Support road.cc

Like this site? Help us to make it better.

£250k of lighting to stop attackers on Birmingham towpaths

Cyclists were seriously injured in violent attacks last winter

Towpaths in Birmingham will be made safer with £250,000 worth of lighting to be installed following violent muggings of cyclists.

The damaged lights along the route, now 30 years old, will be replaced by LED lights which are expected to make it a much brighter and safer environment after dark.

Two cyclists were injured last winter in attacks, including a 55 year old doctor, John Ainsworth, who was beaten up, and Kim Price, 49, whose elbow was shattered when assailants pushed her into the canal’s ice cold waters.

Following the incidents, both the police and Birmingham City Council pledged to improve safety along the canals.

But it seems that Birmingham isn’t making the most of all its infrastructure however. A Twitter user, @CCSteV, posted a picture of a bike lane that had been spruced up with a bit of white paint - with council workers painting straight over a large pot hole.

The council said it was aware of the pot hole and that it was due to be fixed.

pothole (c) CCSteV.jpg

Add new comment

5 comments

Avatar
WillRod | 8 years ago
0 likes

Streetlights just make it easier for the criminals to see their targets.

Presonally, when in town I stick to the roads when it's dark but when out in the countryside, I am happy to be away from the lights. I have to say that I feel sorry for any city cyclists!

Avatar
barbarus | 8 years ago
0 likes

Actually it's probably more of a lock rather than a helmet analogy. As in the muggings will still happen but on other nearby less well lit paths.

Avatar
grumpyoldcyclist | 8 years ago
1 like

So a bit of street lighting will stop you being attacked eh? It's like saying that wearing a helmet will stop a car driving into you. I suppose you'll be better able to count how many there were of them

Avatar
tritecommentbot | 8 years ago
1 like

It can work, sometimes.

 

http://www.crim.cam.ac.uk/people/academic_research/david_farrington/ligh...

 

Loads of crime and lighting studies, and that paper reviews them in total. Still it isn't clear though exactly when and how it can have an effect and on what types of crime. 

 

 

Avatar
Gasman Jim | 8 years ago
1 like

I'd have thought £250k would be better spent on some police officers on motorbikes, but WTF do I know.

Latest Comments