Should cycling be allowed on the pavement?

[GrumpyGregry]

Has the war against the motorist been won yet?

I just wanted to quote this again.

 

[GrumpyGregry]

Has the war against the motorist been won yet?

and again,

 

[GrumpyGregry]

Has the war against the motorist been won yet?

and again.

Motorists, as a rule, is cnuts.

 

[theclaud]

Must have been a quiet news day on Look North. Anti cycling stuff is becoming a fail safe news item. Reid does an OK Boardman impersonation.

Ya think? Boardman's in a whole different league when it comes to handling these numpties, his recent grief-related forays into negative press notwithstanding. 'Well the police say they can' was a lousy opener.

 

[kingrollo]

In answer to the question. 'yes' - but not at speed. Some people who ride on pavement have no common sense.

 

[classic33]

Over junior school age, No.

 

[Ming the Merciless]

It is already allowed in many places. The council puts a white line down a pavement, adds a blue and white sign and calls it a shared use path. The pavements chosen for this do not have any special properties above other ones in the towns. So I do not see any fundamental reason why you should not allow cycling on the pavement without the need for special status. Establish rules of engagement and enforce infractions.

 

[NickNick]

[QUOTE 5035612, member: 43827"]That's going to work well on narrow crowded city or town pavements, not.

Despite press reports and comments in internet forums the pavements are not full of cyclists, nor is there a need to be. There are usually roads between pavements, which generally work well for grown-ups on bikes. The idea of creating yet more legal offences/penalties for police or traffic wardens to enforce (or, more likely, not having the time or manpower to enforce) is a complete non-starter. This is just treating cyclists as victims and giving more cause for unreasonable motorists to believe that cyclists shouldn't be on the roads.[/QUOTE]
That's easy for someone who is confident to say, but not everyone has that level of confidence. My wife can't stand being on the road anymore, she used to commute on her bike but got crushed between a 4x4 and railings on side of road, the driver didn't even notice and although she wasn't seriously injured it's had a lasting impact. She doesn't use the bike all that much but when she does she sticks to pavements where possible, goes slowly enough that she's not a threat to anyone and stops for pedestrians. That wouldn't work in e.g busy high street pavements, but the areas she cycles it's not an issue.

 

[GaGa]

CanucksTraveller, post: 4647356, member: 13269"]In many circumstances it's absolutely fine, so long as it's considerate. I've no problem with kids and less confident cyclists carefully using the pavement to avoid heavy or fast traffic. The police are turning a blind eye I see.... I suppose that since police time is so stretched, and since motorists rarely get stopped for things like phone use, no seatbelts, fog lights always on, aggressive driving and excess speed etc then I'm quite surprised that any police would even consider a stop for this.

Cycling on the pavement around here would be a problem as the pavements are full of cars !

 

[hoopdriver]

For children and learners there is a certain logic in it, but even there you would be better served by going to a park. Footpaths along streets have their own sets of unpredictable dangers - nasty ruts and lumps in the pavement caused by tree roots, cars backing out of blind driveways, pedestrians, dog walkers with long leads, etc. Footpaths can be stressful places for beginners to ride.

And there is no reason for the experienced to ride on a footpath. I would always prefer the road, for the reasons listed above plus the freedom to move along safely at decent rate of knots. If I came to a stretch of road that was so dangerous or intimidating that I felt uncomfortable riding along it, I would hop off and walk along the footpath until I could sort out an alternate route or until I had walked through or past the section that concerned me.

 

[summerdays]

For children and learners there is a certain logic in it, but even there you would be better served by going to a park. Footpaths along streets have their own sets of unpredictable dangers - nasty ruts and lumps in the pavement caused by tree roots, cars backing out of blind driveways, pedestrians, dog walkers with long leads, etc. Footpaths can be stressful places for beginners to ride.

And there is no reason for the experienced to ride on a footpath. I would always prefer the road, for the reasons listed above plus the freedom to move along safely at decent rate of knots. If I came to a stretch of road that was so dangerous or intimidating that I felt uncomfortable riding along it, I would hop off and walk along the footpath until I could sort out an alternate route or until I had walked through or past the section that concerned me.

My friend has just had an op and can't ride as quick as normal, and found that she received a lot more beeps from motorists who found her pace so slow, than her pre-op cycling. So if you aren't cycling at "a decent rate of knots" then the road experience may be quite different, and in which case dealing with people on the pavement, roots and dog walkers may be preferable.

 

[Heltor Chasca]

It is already allowed in many places. The council puts a white line down a pavement, adds a blue and white sign and calls it a shared use path. The pavements chosen for this do not have any special properties above other ones in the towns. So I do not see any fundamental reason why you should not allow cycling on the pavement without the need for special status. Establish rules of engagement and enforce infractions.

Shared use doesn’t work in my opinion. My observations of the NL is that segregation is the way forward. White lines don’t stop dogs, pedestrians, cyclists, delivery trucks etc from ignoring them. Ill discipline in endemic. As for enforcement:

 

[hoopdriver]

My friend has just had an op and can't ride as quick as normal, and found that she received a lot more beeps from motorists who found her pace so slow, than her pre-op cycling. So if you aren't cycling at "a decent rate of knots" then the road experience may be quite different, and in which case dealing with people on the pavement, roots and dog walkers may be preferable.

When I say decent rate of knots, what I mean is a higher speed than I would if I were riding on a footpath. I am no racer, or wanna be racer but a tourer and I ride at a leisurely pace and never have any problems with motorists tooting at me. Perhaps your friend was riding erratically. She could well find herself facing another op though if she is unfortunate enough to have a car back out of a hidden driveway as she goes along the footpath. Motorists do not look for cyclists on a footpath or make allowances for something coming along even at slow cycling (or even jogging) speed.

 

[summerdays]

When I say decent rate of knots, what I mean is a higher speed than I would if I were riding on a footpath. I am no racer, or wanna be racer but a tourer and I ride at a leisurely pace and never have any problems with motorists tooting at me. Perhaps your friend was riding erratically. She could well find herself facing another op though if she is unfortunate enough to have a car back out of a hidden driveway as she goes along the footpath. Motorists do not look for cyclists on a footpath or make allowances for something coming along even at slow cycling (or even jogging) speed.

I didn't say she was on the footpath and she is an very experienced cyclist who is just been given permission to start riding carefully on the road after her recent hip op. The only thing that has changed is a loss of power and muscles pulled around meaning she is cycling a lot slower than previously even with her dodgy hip.

I added in her recent cycle trips as I think the speed you travel at on the road does change your experiences. I've found it different when I've had an injury or a cold that means I've cycled slower. If you are cycling slower then the pavement negatives are much easier to deal with anyway.

 

[hoopdriver]

I didn't say she was on the footpath and she is an very experienced cyclist who is just been given permission to start riding carefully on the road after her recent hip op. The only thing that has changed is a loss of power and muscles pulled around meaning she is cycling a lot slower than previously even with her dodgy hip.

I added in her experience as I think the speed you travel at on the road does change your experiences. I've found it different when I've had an injury or a cold that means I've cycled slower. If you are cycling slower then the pavement negatives are much easier to deal with anyway.

I understand and sympathise. I had to come back after a spinal operation some years ago and was certainly slower and probably more uncertain than normal. I did have the advantage of riding along a cycle track in a seafront promenade.