On your bikes
Cycling in Australia will be safer in the future thanks to an ANCAP safety initiative to assess the presence and effectiveness of anti-dooring technology on new vehicles.
‘Dooring’ is one of the most common causes of crashes for riders, because bike lanes often overlap the door zone, or the space taken by the open door of a parked vehicle. To reduce the risk of these dooring crashes, ANCAP’s new 2023-25 test and rating criteria will encourage the inclusion of anti-dooring technology in all new vehicles. Vehicles being tested must alert the occupants of a cyclist approaching from behind – either through visual information such as a warning light on the door, by an audible and/or haptic ‘warning’ alert, or by physically preventing occupants opening the door.
“Dooring is a serious risk for cyclists, particularly in cities,” said ANCAP CEO Carla Hoorweg.
“One of the ways we can help prevent these incidents is to encourage in-car technology that reminds car drivers and their passengers to check for cyclists before they exit their vehicle, and where there is a real risk, temporarily prevent them opening their door until the cyclist has passed.”