Trusts can do much to encourage doctors to lead the way

EDITOR—The media devote much attention to proposed changes in transport policy, and Roberts has written an editorial on reducing road traffic.1 poll of medical staff in our hospital showed that virtually all of them drive unaccompanied to work. The usual reasons for this were cited, and they were well aware of individual and communal health benefits from possible alternatives. There was a strong desire, especially among juniors, to combine exercise with commuting, but lack of workplace resources, including poor showering facilities and safe bicycle parks, led to staff continuing to drive.

Doctors are often asked to–and do–lead by example in health issues, so encouraging medical staff to give up their cars is an important early step. Trust boards should provide certain basic requirements as standard. All we want is a safe home for a bicycle and sweaty clothes.

First fatal car crash in Britain occurred in 1898

EDITOR—According to Roberts's editorial on reducing road traffic, in 1896 Bridget Driscoll “stepped off the kerb [in London] and into history as the first person to be killed by a car in Britain.”1 Bridget Driscoll was indeed the first person to be killed by a car, but the drama occurred in the grounds of the Crystal Palace. She was run over by a demonstration car, a Roger-Benz, whose speed belt had been mischievously removed by the youthful driver, with the result that the car travelled at more than twice the accepted speed of 4 mph (6.4 km/h) but with less control. She died minutes later of a head injury. This was on 17 August 1896.

The claim that “the coroner said he hoped that such a thing would never happen again” sounds appealing, but I found no evidence from transcripts of the inquest that he ever said it. Nevertheless, William Percy Morrison was the first to apply the term “accident” to violence caused by speed. Coroners have followed his example ever since.

Britain's first fatal car crash occurred 100 years ago. On 12 February 1898, Brighton businessman Henry Lindfield crashed his speeding car into a tree near Purley, Surrey, and died a few hours later in Croydon Hospital. Again, a verdict of accidental death was returned.