Cyclists And Cameras ' An Important Layer Of Protection

• Published date: 01 September 2022
• Subject Matter: Litigation, Mediation & Arbitration, Transport, Rail, Road & Cycling, Personal Injury
• Law Firm: McLeish Orlando LLP
• Author: Mr Patrick Brown and Sonam Sapra, Summer Student

Cyclists are entitled to their fair share of the roadway. Under S. 148(6.1) of the Highway Traffic Act, motorists overtaking cyclists must leave a distance of not less than one metre between themselves and the cyclist. However, motorists often fail to leave cyclists with enough space, which places cyclists in a dangerous position and is a common cause of collisions. In fact, the Canadian Automobile Association and Statistics Canada found that approximately 7,500 cyclists are seriously injured every year, with most collisions occurring during afternoon rush hour.

To combat the danger that cyclists face on the roadway, more and more cyclists are equipping their bicycles with cameras to catch and record unsafe drivers. While adding cameras to bicycles may be a more recent phenomenon, cars have been equipped with cameras, or "dash cams", for a while now. As footage recorded by "dash cams" becomes a regular feature in courtrooms, it is clear that cameras for bicycles can be an important and necessary layer of protection for cyclists.

How can cameras affixed to bicycles protect cyclists?

In personal injury cases, there are two general issues: liability i.e., who is at fault, and damages i.e., what the monetary award to the injured party should be.

In some cases, it can be challenging to prove who is at fault for a collision. A common reason that it can be challenging is that eyewitnesses may be unreliable, or due to an insufficient investigation, cannot be located. In these cases, footage recorded by cameras affixed to bicycles can help establish liability. Since the footage is an exact representation of the collision and the events that led up to the collision, the footage can serve as an impartial and reliable witness. Therefore, the footage can be used to prove that one party was negligent, and thus at fault. For example, footage can be used to prove the following:

• A motorist opened their door in front of an approaching cyclist
• A motorist drove into the bicycle lane
• A motorist cut off the cyclist while making a right turn

Further, a recent study highlighted Canada's car culture when it found that...