There is a move to update road traffic laws so that cyclists can be prosecuted for killing a pedestrian. At the moment there is no 'death by dangerous cycling' law. There really needs to be.
There also needs to be a law against them wearing those lycra trousers that make them look, if I might paraphrase Terry Pratchett, like they're smuggling tea pots.
If you can keep your head, while those around you are losing theirs, you may not have grasped the seriousness of the situation.
Afternoon all. IMHO everyone who uses a public road should be identifiable, number plate, ID badge kinda thing and pay for 3rd party insurance. Cars , bicycles, horses, mobility scooters , the lot. If they don't like it, or want it , tough, don't use a public highway.
I agree, but I'd make an exception for small children (ie pre-school/infant school ages) on child-size bikes, scooters etc, wheelchairs, and mobility scooters if they could be limited to no more than a brisk walking pace.
Doncaster, South Yorkshire. Soil type: sandy, well-drained
There also needs to be a law against them wearing those lycra trousers that make them look, if I might paraphrase Terry Pratchett, like they're smuggling tea pots.
*snort* quite right. MAMILs - yeesh.
I entirely agree with you @Hostafan1 and I wouldn't make those exceptions JennyJ, apart from non-motorised wheel chairs which are, in effect, pedestrians and can be considered as such. Kiddies on bikes and scooters shouldn't be on the road. If they are pootling about in a cul-de-sac outside their house, then I doubt the police will catch up with them. But once they set off down the main road, they are a hazard to pedestrians, especially ones with a visual or hearing impairment, so they (or their parents) should be required to take proper responsibility for what they are doing. Or stick to the park.
Gardening on the edge of Exmoor, in Devon
“It's still magic even if you know how it's done.”
Seems reasonable to me, all that. It's not just the lycra shorts on cyclists tho. They wear very garish shirts and helmets too and the shirts often have strange padded pockets on the back for water bottles and such but, worst of all, is when you come across 10 20, 30 or more all grouped and not about to move over and let a car go past on bendy, windy roads.
Vendée - 20kms from Atlantic coast.
"The price good men (and women) pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men (and women)."
Yes, little ones shouldn't be on big roads unsupervised, but not all have gardens, parks or cul-de-sacs available so they do need to be able to learn somewhere. Maybe they could be licensed/insured under the parent/guardian's name. For mobility scooters/motorised wheelchairs my thinking is it's a replacement for being able to walk, which no-one needs a licence for. I wouldn't want the cost or process of licensing, insurance etc to make someone housebound.
Doncaster, South Yorkshire. Soil type: sandy, well-drained
As I understand it, here in France children need to 3rd party liability insurance when they start school and are thus regularly not under parental supervision. It costs very little but probably saves a great deal of hassle. Adults have to have it too - it's called civil responsibility insurance. Can't be that difficult for the UK to adopt such a system.
Vendée - 20kms from Atlantic coast.
"The price good men (and women) pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men (and women)."
Some of them have never driven a car so they should at least have to pass a regular test and they should definitely have insurance. They hurtle through shopping malls and along pavements. I have mild/moderate hearing loss,and I don't hear them when they're behind me.
My main issue with cyclists is the contraptions they use to transport babies and young children. Is there any regulation of this practice? Although, frankly, I can't think of any contraption that would be safe.
My parents had a tandem and lived in South London. I went all over the place with them when I was little - I was in Devizes on Coronation Day, holidays in Suffolk, days out in Southend (mum was once so tired on the way home they got stuck in the tramlines!) and I travelled in a small sidecar, with room in the toe for a few items of clothing. Much safer than many things you see nowadays and there was so much less traffic on the roads that accidents were far less likely. The sound of whirring bicycle wheels still has the power to transport me back!
Just to inject a note of curmudgeonliness, I think that maybe, while often not easy, many people led simpler lives, without the pressures and distractions of today, when so many seem unable to focus on what is happening in the real world around them.
Posts
IMHO everyone who uses a public road should be identifiable, number plate, ID badge kinda thing and pay for 3rd party insurance. Cars , bicycles, horses, mobility scooters , the lot.
If they don't like it, or want it , tough, don't use a public highway.
I agree, but I'd make an exception for small children (ie pre-school/infant school ages) on child-size bikes, scooters etc, wheelchairs, and mobility scooters if they could be limited to no more than a brisk walking pace.
I entirely agree with you @Hostafan1 and I wouldn't make those exceptions JennyJ, apart from non-motorised wheel chairs which are, in effect, pedestrians and can be considered as such. Kiddies on bikes and scooters shouldn't be on the road. If they are pootling about in a cul-de-sac outside their house, then I doubt the police will catch up with them. But once they set off down the main road, they are a hazard to pedestrians, especially ones with a visual or hearing impairment, so they (or their parents) should be required to take proper responsibility for what they are doing. Or stick to the park.
“It's still magic even if you know how it's done.”
They hurtle through shopping malls and along pavements. I have mild/moderate hearing loss,and I don't hear them when they're behind me.
Is there any regulation of this practice? Although, frankly, I can't think of any contraption that would be safe.