WE owe Vic Barlow a deep level of gratitude in highlighting the latest figures on fatalities on Cheshire’s roads in the Guardian, August 23.

He is absolutely correct to remind us that ‘the distracting accessories we have in our vehicles’ may play an important part in causing these fatalities and ‘sustained lifechanging injuries’.

I was particularly impressed by his call for the development of phones that would cut out in motion.

We could do much better than that as GPS technology already has the potential to automatically regulate speed and driving behaviour according to changing road conditions.

However, I was a little concerned that he focused almost exclusively on driver behaviour.

Important as that is – as reductions in drink driving have shown – infrastructure that more imaginatively and sustainably protects the safety of all who share roads is, in my view, the key.

Historically, we have much to be proud of in achieving what has appeared to be an impressive decline in road casualties due in no small part to the breathalyser and seat belts, efficient and reliable breaking systems and the much more advanced protective features for the occupants of vehicles.

Sadly this has not always extended to pedestrians and cyclists.

If I were a parent or grandparent there are very few, if any, areas of Knutsford in which I would be confident enough to allow my 12-year-old child who had passed level 2 Bikeability to cycle independently to school, shops and play.

A simple illustration of this is the quarter of a mile stretch of Knutsford Road from the Bentley showroom to Broadoak Lane.

The pavement on its north side has received an upgrade in its surface and width.

It could easily accommodate a cycle lane and it would benefit from street lighting and most of the Mobberley road is wide enough to accommodate a Dutch-style segregated cycle facility.

But in the 13 years since I’ve been living in Knutsford and Mobberley I have seen virtually nothing done apart from a few cycle stands and cycle routes signposted across The Moor.

There isn’t a single cycle lane or ASL (advanced stop line) to be seen.

Paul Thomson Mobberley