Can I claim Compensation for a missing manhole cover that caused my accident?   Damn right you can!  

Okay my fellow bikers, now listen up here whilst we once again tackle the duties of care owed by local authorities.  Here we discuss what you can do if you are injured because of missing manhole covers in the roadway. Our motorcycle solicitors have dealt with these issues for many years and are well versed in dealing with these hazards and the difficulties you may encounter when negotiating with obstinate local authorities whose duty it is to make sure it doesn’t happen.  

WHAT THE LAW SAYS ABOUT ROADS AND THOSE RESPONSIBLE  

The Highways Act of 1980 relates to all roads, pathways, cycle ways and carriageways. For the purposes of this website we intend only to refer to roads that are maintainable at public expense or if you prefer, the roads that they are supposed to maintain from the vast amount of Council Taxes that they seem to waste every year.  So, the word ‘maintain’ conjures up images of wet tar, road rollers and council workmen staring into holes and sipping tea. But maintenance goes further than this. To maintain a road means that the road and its surface must be safe for its intended use. The problem today is that there is no other place to ride your motorbike when going from A to B unless you spend virtually all of the time on a public road. They are everywhere and we have little choice as motorcyclists other than to use them.  

So, if we are literally forced to use them, the person responsible for them must ensure that you don’t get injured, right?  Great theories, but theory is where it all ends. The sad and stark fact is that people are injured every day on the roads, not just from other motorists, but from the state of the roads that have caused the bike accident.  

Motorcycles and scooters are probably the most dangerous machines on the roads today (some may say). Cars can skid, and to a certain extent we can control them. There are rules of ‘turning into skids’ and ‘braking intermittently on snow and ice’ to name just a couple.  But us bikers have a different strategy. First they hope that the Council have done their job properly, and secondly if they haven’t, they need to know some good prayers, because that’s all they usually have between themselves and the road surface.  But with the problem of the missing manhole cover, the problem is multiplied by its very nature. The moment the front wheel of a motorbike goes down a manhole, the effect is usually that the motorcycle comes to an immediate halt, throwing the rider and pillion forward and onto the road, usually followed by the motorcycle being cart wheeled onto them or anyone else standing by at the time.  

The missing manhole cover is potentially more dangerous than any pothole or slippery surface; it can be deadly and sometimes is. It is probably too late to re-site them now, but in the past you would have thought that whoever put them in roadways wasn’t thinking straight. You are probably right, but then again we are talking about some Council planners who can’t plan their way out of a paper bag.   It is hard to believe that nobody had ever said to them, “What if someone takes the cover off? What will happen?”  

With the soaring cost of metal these days, they have become an easy target for people who are reckless enough to risk people’s lives for £2 worth of scrap metal.   Whatever you do, don’t ask why they don’t fit locks to them; it’s local Councils, remember?  

So in short, the local authority is under a duty of care to ensure that the roads are fit for purpose, and if they aren’t and you are injured, then that’s who you claim motorcycle compensation from.  

IS IT AS SIMPLE AS THAT?  

You should know better than ask that question; of course it’s not as simple as that, and that is why you need the help of our motorcycle solicitors. Nothing is ever as simple as that when dealing with this major hazard and the injuries associated with that hazard.  

Let’s say we are riding our motorcycle along the road when suddenly we ride straight into an open inspection hatch in the road. The Council will immediately blame the mystery third party who took the manhole cover. Like Insurance companies, Councils have endless lists of excuses.  “It’s not my fault.” They will protest. Sorry; but yes it is.   But despite their endless protestations, yes the council is at fault and ultimately responsible, but what if they maintain that they had checked the road earlier in the day and it was free from hazards?   They will be using that old excuse of ‘reasonability’ and a ‘reasonable regime of inspection’.  

WHAT’S A REASONABLE INSPECTION REGIME?  

The local authority will maintain they have a proper system of inspection. They may even show records of regular inspection of their system of roads. As an example, say a local authority has fifty miles of roads to inspect. If they only inspect it once every two weeks, because of the limited roads they have to look after, once every two weeks can hardly be deemed reasonable. But if an authority has ten thousand miles of roads to inspect, then once every two weeks may be accepted as being reasonable given the size of the task and of course the nature of the defects.  

CAN THEY SUCCESSFULLY USE THIS AS A DEFENCE?  

The answer to this is, yes.  Section 58 of the Highways Act gives them a ‘get out’ if they can prove that they have taken ‘such care as in all the circumstances was required to secure that part of the highway to which the action relates was not dangerous to the traffic’. Therefore, a highway authority needs to take reasonable care of the road.  

Of course, they don’t have it all their own way and must argue their point to the satisfaction of the judge if they are to succeed. The Court must look at the following points when reaching a decision:  The nature of the road, i.e. is this a main highway (and therefore the traffic that is reasonably expected to use it)  The standard of maintenance appropriate for a road of that character and used by that traffic   The state of repair in which a reasonable person would have expected to find the highway. Whether the highway authority knew or could reasonably have been expected to know the condition of that part of the highway to which the action relates was likely to cause danger to users of the highway, i.e. have pot holes and oil spillages already been reported?  

Where the highways authority could not have reasonably been expected to repair that part of the highway before the accident occurred, what warning notices of its condition had been displayed.  

IN CONCLUSION  

So as you can see, road accidents caused by missing grid covers and manhole covers can be fraught with danger. Say the wrong thing, at the wrong time to the wrong person and your case can be damaged beyond recovery.  If you find yourself the victim of a negligent council or authority, contact us. We understand, we have the experience and we are bikers; just like you.  

A phone call will cost you nothing.  

Talk to us, biker to biker on 0800 622 6517

Article supplied by www.motorcyclecompensation.com

British motorcycle racer Guy Martin will make his debut at this year’s Footman James Classic Motorbike Show held at Birmingham’s NEC from Friday 16th to Sunday 18th November. Guy, who is best known for his road racing career as well as his obsession with engineering, will meet motorcycle fans and sign autographs on Saturday 17th and Sunday 18th.

Guy started his career at Team Racing and made a successful debut in the Isle of Man TT. He later moved to AIM Yamaha where he competed in the British Supersport Championship before moving to Hydrex Honda. After four years at Hydrex Honda and a year with Wilson Craig Honda, Guy switched to Relentless Suzuki before joining Tyco Suzuki for the 2012 season. He also starred in the motorcycling documentary film TT3D: Closer to the Edge following the leading riders in the 2010 Isle of Man TT races.

Outside of motorcycle racing, having started messing withmotors at the age of five – albeit a lawnmower, Guy has a passion for all things mechanical. He became a household name with the BBC1 Series ‘The Boat That Guy Built’ reaching nine million viewers a week. Guy’s new Channel 4 series ‘Building Britain’ is also set to be a huge success. Each week Guy will help a team of volunteers restore an iconic machine or buildingfrom Britain's industrial past, and through each structure he will tell thestory of a landmark in making the Britain we recognise today: the railways, the factories, the docks, the mines, the garden and the holiday.

Guy still works on the trucks, now for Moody International, likes a good cup of tea, driving his Transit van and wearing shorts all year. However as Guy has gotolder, his interests have also widened– in his words he has ‘evolved.’ Alongside the motorbike racing he is now also serious about racing mountainbikes, competing in 24-hour endurance races and downhill international races.

Visitors can find Guy on the Live Motorbike Stage where host Steve Berry will interview him about his career and the bikes he has in his own collection – and those he wants to add. There will also be a chance for visitors to ask their own questions in a Q&A session. Steve will also be interviewing motorcycle legends such as Mick Grant and Eric Boocock.

Ticket prices range from £10 when purchased in advance. For more information on the Footman James Classic Motorbike Show, visit www.classicmotorbikeshow.com

Over 6 thousand of you, well 6,007 of you to be exact, turned up at the Farmyard gates and demanded to get down in the mud and party!

If you talk to any event supplier, trader or caterer, 2012 has been a washout. Events have been cancelled all over the UK, but not us and not you, we opened our gates and you rode from all points of the UK, Ireland and even Europe to come to a sodden North Yorkshire. Hats off to you, it has to be said, well done! And you didn't moan or complain, you just got on with it and got slaughtered... Nutters the lot of you!

If in your panic to get pissed you missed your chance to visit the product tent, we have a bit left, T-shirts, vests, strappy tops, badges, ect.

Just ring Neil on the Free phone Number 0800 988 3199 and he will take your order and post it to you.

So moving on. The Yorkshire Pudding Rally www.yorkshirepuddingrally.com 3 to the 5/8/12 is full, sold out, no tickets left, none on the gate as its pre-book.

It was ‘A close-run thing’ to quote the Duke of Wellington, but hard work and determination enabled 1000 Bikes to ‘happen’ and to be another triumph.

There was much last-minute activity to overcome the effects of the week’s almost continuous rain prior to the event and this was justified by more than 1, 300 bikes and riders on the track over the weekend.  Everything was represented, from the Single-speed Triumph of Jacqueline Bickerstaff which was celebrating its 100th birthday to the up-to-the-minute cutting edge Ducati-engined “Vyrus” of Alto Engineering.

Apart from a couple of brief showers on both Saturday & Sunday afternoon the track remained dry – which is more than could be said for nearly everywhere else! Copious application of lorry-loads of tree bark chippings saved the day but it has to be admitted that the grass areas outfield remained damp.

In spite of Friday’s adversity during set-up the Avenue of (over 50) Clubs was a vibrant hive of enthusiasm and activity and the “jumblers” overcame unavoidable changes in locations with stoic resolve (after Banbury & most other outdoor events this year they will be getting used to it)!

Both the road paddock & race paddock’s had many interesting machines on display. One of the highlights must have been the trio of “Irvine Vincents” from Australia- which went just as impressively as they looked. Courtesy of event partner Michelin many people had come to witness the return to Mallory Park of GP legend Kevin Schwantz who showed that he had lost none of his speed when he put in some extremely quick laps on an ex-works Suzuki RGV500 during Sunday afternoons Past Masters feature.

Prior to this Kevin was a last minute entrant in Saturday’s Pre-65 Trial when he put in a great “mud plugging” performance on a borrowed 197cc Francis Barnett.

Events like 1000 Bikes do not just ‘happen’ apart from the months of planning and preparation the “day” of the event relies on the dedication and professionalism of many volunteers & enthusiasts without whom these things are not possible!

The VMCC Festival of 1000 Bikes gives 4 awards every year and this becomes more and more difficult as the standards achieved are higher and higher.

This year, the award for the Classic Motorcycle Magazine Best Pre-War machine went to Bryn Morley for his immaculate 1928 New Hudson Power Plus.

The Old Bike Mart best Post-War machine award (and this is the most difficult category to judge!) went to Stuart Elkes with his 1963 Francis-Barnett “Fulmar Sports”.

Chuck Jackson’s stunning 1954 Vincent ‘Egli’ took the Ace Cafe award for the Best Cafe racer and the closely contested prize for the Classic Racer Magazine best club stand went to the Yamaha LC Club.

The VMCC Festival of 1000 Bikes is supported by some of the biggest names in the old bike movement including Footman James Insurance Brokers, Bonhams Auctioneers, Mortons Motorcycle Media, the National Motorcycle Museum, Norton Motorcycles, Michelin Tyre PLC, Ducati UK as well as corporate partner Eriks UK.

www.vmcc.net/1000bikes

Regional Development Minister Danny Kennedy announced at the start of July 2012, the opening of two new bus lanes in Belfast city centre, on Oxford Street and East Bridge Street, both of which will allow access for motorcycles.
 
The Minister said: “The new bus lanes are part of the Belfast on the Move Transport Masterplan and will give priority to buses. The lanes will also be available to motorcycles, bicycles and Belfast public hire taxis. Drivers should take extra care when travelling in the city centre area until they are familiar with the new traffic management arrangements.”
 
The new bus lanes opened on Thursday 5th July 2012.

The Oxford Street bus lanes will give priority to buses between Queen’s Bridge and May Street from 7.00am - 7.00pm, Monday to Saturday.
 
The East Bridge Street bus lane will be in operation Monday - Friday 7.30-9.30am and 3.30-6.30pm and will assist buses approaching from the east from incurring delays at the signalised junctions.
 
Both bus lanes will be clearly delineated with solid white lines and associated signs.
 
The Minister also said: “Associated works are now underway in May Street, Donegall Square South and Howard Street, to provide further bus priority measures over the summer months.”
 
These works include;
 
·         the reconfiguration of the pedestrian facilities at the junction of Bedford Street

·         the provision of new traffic signals at Donegall Square South / Linenhall Street, including a bus gate

·         one way traffic northbound on Linenhall Street between James Street South and Donegall Square South and

·         one way traffic northbound on Alfred Street between Sussex Place and May Street.

The Minister added: “Further traffic management works are planned across the city centre until Summer 2013 for the full implementation of the ‘Sustainable Transport Enabling Measures’ (STEM).
 
“Ongoing works at Grosvenor Road / Durham Street and Sandy Row / Hope Street will provide an alternative south-north bypass of the city centre via Hope Street, Sandy Row and Durham Street. These works are due to be completed later in the summer.”

The STEM proposals include:
 
The re-routing of northbound through traffic from Great Victoria Street onto Hope Street and Durham Street with south bound traffic continuing to use Great Victoria Street. Grosvenor Road will become one-way westbound and College Square North one-way eastbound.
 
The redistribution of existing road space in city centre streets to provide extensive bus priority measures for use by public transport, taxis and cyclists.
 
The delivery of 20 new controlled pedestrian crossing points; about 2.6km of new bus lanes which will also accommodate cyclists and taxis; 340m of new dedicated service bays; 1km of new dedicated cycle lanes; and over 40 additional dedicated disabled parking bays.

At Right To Ride we have been assured that motorcycles (Powered Two Wheelers – Motorcycles – Scooters – mopeds) will have the necessary access within these proposals.
 
Original Source

Information
 
Further details are available on the ‘Belfast on the Move’ website 
 
Right To Ride - Bikes In Bus Lanes

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