Students, cycling, and drinking

[swansonj]

My daughter’s university sent a “safe cycling” letter to all freshers, which included the following:

“Make sure you are mentally prepared: never cycle after drinking alcohol (the same rules and limits apply
for people in charge of bikes and cars); read the Highway Code (the laws about how and where you can
ride a bike are more like the laws for cars than people think: see https://www.gov.uk/rules-for-cyclists-59-
to-82).”

The bit about “the same rules and limits” for drinking applying to cyclists and motorists was clearly wrong, so I wrote to the author challenging it (very politely of course). He has replied, also very politely, agreeing it is wrong, and asking what I would suggest in its place, given that (a) he wants to discourage students from cycling when drunk and (b) it’s only one paragraph in a longer letter, and he quite rightly doesn’t want it to become too long.

What would your suggested replacement be?

 

[Pro Tour Punditry]

"Don't cycle if you're pissed" should cover it.

 

[glasgowcyclist]

How about "Don't cycle after drinking alcohol, your judgement and safety on the road will be impaired. It is an offence to cycle while under the influence of drink or drugs - Road Traffic Act 1988 section 30"

GC

(Edited to correct typo in year)

 

[Racing roadkill]

Don't drink and cycle, you'll spill it.

 

[Pro Tour Punditry]

I'd be interested to see their "safe walking" letter.

 

[ColinJ]

"Having once cycled 'under the influence' down Earlsdon Avenue in Coventry with eyes shut and hands off the bars, I strongly recommend that you do NOT drink and cycle!"

(I rode for about 10 seconds before deciding that I had better take a peek, and discovered that I was about to ride into the rear of a parked van. My violent evasive manoeuvre almost had me under the wheels of an overtaking car ... )

 

[Profpointy]

"Having once cycled 'under the influence' down Earlsdon Avenue in Coventry with eyes shut and hands off the bars, I strongly recommend that you do NOT drink and cycle!"

(I rode for about 10 seconds before deciding that I had better take a peek, and discovered that I was about to ride into the rear of a parked van. My violent evasive manoeuvre almost had me under the wheels of an overtaking car ... )

That's anecdote, not evidence !

..... oh, sorry. Wrong thread

 

[MichaelW2]

If you are capable of riding a bike after a night in the pub, STOP! Lock up your bike, go back inside the pub and get properly lashed like a real man, not some southern Jesse.

 

[Dogtrousers]

@glasgowcyclist has it bang on. Short sentence, to the point, has the weight of law. Best of all it's not factually incorrect.

 

[jack smith]

I dont see it being an issue personally. It may put them off drunk cycling be it true or not. The students round here cant cycle for sh*t anyway no lights or high viz in the city centre at night, riding on busy pavements, red light jumping... The list goes on and on it is shocking. i cant imagine what they would do drunk.

 

[MichaelO]

How about "Don't cycle after drinking alcohol, your judgement and safety on the road will be impaired. It is an offence to cycle while under the influence of drink or drugs - Road Traffic Act 1988 section 30"

GC

(Edited to correct typo in year)

Surely the "to such an extent as to be incapable of having proper control of the cycle" is an omission from the wording of the Act that significantly changes how that should be interpreted?

 

[ANT 666]

A mate of mine went for a drink after work, fell off leaving the pub, fell off when he got home, next morning two broken wrists.
Don't drink and ride.

 

[Milkfloat]

"Having once cycled 'under the influence' down Earlsdon Avenue in Coventry with eyes shut and hands off the bars, I strongly recommend that you do NOT drink and cycle!"

(I rode for about 10 seconds before deciding that I had better take a peek, and discovered that I was about to ride into the rear of a parked van. My violent evasive manoeuvre almost had me under the wheels of an overtaking car ... )

I used to do exactly that (on Earlsdon Avenue too) after a night out at Mr G's nightclub. I used to slalom in and out of the dotted white lines to make sure I did not stray to the side of the road where dangerous cars were parked. I also used to do the same when living in 'Paradise' also in Coventry - but when I went that way it was via the less salubrious Hillfields direction.

@ColinJ were you are student in Coventry?

 

[Dogtrousers]

Surely the "to such an extent as to be incapable of having proper control of the cycle" is an omission from the wording of the Act that significantly changes how that should be interpreted?

That's getting into the realms of being excessively wordy, IMO. It's a letter to students (who will ignore it anyway, probably) not a forensic dissection of the 1988 act.

Another pithy one would be the Highway Code "Rule 68 You MUST NOT [...] ride when under the influence of drink or drugs, including medicine."

 

[MichaelO]

If you're going to reference an Act, then the quote can't be as misleading as was suggested!

Students aren't going to read this anyway - if they did, they'd only then ignore it!!