Bradford: Council told city is gaining reputation for bad driving

Bradford councillors passed a motion moved for increased measures to tackle poor driving

Bradford needs to do more to shed its reputation for dangerous driving, a councillor has claimed.

Councillor Alun Griffiths also said the city needed to lose its "car is king" attitude.

At the last meeting of Bradford Council of 2022, members backed a motion calling for increased measures to tackle the problem.

In 2019, most of the 1,200 people who responded to a council survey said they felt unsafe due to poor driving.

Liberal Democrat councillor Mr Griffiths, who represents the city's Idle and Thackley ward, said those who flouted the rules of the road were putting off potential investors.

He added: "There is no doubt that dangerous, anti-social and inconsiderate driving is a major problem.

"Not only does it cause death and injury, but it brings reputational damage. We've all heard people say 'typical Bradford, the driving there is terrible'.

"It is damaging to the district, but more widely it is got to be having an impact on the commercial and economic regeneration we want to see."

• Viral zebra crossing crashes prompt change call

• Are Bradford's roads 'like the Wild West'?

• Loud music drivers face £100 fine

Mr Griffiths said he thought "the attitude of car is king" was contributing to problem, adding: "I'd love to see more people who feel they are confident enough to cycle, walk or use public transport."

Labour councillor Nazam Azam, who represents City ward, presented the motion titled 'Residents of Bradford will not tolerate dangerous driving'.

It called on the authority to invest more in policing, continue the rollout of noise cameras - as piloted in Keighley - and introduce graduated driving licences. These licences would see safe drivers able to access cheaper insurance.

Mr Azam said: "Every death on our road is a preventable tragedy.

"Dangerous driving is an issue that affects all of us - young, old, rich, poor, urban, rural. We all witness it all too often. It is crazy how normalised it has become."

Geoff Winnard, Conservative councillor for Bingley, said it was a problem across the district, arguing some drivers using the Bingley Bypass seemed to "want to recreate scenes from the Fast and the Furious film franchise".

Members passed the motion, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.