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Riding on the Pavement
| stormRider | 01 May 05:41 |
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Joined: 30 Apr 2009 Posts: 8 Bike: | With all the horror stories you hear about near misses from crazy car drivers, I was wondering if it was illegal for a grown man to ride on the pavement. I must also add, since I started riding a bike, whenever I am behind a wheel, I now give a lot of consideration to cyclists, like keeping your distance and overtaking a cyclists giving plenty of room. It is amazing how you see things from the view point of the cyclists, from experience, maybe learner drivers should be made to ride bikes as part of their driving tests! |
mattk 
| 01 May 05:50 |
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Joined: 07 Apr 2009 Posts: 116 Bike: My Profile | Not a bad idea - I think it would also sift out the dosey learners before letting them loose on the roads...maybe they should pass a cycle proficiency test first? With the pavements though I'm fairly sure it's illegal to ride on pavements unless you have good reason for doing so, but on notoriously busy or dangerous roads I have been known to use the pavements where I have plenty of space to do so. If the government can't realise that dangerous roads need cycle paths then I don't see why (as long as we use our heads and have enough room to do so) we can't use pavements... |
| My Latest Route: Feb 2010 National Cycle Network 15 NCN | |
| stormRider | 01 May 07:09 |
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Joined: 30 Apr 2009 Posts: 8 Bike: | Thanks for the reply, it just worries me that in my short bike riding "career" I have had 3 scrapes, young lady turning out of a side road without looking, apologising profusely saying she did not see me, a youth driving past and squirting liquid in my face, was so relieved it was not acid or something nasty! Another moroon telling me to get off the road, as I was riding up a steep hill! I wish the Govt can take a leaf of what obtains in Holland, where riding there is so liberating..... |
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mattk
| 01 May 07:14 |
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Joined: 07 Apr 2009 Posts: 116 Bike: My Profile | In Germany too! I've mentioned it on another thread that cyclist rule the road there - cars give way to cyclists as do pedestrians. It makes for a much more enjoyable ride. Ok you still have to be careful as mistakes happen but overall its a much better experience... |
| My Latest Route: Feb 2010 National Cycle Network 15 NCN | |
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Cycling Dude
| 01 May 13:06 |
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Joined: 29 Apr 2009 Posts: 38 Bike: My Profile | Right, Cycling on the pavement is illegal! Unless you are 3 gears off your highest gear eg 3 on 18 geared bikes and 4 on 21 speed geared bike etc, When I teach people, I never encourage them to cycle on the pavement! I teach them in side streets and on minor roads! The pavement cycling should only be done as a last resort e.g traffic bulding up or speeding traffic, on normal roads, cycling on the road is safer than riding on the pavement. |
| My Latest Route: Jun 2009 Silkworth and Herrington Circular | |
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pedalslug
| 02 May 04:47 |
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 Joined: 01 May 2009 Posts: 19 Bike: My Profile | At Dangerous junctions it is necesssary and local authorities encourage it at some traffic signals and roundabout junctions the local authority own the footway and have set precedent at some junctions by clearly marking the footway as a route to cyclists , on series of bends sections the cyclist does not feel secure and gullys are often damaged or the area around the gully is uneven thus making the cyclist move from the edge of carriageway and vehicles tend to pass close in such conditions . use it if you feel insecure at certain road layouts , the local authorities have encouraged it . |
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Cycling Dude
| 02 May 05:45 |
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Joined: 29 Apr 2009 Posts: 38 Bike: My Profile | Only at certain and dangerious times should cyclists only use the pavement |
| My Latest Route: Jun 2009 Silkworth and Herrington Circular | |
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zimmy
| 12 May 14:23 |
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 Joined: 04 May 2009 Posts: 18 Bike: My Profile | Hi all So far I've not been in a situation where I've felt the need to get on a pavement, but...if it should come to pass then on the pavement I would hop. Better to risk a telling off than to be dead and within the law? Rob |
| Oliver | 18 May 04:38 |
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Joined: 18 May 2009 Posts: 4 Bike: | HI guys, I'm new here and came looking for something else, but this thread caught my eye - just to be absolutely clear, for adults to cycle on the pavement is ILLEGAL, regardless of exceptional circumstances, danger of the road, or anything. It just isn't allowed. Of course there are some pavements which have cycle paths on them - that is a different case. If I am really haviing difficulty on a road for some reason, then I would get off and *walk* my bike on the pavement. People say better to break the rules than end up dead, as if those were the only alternatives - sure, get off the road if you must, but then obey the rules of the pavement! I realise others will have different views, and I abolutely agree that cycling provision in the UK is terrible compared with Denmark, the Netherlands, Germany etc, but I think if we break the law then we do ourselves no favours - every time you ride on the pavement/go through a red light/down a one-way street, anyone who sees you will be thinking "Tch, look at that , another cyclist who thinks he/she is above the law etc". I really think we should stick to the rules and put our energy into campaigning for better facilities, rather than just break the rules when it suits us. Imagine if drivers decided to just break the rules whenever they felt it was more convenient!! If you are worried about the dangers of riding on the road, is there perhaps a course you can take in confident and safe cycling? I know the London Cycling Campaign runs something of the sort, but don't know about other areas. Good luck with your cycling! |
| Tangospud | 20 May 00:38 |
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Joined: 24 Apr 2009 Posts: 9 Bike: | Riding on the pavement is illegal without ANY exceptions as I found out last year - a £30 fixed penalty issued by PC Jobsworth. |
| Oliver | 20 May 17:35 |
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Joined: 18 May 2009 Posts: 4 Bike: | Why is he/she PC "Jobsworth" just because you got a penalty? Would they have been a jobsworth if, say, they'd issued a fixed penalty to a driver using his phone while driving? Bad luck mate, I'm sure you weren't actually doing anyone any harm, but I think it's a fair rule. Pedestrians need their space too, after all we are all pedestrians sometimes! |
| Tangospud | 21 May 23:31 |
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Joined: 24 Apr 2009 Posts: 9 Bike: | believe or not, name was / is PC Jobsworths 673..........! |
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dudley
| 22 May 08:09 |
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Joined: 16 Jan 2009 Posts: 498 Bike: My Profile | over 14? get off the pavement! |
| My Latest Route: Nov 2009 Forth Estuary Circular | |
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roseycheeks
| 22 May 09:07 |
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Joined: 22 May 2009 Posts: 11 Bike: My Profile | I have to agree with the comments here. I also ride on the pavements when it is safe to do so. However it seems that village life is a bit more chilled than city life and a lot of cars park on the pavements here. Here in the Fair City Perth council spent a fortune on cycle paths and painted them all sorts of pretty colours. Then they put bollards(BS standard reflective bollards of course) right in the middle of them so the net result is you have to swing out wide to miss them as they are often full of branches from over hanging trees so you can go behind them. Who thinks these things up? |
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