Cycling On Pavements

[Corrblimeyguv]

Ok ill set the scene!

My wife and I went for a gentle plod round our local lakes thus morning. On approach to our house we were riding on the pavement before pulling in to our drive. My wife has a 7 speed shopper bike and I was riding in 3rd gear of 27 so you can imagine the trickle we were moving at.

At this point a dog walker chose to engage with us and state it was illegal to ride on the pavement as he'd read it in the paper last week.

For the record, I would never use the pavement at speed and was travelling at slower than walking pave so not causing any danger to anyone else.

Was he correct???

 

[Rickshaw Phil]

Strictly speaking, yes he is correct. Unless the pavement has been designated as a shared use path for pedestrians and cyclists it is illegal to ride on it regardless of speed.

Even children are legally supposed to use the road when cycling, although a blind eye is usually given to this.

 

[Hip Priest]

Strictly-speaking, he's correct. But he sounds like a bit of a busy-body to raise it with you. I see no problem with people riding slowly and considerately on a quiet path. The only time I get annoyed is when I see someone riding along at pace showing no consideration to peds.

 

[i hate hills]

He is correct but sounds like he really needs a hobby.

 

[ianrauk]

Should have run the dog over.

 

[srw]

Yes he's correct - and getting tangled up with a dog is one of the very several very good reasons why it's better to ride on the road.

 

[Drago]

There is no such legal entity as a pavement.

It is unlawful to cycle on the footway. It sounds like this is what you were doing.

It is not specifically unlawful to cycle on a footpath unless there Is a By law covering this. However, it's not necessarily a good idea to do so.

 

[Apollonius]

Section 64 of the Highway Code states that you must not cycle on pavements. (Pavement is a term not clearly defined in law, as far as I know.)

On the other hand, a ruling from the Home Office in 1999 said police should not take action when a cyclist was riding- albeit considerately- on a footway out of fear of the traffic. This instruction to the police was repeated in 2014.

Your answer to the dog-walker might have included reference to the fear you felt. I can see no other way of measuring fear!

Personally, I avoid cycling on anything but roads. And I include cycle paths in this. The route to our club meet-up point includes a footway across a green area which I used to studiously walk along at some cost to my SL cleats. It now has stickers either end of it declaring it to be part of a National Cycleway!

In my view, if one is riding considerately then no harm is being done. After all, how often are cars prevented from driving and/or parking on the footway? I would hope the Police would see it the same way, especially after the publicity given to the PC who tried to threaten a 4-year-old with bike confiscation.

 

[summerdays]

I don't feel comfortable cycling on the pavement but do little shortcuts, such as going up the dropped kerb at the corner to get to my friends house a few houses down but no driveways so no more dropped kerbs, that's me being lazy and I probably wouldn't do if if there was a pedestrian coming (I even cycle up her short garden path and have wondered but not attempted whether I could cycle up the doorstep- but it's a bit narrow). And I'd cycle up the one to our driveway but then I'd also drive up it too I'd always cycle at walking pace if on the pavement so generally I'd prefer to be on the road.

 

[MontyVeda]

If it's ok to drive on the pavement to get to your driveway, then surely it's ok to do it on a bike too.

 

[Drago]

One drives across a footway to reach their house, not 'on' it as such.

 

[Arrowfoot]

Yes, it breaches the law or by-law. But sometimes common sense has to come in. Unless there is danger to peds, a short run as described by Op would be fine. Its one of the things that you play by ear.

Next time you see the dog walker, tell him that you checked with your lawyer and its not true. Ask him to do so research and come back to you. After he does all the running around and produces that piece of legislation, thank him for his trouble. These people have nothing better to do so give them something that they can feel important about.

 

[Accy cyclist]

"At this point a dog walker chose to engage with us and state it was illegal to ride on the pavement as he'd read it in the paper last week."


So if he hadn't read about it he wouldn't have bothered about it?

 

[Kumquat]

How can you tell whether a pavement is shared use or not?

There's a point on my commute where there is a road with a cycle lane, then a roundabout, then a busy road with no marked cycle lane. I used to (guiltily) go onto the pavement on the second road as I need to cross the road in less than 100m anyway, and I don't feel particularly safe on that road. (There are rarely pedestrians, and if there were I would dismount rather than get back on the road)

I noticed the other day that the traffic light at the crossing has a "green man and bike" light, presumably meaning the pavement I was riding on is shared use, but how would I have known this if I hadn't come up onto the pavement anyway?

 

[Apollonius]

Almost impossible to ride on the pavement in our village - too many parked cars in the way!