WILL cyclists and motorists ever get on with one another?

There is a natural conflict between the two groups, who both regularly accuse each other of ignorance in the way they travel around the city – and that’s without mentioning the pedestrians...

What Cyclox, the county council and the police are aiming to do with their Bike Polite scheme is improve the attitudes of cyclists in the city.

It’s an admirable idea. A secondary idea which could become part of the scheme, that of introducing cycling awareness courses for errant bikers, also sounds like common sense, providing it is targeted in the same way similar schemes run for misbehaving drivers.

Of course, we should point out that this Bike Polite initiative is by no means an admission that all cyclists behave badly, or indeed that cyclists are more of a nuisance than drivers.

Indeed, several cyclists would stress that motorists cause the vast majority of serious incidents.

But this campaign is about promoting individual responsibility, and that is something all cyclists, motorists – and yes, pedestrians – should think about.