Do the Dutch Reach!
Do the Dutch Reach!
26 June 2019
On the 25 June Cycling UK announced an educational partnership with Uber on the ‘Dutch Reach’ to promote awareness of the technique and help prevent dooring incidents in London.
Make the Dutch Reach a habit and help to save hundreds of people from injury every year.
What is the Dutch Reach?
The Dutch Reach is a simple technique to help you open your car door safely.
Instead of using the hand closest to the door, reach across with the hand furthest from the door – this would be your left hand if you’re the driver.
By using this technique you naturally turn your body towards the window, helping you spot anything that is approaching towards you.
This simple step can save a life!
To see a demonstration of the Dutch Reach visit: www.cyclinguk.org/dutchreach
When doing the Dutch Reach you naturally turn your body towards the window, helping you see what is behind you. You can find out more here.
Why is the Dutch Reach important?
Every year, at least 500 people across England, Wales and Scotland are injured when someone opens a car door into their path.
By making the Dutch Reach an everyday habit and teaching it to children and others – we can help save hundreds of people from injury every year.
Duncan Dollimore, Head of Campaigns at Cycling UK, said:
“We know 60 cyclists are killed or seriously injured across Britain every year by car dooring incidents. We also know from a survey that 40 percent of people say they are put off from cycling because of the fear of car dooring, so it’s of vital importance to educate anyone who uses a car to check before opening their door."
The Dutch Reach is such a simple technique, that if everyone learned it from a young age, it could make a real difference to safety on our roads.
Uber will be supporting the Campaign with the launch of a new “in-app alerts” when a passenger is being dropped off near or along popular London cycle paths.
The passenger will receive a push notification 480 meters before being dropped off, in order to remind them to look over their shoulder.
Fred Jones, Head of New Mobility at Uber, said:
“Using a simple Dutch Reach technique can save lives and we’re proud to be working with Cycling UK to make this a habit. Together, we can combine education and technology to increase road safety awareness amongst the millions of people who use the Uber app across the UK.”
Here is an example of the push notification a passenger will receive before being dropped off.
Reminding passengers to look over their shoulder.
We want to ensure that as many people as possible learn and adopt the Dutch Reach.
Please contact campaigns@cyclinguk.org for more information, resources and for copies of the films to use withing your organisation, local authority or school.
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