Lucy Carter reported this story on Thursday, November 14, 2013 08:26:00

TONY EASTLEY: Motorists, perhaps you've noticed the increase in the number of cyclists sharing the road with you. It's proving to be an increasingly deadly relationship.



2013 isn't over yet but already twice as many cyclists have died on New South Wales roads compared to last year.



Nationally there has been a 39 per cent jump in the number of bike riders killed this year.



Lucy Carter reports.



LUCY CARTER: In the past fortnight in Sydney three cyclists have died - a woman and two men, all aged in their 40s.



MARG PRENDERGAST: In New South Wales, there's been 15 deaths this year which is actually eight more than the whole of last year.



LUCY CARTER: Marg Prendergast is the General Manager of the New South Wales Centre for Road Safety.



MARG PRENDERGAST: Look, in New South Wales we noticed a spike earlier this year where, you know, the number of cyclists killed had tripled. So we've actually embarked on a cycling safety strategy and it's looking at education and awareness, infrastructure.



LUCY CARTER: Cycling in Australia is soaring in popularity, with a recent survey from the Australian Bicycle Council finding that around 3.6 million people ride a bike in a typical week. For the last 10 years, bikes have outsold cars in Australia.



Experts say these kinds of cycling safety initiatives are long overdue and shouldn't just happen when deaths spike.



Dr Jan Garrard is a senior lecturer at the School of Health and Social Development at Victoria's Deakin University. She says Australian road safety currently revolves around cars.



JAN GARRARD: I think for a long time our road safety strategy has made great improvements for motor vehicle occupants and it's focused on improving the safety of motor vehicle occupants. We now have to think, okay, how can we do a lot more to promote the safety of people that are not strapped in with airbags and collapsible things inside their cars that don't hurt them and all the things that protect drivers. We have to think outside the car.



LUCY CARTER: Dr Garrard says cycling infrastructure, training and safety technology hasn't kept pace with the boom in biking popularity.



JAN GARRARD: I think we're at that transition period where we're getting that sharp increase in cycling. That's a great thing for the health of the country and the environment and the transport system and community liveability and all those things. We have to also make it safer. And I think we have to do more in that direction and we've got a little bit of catch-up to do compared to some of the other high-cycling, much safer countries.



LUCY CARTER: She says she'd like to see better education programs for cyclists rolled out across the nation.



JAN GARRARD: Some kids may not learn how to ride a bike, but even the ones that do, they might have a big gap when they don't ride and then they might come back as adults. So a refresher course for adults would be good, teaching adults that have never learnt would be good and having a national program of teaching all kids how to ride a bike, a bit like learning how to swim.



LUCY CARTER: The Centre for Road Safety's Marg Prendergast says it's an awareness issue, rather than a training issue.



MARG PRENDERGAST: Cyclists need to ride predictably. They need to have high visibility. You know, they need to obey the road rules. But drivers also need to be aware and the most important message for drivers is to give cyclists the space they need.



TONY EASTLEY: Marg Prendergast from the New South Wales Centre for Road Safety. Lucy Carter reporting.