We suspect there will be few people reading this article who would disagree with us when we say that the Welsh countryside is without a peer when it comes to natural beauty.
In summer, rural Wales is especially attractive to those wanting to participate in outdoor pursuits, such as walking, cycling, climbing, running and horse riding.
Take horse riding, for instance. The hundreds of miles of bridleways and an abundance of soft trails in the numerous forests provide great opportunities to ride a horse without ever touching a road whilst enjoying some of the finest scenery in the UK.
While some horse riders are fortunate enough to ride without having to venture onto the road, others do not have that luxury. For them, riding their horse on the road is a frequent necessity.
Most horse riders will tell you there is no longer any joy in riding on the highways and that rural roads are the worst possible places to be on horseback. Why is that?
Horse riding on the road – some facts
The British Horse Society (BHS) reported that 1010 incidents or accidents involving horses, riders, and motorists took place on UK roads in 2020/2021. These incidents resulted in the deaths of 46 horses, with 118 more suffering injury. As for their riders or handlers, 130 suffered an injury due to road traffic accidents. Of the reported incidents, 80% were due to vehicles travelling too closely to horse and rider, and 41% by motorists driving too quickly.
The Director of Safety at the BHS, Alan Hiscox, estimates only 1 in 10 such incidents gets logged. In other words, there may be as many as 10,000 accidents/incidents involving horse riders and other road users each year.
Busy summer roads
The summer in rural Wales sees an influx of tourists and holidaymakers. Often these visitors have little experience of encountering horses on the road in their everyday lives. If drivers are not used to driving on the highway close to horse riders, the temptation can be for them to speed up to get past the horse as quickly as possible. In effect, this is the direct opposite of what the BHS Dead Slow safety campaign advocates, namely:
- Slow down to a maximum speed of 15 mph
- Be patient – don’t sound your horn or rev your engine
- Pass the horse slow and wide the rider will be aware of you and will let you pass when safe.
- Please allow a car’s width when passing
- Drive slowly away
What does the Highway Code say about the safety of horse and riders on the highway?
The Highway Code classes horse riders, pedestrians, cyclists, and motorcyclists as ‘vulnerable road users’, around whom other road users should exercise extra care. The current advice is that motorists should pass ‘wide and slow’ when overtaking horses.
A recognition that the current code lacks any actual weight or definition has brought about a review of the highway code specifically regarding vulnerable road users. Assuming the proposals become part of the revised code, they will introduce a ‘Hierarchy of Road Users’.
This concept will put those road users most at risk in the event of a collision at the top of the ‘hierarchy’. Accordingly, pedestrians will be placed at the top of the table, followed by cyclists, horse riders, and motorcyclists. Those who drive vehicles that can cause the most significant harm will bear the most responsibility to reduce the danger they pose to others.
The review also proposes revising Rule 163 of the code, which at the moment reads:
‘Give motorcyclists, cyclists and horse riders at least as much room as you would when taking a car.’
The review proposes the following addition to Rule 163:
Pass horse riders and horse-drawn vehicles at speeds under 15 mph and allow at least 2 metres space.’
If the proposals are adopted, they will perhaps make some drivers take more responsibility for their actions when driving in the vicinity of horse and rider than they currently do.
Horse riding accidents are almost always avoidable
The consequences of a horse-riding accident involving motorists as a third party are frequently severe, particularly for the horse and rider. Whilst horse riding accidents causing severe injury are thankfully not everyday occurrences, the stark fact is they are usually wholly avoidable. Not all horse-riding accidents are the fault of motorists. Many take the utmost care when in the vicinity of horses on the road.
However, motorists have it within their power to prevent most accidents with horses. Maybe a revised Highway Code will be the catalyst for some motorists to change their driving habits for the better when around horses on the road? Perhaps it would be over-optimistic to expect too much based on a reformed Highway Code alone. It will be a step in the right direction, though. More remains to be done.
Drive safely. Ride safely and enjoy the summer.
Mooneerams are specialist personal injury solicitors. Based in north Cardiff, they have been successfully pursuing personal injury claims for the people of Wales for almost 20 years.