Guardian Bike Blog: pavement cycling

[MrHappyCyclist]

Except the law is not an end in itself. It is there to stop the behaviour the law was designed to stop. In this case endangering pedestrians. When that behaviour is absent then the law should be blind. That's essentially what the Home Office guidance says.

The Home Office guidance that I think you are referring to relates specifically to the fixed penalty fines that were introduced in London.

If the intent is to stop people cycling anti-socially, then that is what the law should say. As it stands, it is illegal to cycle on a pavement that is alongside a road, unless it is specifically permitted, full-stop. On the occasions that I do it myself, albeit very carefully, then yes, I hope that the police would exercise some discretion, but I am still breaking the law.

 

[MacB]

I loved this comment:-

In the last twenty years I have seen scores of children and old people mowed down by cyclists on the pavement: arrogant, selfish, violent and anti-social; these petty criminals are infantile and care for nobody but their worthless selves.

some of these people live in a world that I'm not even remotely familiar with

 

[jonesy]

How weird is that, this one person must have witnessed pretty well every single incident of cyclists hitting pedestrians over the whole country during the last 20 years! The sort of misfortune of fate that Douglas Adams would think up, an Agrajag figure targeted by malevolent cyclists!

 

[MacB]

How weird is that, this one person must have witnessed pretty well every single incident of cyclists hitting pedestrians over the whole country during the last 20 years! The sort of misfortune of fate that Douglas Adams would think up, an Agrajag figure targeted by malevolent cyclists!

I especially liked that it was only children and old people

 

[summerdays]

The Home Office guidance that I think you are referring to relates specifically to the fixed penalty fines that were introduced in London.

Does that guidance ONLY apply to London ... I assumed it was across the country.

 

[albion]

Unless it is busy London type area I think those who never ride on pavements could well be a 'car drivers nightmare'.There are a few routes I do where I find a bit of pavement cycling both courteous and sensible.And on my main one I don't think have ever come across a pedestrian.


Of course that might one day change with an encounter with a rogue policeman.

 

[MrHappyCyclist]

Does that guidance ONLY apply to London ... I assumed it was across the country.

Actually, you're right, it is across the whole country. I'd somehow got it into my head that the fixed penalty notices were only applied in London.

 

[downfader]

I loved this comment:-

In the last twenty years I have seen scores of children and old people mowed down by cyclists on the pavement: arrogant, selfish, violent and anti-social; these petty criminals are infantile and care for nobody but their worthless selves.

some of these people live in a world that I'm not even remotely familiar with

You always get pillocks like that. I have read similar comments on the Daily Fail website and the BEP and Oxford Times websites/letters pages. Nothing like a good dose of hyperbole. I once had a joke with Chuck Cork (I think the guy was called) from the BR forums about writing the most outlandish, nonsensical letter about cyclists and seeing which newspapers published it. The idea was to use the hyperbole to "demonstrate" an allegance to aliens, al queda, vulcans/klingons, etc.

 

[rowan 46]

I have been known to cycle for short periods on pavements, I put my gears down as low as they will go so that I can't get any speed up thus giving me a chance to brake should a pedestrian step out from their house. and get off and walk if there are a few people around but I have to accept that even though I am careful, I am breaking the law. I have to say though that as a pedestian I have been and have seen other pedestrians badly spooked by cyclists riding inconsiderately. The fact that I have never seen an accident seems more luck than judgement.

 

[Angelfishsolo]

+1

He should have got off and walked for a hundred yards instead if making pathetic excuses about the road layout and whining. He broke the law and got caught, that's all.

 

[Angelfishsolo]

He seems to be the common denominator here!!!

I loved this comment:-

In the last twenty years I have seen scores of children and old people mowed down by cyclists on the pavement: arrogant, selfish, violent and anti-social; these petty criminals are infantile and care for nobody but their worthless selves.

some of these people live in a world that I'm not even remotely familiar with

 

[MrHappyCyclist]

I cycle at walking pace across a short piece of extremely wide pavement on my way to work, rejoining the main road at a crossing across a junction. Yesterday morning, I came across a PCSO as I was waiting to pull out onto the road. He couldn't really say anything, though, as he was approaching the same crossing on his bicycle up the pavement on the opposite side of the road.

 

[Richard Mann]

If it's "extremely wide" it probably isn't a "footway alongside a roadway" intended for use by pedestrians. So not illegal. Probably.

 

[MrHappyCyclist]

If it's "extremely wide" it probably isn't a "footway alongside a roadway" intended for use by pedestrians. So not illegal. Probably.

Hm, I hadn't thought of that possibility. It is in a "pedestrianised" area without any "no-cycling" signs, but there is a restricted (buses only) one way road through it in the opposite direction. You can see it in this video (jump to 0:42).

 

[Richard Mann]

There's nothing in Crown St to tell you to turn right, nor anything to tell you that Bridge Street is one way between Crown St and Bradshawgate (so it probably isn't). I'd probably cut the corner (and that would probably be legal) and drop onto the road, rather than cycle to the crossing.

Cycling across a Puffin is definitely illegal, but you'd need a really picky policeman to do you for that.

Conversion to a Toucan would probably be pretty cheap, since there are four sets of controls already.