CIHT has launched a pioneering new professional development eLearning course that aims to address one of the most overlooked areas of transport planning: the safety and inclusion of horse riders as vulnerable road users.

Horse Riders as Road Users is the first eLearning course dedicated to equestrian road safety and has been developed to challenge long-standing gaps in transport policy, research and infrastructure design. It provides transport planners, engineers, policymakers and active travel practitioners with the evidence and practical knowledge needed to design safer, more inclusive transport networks.

The launch comes against a stark backdrop. Between 2016 and 2025, almost 20,000 road incidents involving horses were reported in the UK. During that period, eight people lost their lives, almost 1,000 were injured and an average of 56 horses were killed on the roads each year. Yet despite being recognised in the Highway Code as vulnerable road users alongside cyclists, horse riders remain largely absent from mainstream transport planning.

Catherine Chapman, Director at ADL Traffic & Highways Engineering Limited and the course author, believes the profession must fundamentally change how it views equestrians.

"We need to stop treating horse riders as a niche specialism and recognise them for what they are – vulnerable road users. It should be just as important for transport professionals to understand the needs of horse riders as it is to understand those of cyclists or pedestrians."

Catherine argues that the issue extends well beyond collisions. Horse riders are particularly vulnerable to close passing, excessive speed and intimidating driver behaviour, with many experiencing near misses that never appear in official collision statistics.

Despite an estimated 1.5 million people riding horses on UK roads three to five times a week—a similar number to regular motorcyclists—equestrians have received little attention in transport research or policy. Between 2011 and 2024, only 14 academic papers examined horse riders as road users, compared with more than 1,000 studies on cycling safety over a similar period.

"The evidence gap has real-world consequences," Catherine says. "If we don't understand how horse riders use the road network, we cannot design infrastructure or develop policy that properly considers their needs."

The course also highlights how current design guidance for local roads offers limited practical advice on accommodating horse riders, despite increasing investment in active travel. Catherine believes this has contributed to horse riding being marginalised because it is often viewed as a leisure activity.

"Leisure should never be a reason to overlook safety. Horse riding delivers significant health, social and economic benefits, and people who ride have every right to expect transport networks that are designed with their safety in mind."

Through five interactive modules, learners explore the legal status of horse riders, the factors influencing road safety, infrastructure design, stakeholder engagement and real-world case studies. The course equips professionals with practical, evidence-based approaches that can be applied across planning, highway design and active travel projects.

As governments and local authorities seek to create transport systems that are safer, more inclusive and better connected, CIHT believes the profession has an opportunity to close a long-standing gap in knowledge.

By championing horse riders as an integral part of the vulnerable road user hierarchy, rather than an afterthought, Horse Riders as Road Users marks an important step towards embedding equestrian safety into mainstream transport planning and ensuring future infrastructure works for everyone who uses the road.

Access the CIHT Learn course today

Horse Riders as Road Users is a one-hour online professional development course designed for transport planners, engineers, policymakers, active travel practitioners and infrastructure designers seeking to create safer and more inclusive transport systems.

Read the full interview with course author, Catherine Chapman, Managing Director of ADL Traffic and Highways Engineering Ltd

To learn more about the thinking behind the course, read CIHT's 8 Questions interview with course author Catherine Chapman. She reflects on why horse riders have been overlooked in transport planning and why recognising equestrians as vulnerable road users is essential to creating safer, more inclusive transport networks.