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Liability laws will make people drive safely

“It's not the infrastructure that makes the Netherlands so safe for cycling, but liability laws”

The response

The effects of strict (or presumed) liability laws on behaviour are often exaggerated. These laws are simply insurance regulations, and have no bearing on criminal culpability. There is no evidence to suggest they have any effect on the behaviour of people driving, or on safety in general.

Many countries with low cycling rates (and high cycling casualty rates) also have such regulations, seemingly to little or no effect. The Netherlands didn't enact such regulations until the early 1990s, long after their cycling boom had begun.

Liability laws are a good thing in their own right, a post-trauma financial safety net to help provide support for victims of road collisions. But they're not known or intended to deter bad driving, nor are they a way to make cycling safe and attractive for all.