Engaging with gig riders in Brighton & Hove
A day of action is taking place to engage with people working in Brighton & Hove’s gig economy.
Road safety officers, working with Sussex Police, will be out on Wednesday 11 June talking to moped and bike riders delivering food for the city’s restaurants and takeaways.
They’ll be giving advice about road safety, riding legally and bike maintenance.
We want riders to minimise the risks to themselves and others when travelling around the city and reduce incidents of illegal and anti-social riding.
Councillor Trevor Muten, Cabinet member for Transport and City Infrastructure said: “The gig economy is really valuable to the city, helping to deliver food and groceries to our residents and supporting our restaurants, takeaways and retailers.
“But, anecdotally and through complaints we’ve received, we know there are issues with safety and anti-social riding. It’s vital riders keep themselves and others safe and businesses play their part in ensuring fair, reasonable and responsible working conditions for their delivery teams.
“By speaking and engaging with riders and retailers, we want to raise awareness of the risks and ensure people are riding safely and legally on our roads and cycle ways. They work hard in a busy and bustling city, but we want them to do so responsibly, safely and considerately.”
The action coincides with National Young Rider Day – where the focus this year is on young motorcyclists.
We’ve also been speaking with other local authorities about the work they’ve been doing with gig riders to learn about best practices and successful campaigns.
We’ll continue to work with them and other partners to promote legal and safe riding across the city.
PC Steve Bucksey, Motorcycle Casualty Reduction Officer said, "We recognise the vital service delivery riders provide in and around Brighton, and this engagement day is an opportunity for us to speak with riders and offer advice as well as listen to their perspectives. We aim to work collaboratively to reinforce crucial road safety messaging and address concerns around riding legally and anti-social riding.
"Our goal is for delivery riders to operate safely and responsibly in order to minimise any negative impact on residents and other road users.
"We take anti-social riding seriously, and are committed to investigating all reports as we continue to work towards improving road safety for road users residents and visitors in the city."
“We also know 2-wheel road users have an increase vulnerability on our roads and recognise engagement is key for all road users, we created our ‘One Extra Look’ Campaign last year, highlighting awareness at junctions, last year this saw a 10% reduction across Surrey & Sussex in road traffic collisions involving motorcycles compared with the last 3 year average.”
To make a report to police, you can do this online, or by calling 101. In an emergency always dial 999.
