BMF Monthly news round up

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BMF NEWS ROUND UP – April 2024

The monthly news round-up, brought to you by the BMF

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Meetings attended for the BMF by Paul Morgan and Anna Zee in April



Anna Zee:

Powered Up Electric Bicycles?

Joined a meeting of some Parliamentary Advisory Council for Transport Safety (PACTS) members at the end of March to discuss the consultation on Electrically Assisted Pedal Cycles. The proposal is to raise the power limit from 250W to 500W. Generally, no one was in favour.



Smart Motorways

Attended a Transport Focus Road User Panel meeting. Various updates from National Highways. The retro-fit of additional Emergency Areas on smart motorways is intended to be completed by March 2025 – they should then mostly be about 1km apart. Many people are calling for hard shoulders to be re-instated but it should perhaps be noted that about 20 people were killed on the hard shoulder last year. The most common causes of breakdown relate to tyres.



Paul Morgan:

Hackney Council Parking Proposals

Series of face-to-face and online meetings with Save London Motorcycling representatives to agree next steps in the fight to persuade Hackney Council not to go ahead with the introduction of parking charges for motorcyclists across the borough. Hackney represents just one in a line of local councils who are currently looking at bringing in new parking charges and, in some cases, access restrictions to certain areas for motorcyclists.



Election & Manifesto Planning

Several detailed planning meetings have been held throughout April to finalise planning for the BMF/NMC Manifesto for the run-up to this year’s General Election, which is likely to be in the autumn. The proposed launch date of the Manifesto was 10th May 2024, giving time to finalise the Manifesto website.



Motorcycle Crime Reduction Group

Online meeting chaired by Tony Campbell MCIA. This Group is a regular meeting between rider groups, motorcycle industry representatives, vehicle security organisations and the Police to discuss initiatives to reduce the high-level of motorcycle thefts. There has been some limited success in reducing thefts in some Police areas following proactive action by certain forces but overall the numbers remain unacceptably high. In the light of high rates, and the increase in personal injury claims in recent years, some insurance brokers have left the market – of 15 main insurance brokers covering bike insurance in the 1990s, only six remain.



In Other News:



Bikers in Bath may have to pay for parking in the future, as Bath and North East Somerset Council is considering charging bikes for the first time. Quoted in Motorcycle News, Councillor Manda Rigby, Liberal Democrat cabinet member for highways, said: “While it’s recognised that motorbikes may be less impactful on congestion, they continue to utilise road space and emit pollutants.” The proposed pricing would, as with the controversial parking proposals made by Hackney Borough Council, see bikes paying the same rate as cars.

Funding to fix potholes is finally being allocated. Last November the government announced that £8.3 billion would be handed out to local authorities over the next 11 years so that they could start fixing Britain’s battered roads. Nearly all (102 out of 119 allocated funding) have now submitted plans of what they will do with the money. However, the Local Government Association thought that even this government pledge wouldn’t be a long-term solution, citing an overall maintenance backlog worth £14 billion.

Motorcycle oddities spotted in the news this month – Indian giant Bajaj, which builds Triumph’s Speed 400, will soon launch a bike powered by Compressed Natural Gas (CNG). Why? Well, CNG is a cleaner fuel than petrol or diesel, so a good choice of India’s smog-filled cities. The downside is that it needs a big tank, plus an auxiliary petrol tank to extend the range, so maybe not the first choice for tourers... Meanwhile, in Latvia, local company Oruga is working on a small bike with a single crawler track instead of two wheels. Apparently, it can top 60mph – rather them than us...

And finally, this year marked the 100th birthday of the Lands’ End Trial, one of the UK’s oldest motor sport events. Not only that, but biker Fred Spaven rode it on an electric motorcycle, and finished. It was the first time anyone had entered the 330-mile event, which includes off-road special sections, on a battery bike.







Written by Peter Henshaw – Editor BMF editor@bmf.co.uk



Anna Zee – Political Technical Services Director anna.zee@bmf.co.uk



Paul Morgan – Government Relations Executive paul.morgan@bmf.co.uk

We have received a fantastic response from clubs wanting to attend this year’s Bike Bonanza 6th & 7th July, but still room for more.

You can download a booking form here: www.malloryparkcircuit.com/event/mallory-bike-bonanza-2024

Trade and Autojumble booking forms are also available on the website

Or please drop an email to: bob@realmotorsport.co.uk