Red light jumping, nicked?

[Broughtonblue]

I know I shouldn't but on occasions I do it, just wondering if anyone has been stopped by the police for this and what was the penalty?

 

[snorri]

A public beheading.

 

[I like Skol]

Always have done and fairly frequently too. I did once get stopped by a traffic cop with full siren and blues. This was many moons ago when the Astra GTE 16V was THE car to have and the police had just got some (1990?). The smug git pulled alongside with me on his passenger side, wound down the electric window then proceeded to lecture me while continuing to stare straight ahead and failing to make eye contact once during his little speech. No enforcement carried out just a little 'chat' and left me under the impression that he was a complete pr*ck and an ar*e in one go. As I would have been around 18yrs old at the time he did nothing to help endear the police force with the community and the incicent would have helped enforce the sterotype view of the police force held by a large portion of society.

 

[Bicycle]

When I was a courier (in the 80s) I went over the lights at Mile End Road and Grove Road at speed, turning right on a mature amber to go north up Grove Road and into Victoria Park.

I got stopped (after a little while) and the sheet of charges was long.

It included failure to observe a traffic signal, driving without due care and attention, exceeding the 30 mph limit and a couple of other things. All very upsetting, really.

It was taken VERY seriously, quite rightly.

I don't know whether Failure to Observe a Traffic Signal can be used against a cyclist... From memory it was endorsable and cyclists don't need a license.

 

[Moodyman]

The severest fine is death.

 

[gaz]

It's not an offence you can be arrested for.

 

[screenman]

No, but it should be one. Sorry but in my book RLJ is utter lunacy.

 

[dellzeqq]

FPN in Islington. Great to watch.

 

[YahudaMoon]

If you want to see real cyclist RLJ just go on a club run

All BC members CTC or both

 

[Arch]

Always have done and fairly frequently too. I did once get stopped by a traffic cop with full siren and blues. This was many moons ago when the Astra GTE 16V was THE car to have and the police had just got some (1990?). The smug git pulled alongside with me on his passenger side, wound down the electric window then proceeded to lecture me while continuing to stare straight ahead and failing to make eye contact once during his little speech. No enforcement carried out just a little 'chat' and left me under the impression that he was a complete pr*ck and an ar*e in one go. As I would have been around 18yrs old at the time he did nothing to help endear the police force with the community and the incicent would have helped enforce the sterotype view of the police force held by a large portion of society.

What, you'd rather he 'enforced' it? Sounds like you got the better end of the deal, having been a knob, he had a word with you. If you can't take the telling off, don't do it!

As a matter of fact, I got a telling off from a police van that pulled alongside me at a roundabout, shortly after I'd gone through a very mature amber on an empty ped crossing. I was about 25 at the time. I took it to heart, and I don't rlj now, and I think anyone who does is a prat.

Sounds like whatever he'd done, you'd have reinforced your opinion of him however you wished.

 

[screenman]

Thanks Arch, that saved me some typing as I agree with you completely.

 

[Fletch456]

Held back on RLJ'ing before but IMO it's perfectly allowable in the right circumstances. Such as an open 4 way junction where you can see all the roads coming to the junction and even more so when each set of lights includes a pedestrian crossing. Such as the junction of the A201 with Ludgate Hill and Fleet St in London; if you look at this in street view you will see what I am talking about. During 6 years of commuting to London, with my bike on the train, I crossed it a lot of times. A large of amount of them I waited at the lights and didn't RLJ at all but did my fair share. With large buses to contend with and lots of traffic I would rather RLJ, stop where pedestrians are crossing and proceed when they have stopped, or go through a suitable gap amongst those crossing.

At this junction there is a lot of pedestrian traffic at peak hours and a significant amount of time when no motorised traffic is moving. When crossing from one side of the junction to another I did it slowly, pedestrians after all have priority at this point but its a safer time to cross then proceed as described above.

Bikes are safer when paired with foot traffic, no the motorised variety. I think more people would cycle if this was part of our national transport policy too. I was on the road from an early age and had a paper round for years - when you have to skip up and down pavements and the like a lot. I think this fashions your cycling manner. Though an impatient man I am also a very very observant one on the road though (touch wood) I will continue to be lucky and avoid being too confident.

RLJs deserve a beheading and the like sound very serious or I may read them too literally. An ignorant RLJer mind you, who doesn't carefully observe everyone and everything around him and due priority to other road users is potentially very stupid RLJer.

Not all RLJs are equal.

 

[CopperCyclist]

It's not an offence you can be arrested for.

Careful, given the right circumstances you can actually be arrested for ANY offence (for example RLJing then refusing to give details), but I do agree it's extremely unlikely you'll get arrested for RLJing.

That said, recently my colleagues were forced to arrest someone for mobile phone use whilst driving because he insisted that he disagreed with the law and as such would not give his details, or accept a FPN, or attend any court hearing, so it can happen...

 

[BikeLiker]

Been stopped for crossing a junction on the pavement at 5mph when lights were in pedestrian phase but with no pedestrians present (which is why I didn't stop). Got a very reasonable talking to by a PC waiting behind me at the lights, who seemed a bit embarrassed, almost apologetic, but obligated to be seen to enforcing the law. When traffic lights catch up with 21st 20th century technology for managing traffic then maybe peeps will take more notice of them, rather than thinking for themselves when staring at a junction surrounded by queues but with no traffic flow.

 

[Fletch456]

But some are more equal than others?

Indeed; RLJs not RLJers that is.