Hardly any cycling tests

Vienna is threatened by a generation of traffic rule ignoramuses

Vienna is already at the bottom of the league when it comes to cycling tests, and falling numbers of driving license tests are doing the rest: accident figures are already rising.

(Bild: pikselstock - stock.adobe.com)

The Vienna ÖVP is calling for all primary school children to at least be offered a cycling test. However, it is about more than "just" the safety of children on bicycles: in Vienna, a whole generation is growing up in which hardly anyone has ever had to learn traffic rules due to the falling number of driving licenses.

In the last two years alone, bicycle traffic in Vienna has increased by 15 percent. However, this encouraging figure is overshadowed by the fact that the number of accidents involving bicycles has increased by 54 percent in the same period. For the Vienna ÖVP, this is no coincidence. It sees the low proportion of successful cycling tests in Vienna as a warning signal for a future generation that has little idea of the traffic rules.

"Never really learned the do's and don'ts"
Details of the cycling accidents support the theory: of all the accidents caused by cyclists, 27 percent were due to "disregarding commands and prohibitions" and 25 percent to priority violations. For ÖVP transport spokesperson Elisabeth Olischar, it is "no wonder that commands and prohibitions in road traffic are observed less and less if they have never really been learned and tested." She predicts: "The figures will continue to rise." More traffic training is nothing less than "insurance for the future".

ÖVP transport spokesperson Elisabeth Olischar and education spokesperson Harald Zierfuß are calling for every fourth-grader in Vienna's elementary school to be offered at least the cycling test.

(Bild: ÖVP Wien)

Every second child fails the cycling test
For his part, ÖVP education spokesperson Harald Zierfuß refers to the figures for the cycling test in Vienna: while in other federal states - with usually far less challenging traffic situations - the majority of children pass the test, in Vienna only every third child takes the test and half of them fail. That makes a total of 85 percent of road users who have never had to prove that they have mastered the traffic rules until they reach the age of majority. And even after that, things often don't get any better.

More children involved in accidents

According to VCÖ analyses, the number of accidents involving injured children in Vienna reached a new sad record last year: with 434 accidents in which 464 children were injured, the previous record from 2019 was exceeded - even though the number of accidents on the way to school in the city has fallen significantly. However, at least there has not been a fatal road accident involving a child in Vienna for four years.

Numbers of driving test candidates falling rapidly
The number of people taking driving tests is falling throughout the country, but even more sharply in Vienna: five percent fewer tests are now being taken here than the Austrian average. From Olischar's point of view, this is doubly fatal for Vienna: traffic requirements are becoming increasingly complex due to new forms of mobility, the lack of road safety education is hitting the city twice over, and "considerate cooperation" in city traffic is generally at risk.

City Hall emphasizes that there are already free offers for the test and open cycling courses for every child in Vienna via the Mobility Agency, which are also well received. However, whether the cycling test is offered and promoted in schools depends on their own initiative. At least 127 elementary school in Vienna, i.e. around 40 percent, are already concerned about this.