian-first rules vital

Lack of riding manners, it can be said, cause accidents.
　運転マナーの欠如が事故を誘発していると言えよう。

Bicycles are vehicles that are easily available. But they are classified as light vehicles by law and riders are obliged to observe the Road Traffic Law. The law makes it mandatory for bicycles to run on the road. But as an exception, bicycles are permitted to use sidewalks when riding on roads is deemed dangerous, as in the case of thoroughfares.
　自転車は手軽な乗り物だが、法令上は軽車両とされ、利用者は道路交通法を守る義務がある。道交法上、自転車は車道走行が原則だ。ただ、幹線道路などで車道走行が危険な場合には、例外として歩道走行が認められている。

Speeding on sidewalks is prohibited. Pedestrian-first rules must be thoroughly driven home.
　歩道では、スピードの出し過ぎはご法度だ。歩行者優先の運転を徹底したい。

Police launched a crackdown on dangerous bicycle riding in October last year. Almost a full year has passed since then but the number of accidents has not shown the hoped-for decline.
　全国の警察では昨年１０月から、危険運転の摘発強化に乗り出した。間もなく１年になるが、事故は思うように減っていない。

As for traffic violations by bicycle riders, there is no system in place to impose fines on violators, as there is for violations by drivers of automobiles. Even if violators are caught, punishment is no more than a caution in almost all cases. For this reason, simply strengthening enforcement would not deter dangerous riding.
　自転車の交通違反には、自動車のように反則金を科す制度が存在せず、摘発されても、注意にとどまるケースがほとんどだ。このため、取り締まりの強化だけでは、危険運転の抑止にはつながりにくいのではないか。

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Seminars eyed for violators

The NPA established an expert panel earlier this month to begin studying a system that would make it mandatory for violators to attend safety seminars.
　警察庁は今月、有識者会議を設置し、違反者に安全講習を課す制度の検討を始めた。

The proposed seminars would teach that bicycles are vehicles that may pose threats to pedestrians. The seminars would introduce cases in which people died after being hit by bicycles and the riders ended up paying damages. If the seminars serve as an opportunity to learn the danger of bicycle riding, they will contribute to enhancing riders' awareness of safety.
　講習では、自転車が歩行者の脅威となる乗り物であることを教える方針だ。自転車で人をはねて死亡させ、多額の賠償金を請求された事例なども紹介する。自転車の危険性を学ぶ機会になれば、安全運転の意識も高まるだろう。

A system has been introduced in Mitaka and Musashino, both in Tokyo, to give preference in the allocation of rights to bicycle parking spots to those who voluntarily take part in safety seminars. The response to these offers exceeded the capacity of the seminars. The number of bicycle accidents has reportedly dropped by 30 percent in the two cities since the system was introduced.
　東京の三鷹市と武蔵野市では、自転車利用者の講習会に参加すれば、駐輪場の利用権を優先的に割り当てる制度を導入した。定員を上回るほどの参加者が集まり、両市内では自転車事故数が実施後に３割減少したという。

With the Mitaka and Musashino cases as a reference point, we suggest that police and local governments cooperate in studying measures to prevent dangerous riding.
　講習に参加したいと思わせる、こうした取り組みを参考に、警察と自治体が連携し、危険運転の抑止策を検討してもらいたい。

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Oct. 23, 2012)
（2012年10月23日01時21分 読売新聞）