What reward do you get for cycling in London? Well, under new proposals by Westminster Council you could be fined £100 (up from £30) for doing the things cyclists sometimes do.
These include:
- Jumping red lights
- Riding on the pavement
- Ignoring one way signs
It doesn’t matter if the traffic light has absolutely no one crossing, or if you don’t take the one way street you have to go down a busy, dangerous road or if you ride slowly on an empty pavement to avoid getting crushed by cars.
Nor does it matter than cyclists cause less than 1% of injuries to pedestrians or that in the past 8 years in London a cyclist has not killed a single person.
Angela Harvey, who is apparently chairman of Westminster’s scrutiny committee and probably not one for creating liveable streets that we can all enjoy, had this to say:
“We’re always getting little old ladies who are knocked down and abused by a cyclist, who leaves them on the ground as they ride away.”
Is it just me who has never seen a “little old lady” run over by a bike? And if it does happen is this really done more by cyclists or by motorists?
The truth is the UK road system is designed around cars with no real regard for cyclists which is why we are forced to “break” these rules. As recently quoted by Freewheeler regarding the campaign to get cyclists to stop at red lights:
‘Dave M’:
‘Stop at Red’ completely misunderstands the problem – rather than campaigning for road laws which accommodate cyclists, they are campaigning to force cyclists to conform to the current laws – which are designed for cars.
Many (although not all) riders who jump lights have simply seen the truth of this, and choose to take responsibility for progressing when it is safe, just as pedestrians do. The elephant in the room is that bikes are *not* cars.
The fact that the law largely requires cyclists to obey “car laws” is a problem which should be addressed by new laws. Pedestrians already treat the ‘red man’ as a ‘give way’ sign, and there is no reason why cyclists should be persecuted for the equivalent. If cyclists are cutting up pedestrians on crossings they should be hit with fixed penalties – but not for jumping lights when there are no pedestrians.
Luckily there has been some progress with trials of allowing cyclists to ignore one way street signs.
Westminster council should be doing everything in its power to encourage cycling not to fine people who choose to brave the London roads. How many more people will be discouraged from cycling after hearing stories about the £100 fines people have received?
I for one am glad I live just outside the Westminster council boundary and while I definitely don’t make a habit of skipping red lights and cycling down one way streets I will be less than happy if I receive the proposed increased fine.
Did you enjoy this post?
Every Friday at 10 a.m. I send a roundup of the weeks posts and links to other interesting cycling stories. Join over 4,000 fellow cyclists by subscribing below:
I agree with Andreas. The road system is by and large designed for bulky, heavy and dangerous motor vehicles. I frequently jump red lights to get ahead of traffic at junctions. I would never “blast” through at full speed, if I go through a red it’s after slowing to walking pace and only if the way is clear. I usually feel safer crossing a clear junction on red than waiting for the typical whacky races at major intersections when the lights go green.
I may feel less inclined to jump reds if the police ever bothered to enforce the ASL green boxes at junctions, which allow cyclists to safely and legally get ahead of motor traffic at junctions, however they don’t and these are generally blocked by cabs, buses, motorbikes etc. Perhaps Westminster Council could turn its attention to these rather than penalising cyclists.
Or how about some investment in filter traffic lights at major junctions which actually allow cyclists to move off first? IMO these would be a better investment than pointless cycle lanes which come and go with the wind along the gutter, are usually full of debris and are largely ignored by motorists anyway.
Without doubt the laws of the road are important and are to be respected at all times. However I place a higher importance on my life and wellbeing and I will ALWAYS take a course of action (occasional RLJing, riding on pavements) if it is the safer option, which it sometimes is, regardless of what the law says.
Just for record: got £30 fine for crossing red lights (two of them).
It happened in Greenwich as I head for Uni in the morning. One of the lights is just before a fork where two lanes come into one: solid block of cars on my side, on the other lane there are 2 cars a bit further then 100metres. Jumped and had clear route until I come across a ped. light: NOBODY there, so jumped again. Got caught in the bicycle park and fined £30.
I know I should not have cross the red light (Which I never do when I drive) but one of the reasons why I cycle (and many other us ) because it is faster then public transport. I had a strong feeling to actually stop cycling because if I stop at every light (about 30-40 in 3 miles) then I will never get there before the bus or car (which is nicer and warmer in these days). I think it has a very strong discouraging effect for semi-regular cyclist (don’t know if the category exist but if it then I’m in) to cycle on a daily basis.
I got also a theory of people who believes (in a strong sense) and uses traffic signals tend to be less careful and observant: it is a sort of “green then I go” attitude. A few times happened to people being almost killed on the front of me one as they had their right of way but somebody was “naughty” (a car, never a cyclist).
Interesting. Imagine if that fine you got was £100! That would easily have put you off cycling for a long time. I see where you are coming from on your theory of “green so go” and no further thought given. In countries such as Germany after a certain time many of the traffic lights are turned off because they think people can use their common sense. Unfortunately here common sense is often lacking. I also feel your frustration when you are at a red light and there is literally no one around, no one crossing the road, no cars etc. You kinda feel, what’s the point in waiting here? Surely with common sense you can safely cross without anyone else ever even noticing.
Purpaboo – amen to that. I’ve been knocked off by a pedestrian deciding to make a run for it across regent street. I’d just turned left onto regent street so wouldn’t have seen her peak through the red buses whilst plotting her move.
Im not so sure about the thinking behind lights being there for just cars. Traffic signs are there for traffic be it cyclists or cars etc.
Pavements I have to say are also for pedestrians….
As cyclists we should adhere to the laws of the road surely?
You lot remind me of those kids who couldn’t just wear their school uniform
and came up with all these elaborate reasons to hide the fact they were just to dumb to realise this was not a fight worth fighting.
In at 11 out at 16 was always my attitude.
Spare yourself the grief. Stop tipping at windmills.
Red means stop.
Stop. Wait. Get ready to go. Go
Easy.
Now when the tanks start rolling down Whitehall thats a reason to skip the lights until then shhh I’m watching Jeremy Kyle!
Unfortunately a cyclist has managed to kill a pedestrian recently: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/london/8577612.stm (gives no details apart from location).
I’m not surprised, having seen some cyclists behave in a reckless and aggressive manner for many years. The attitude of some cyclists is indistinguishable from that of angry motorists.
Hi All
There is a worrying trend for populist Councillors to pick on cyclists developing – looking for personal aggrandisment as with all politicos. How many of them actually use a bike?
Many of the points have already been well made above but let me put another side to the case.
Personally I consider myself a responsible and considerate rider of many years fairly unblemished experience.
In London I commuted from Putney up to the City for work everyday. It was a wonderfully liberating experience – pounding up the middle of the Kings Rd bypassing all the log-jammed traffic then screaming – literally around trafalgar square – nail biting stuff.
The biggest danger came from pedestrians trying to cross roads who simply dont “see” you. You can sense this and I used to shout at them (there’s no time to reach for the bull horn). It worked for me but probably not very nice for them – but I survived.
What really concerns me today is the inconsiderate cyclist who really is a menace – zebra crossing have been mentioned particularly. If you hit and injure someone whilst illegally speeding across, you are in for potentially serious grief – not just a £30 fine.
I considerate inexcusable to menace and fail to give way to a pedestrian on a zebra – no contest
Same with pavements. I often use pavements as its so much safer and they are mostly sparsely used in my county town – now I am retired from working. I ride no faster than say a jogger. My bike is a fold up type with 20″ wheel – highly manouverable and can stop on a dime. If I encounter a pedestrian or any possible difficulty I stop and give way (very important with young kids – you don’t want to hit one of them). People have always appreciated my manner and Ive never had harsh words. So it works for me.
What doesnt work is the selfish youth on their BMX chopper bikes tearing around on pavements and precincts causing all manner of nuisance and giving us genuine bikers a bad name. At night time they are a serious social menace up to all kinds of mischief and detested by the police – because its difficult to catch them in a panda car.
Zealous councillors can pick on this kind of behaviour as an excuse for draconian controls on our last remaining freedoms – think of it – compulsory registration, licensing, tax = more jobs for the jobsworth. I remember seeing small registration plates on bikes in Holland?
IMHO we need a cyclists code of practice to legitimise reasonable use (bit like the highway code when motor cars first hit the highway) with sanctions against improper behaviour as above for example. We need to take the initiative before gov nazis can get hold of it.
Use of the pavement should be permitted when reasonable to do so but always giving right of way to pedestrians when required. …. and so on
cheers Robin
i dont get what the fuss is about – there are rules to using the raod – and if you have to stop at a red light whats the problem? if you dont like the rules on the road, just get a bus or walk – i cycle, drive and walk – and took a guy off a bike on the hammersmith roundabout as he went through a redlight and straight in to the back of my corsa – so its a case of follow the laws and you will be safer – nobody ever intends to cause a crash and “he came out of nowhere” is basically “i wasnt looking” so when some fixed gear looney hits theback of your car – its notup to you to be looking for traffic jumping red lights, but it was still up to me to spend £260 having the back end of my car resprayed!
common sense people
Its not just in the capital. Up in Lancashire we have a new road layout. Now I don’t know if I could be prosecuted, but I waited a t a set of roundabout lights for 4 minutes and there was no one around. The lights changed for the other entries to the roundabout, but not mine! It wasn’t until a car turned up next to me that I got the go ahead. It was then that I noticed that the system had the tell tail signs of pressure units under the road, and I wasn’t heavy engough to trigger them!
Of course cyclists should just be allowed to sail through red light, I am in a hurry to get home & traffic lights, well they are for motorised vehicles only. I ride using a fixed gear bike so NOTHING will prevent me from maintaining maximum momentum if i can help it. When i ride home I am always attempting to my personal best times from the office, this is essential as it keeps me fit & is something to brag about after a few beers before I ride home late at night.
One way roads, who really cares…I am only going the one way anyway, if pedestrians bothered to look both ways then they will be fine, cycling on the path is fine but i never do it faster than 20 mph……i just need to get home using the most direct route in the shortest time possible, i hope that other highway users & highways agencies can understand this!
As a disabled pedestrian I am getting rather tired of having my day ruined by cyclists riding on the pavements or shooting through crossings. I have been hit several times and even the near misses cause me severe pain. I have of course been told that this is all my fault – if only you didn’t walk so erratically – commented a cyclist who had just run into me as he tried to sway around other pedestrians. I have been spat on, had abuse thrown at me all for having the audacity to use the pavement. And when you, as cyclists, do decide to come back to have words with me for having pointed out that you have just missed me and it is illegal to ride your cycle on the pavement – please don’t use your cycle to block me against a wall as you direct your tirade against me.
Those who say that they have no option but to ride on the pavement are missing the point. If you find yourself having to use the pavement you are supposed to dismount and walk your bike – you do not need to ride it.
Yes, I have a lot of sympathy for the dangers that cyclists face upon the road, and I am happy for my taxes to be spent to make them safer for cyclists, but riding cycles on the pavement will only serve to endanger pedestrians – any claim otherwise is sophistry and selfishness. After all – making the pavements more dangerous will not make the roads safer.
As I said – I am very happy to have my taxes used to make life safer for cyclists but that might change if cyclists don’t stop thinking only of themselves.
Dear Great job. Ofcourse, what a great site and informative posts. But I can’t uderstand how to add your site in my rss reader, Can you Help me please? Anyhow keep up the good work. Yours Sincerely!
How about fines for taxi drivers who don’t care if they pass you by just to stop right in front of you 10 meters later (and if it’s only 10 meters you’re lucky)? Or pedestrians jumping on the street, knocking you off the bike cos they have to catch a bus on the other side of the road? Or maybe cars/buses that even tho there is a cycle lane, they squeeze you to the edge of pavement without possibility to pass? No one fine them for their ridiculous and many time dangerous behaviour. I wish i could fine every taxi driver that behaves like a moron on the street.
Quote Fistme
”taxi drivers who don’t care if they pass you by just to stop right in front of you 10 meters later”
Hi Fistiee,
You know those things on your handlebars…..no, not the bell which I doubt you actually have …The brakes.
If you squeeze them then your bike will eventually come to a halt……give it a try some time. If you cannot get your bike to stop in 30ft distance then you really need lessons on how to do it properly.
i drive, cycle and ride a motorbike and traffic laws are in place for all three of these you cant jump a red light just because it is clear no more than i can on a motorbike or in my car! the attitude of cyclists is shocking in London, there should be a test as there is with every other road going vehicle. Every bike should have a number plate and be subject to the same fines everybody else is.
Just this morning a cyclist completely cut me up on my motorbike whilst he was shouting at a bus driver behind him for previously cutting him up! Instead of getting on with it and watching the road. Also at the time, no helmet, no hi-viz, no protective gear at all, just a bad attitude and shocking road sense!
Cyclists are subject to the sames fines, these proposed ones are higher.
Scooter riders have to take a test, a regestration plate and insurance and still hugh numbers of them can’t ride or obey the rules of the road.
quote thereverent
”Scooter riders have to take a test, a regestration plate and insurance and still hugh numbers of them can’t ride or obey the rules of the road”
And cyclists do not have to take a test, do not have a registration plate, insurance is optional and still great numbers manage to ride around like lawless twats.
At least the motorists are accountable for their crimes.
You dug yourself a real deep hole there chap, lmfao!
None of which make anyone more or less accountable for breaking of the law.
A test, registration plate and insurance don’t improve behaviour on the road, as witnessed by looking at the cars, motorbikes, white vans, minicabs etc.
All road users can be fined.
Interesting:
http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=brodog
quote thereverent
”None of which make anyone more or less accountable for breaking of the law”
A test in theory should improve standards, insurance improves the chances of reinbursement, a registration plate ultimately leads to greater accountability via traceability.
As you state ‘all road users can be fined’ but cyclists are not traceable unlike dvla registered motorists.
The entire british road system remains largely safe when road users follow the rules, and therefore behave in a predicatble manner. By assuming other road users follow the rules, you can turn your attention to other aspects of driving. There simply is too much information to process continually, if you have to expect that anyone may do anything at anytime. This system applies to all road users and pedestrians crossing the roads.
I occasionally drive a car in central London, and especially during rush hour, the constant weaving and unpredictable actions of cyclists makes driving extremely difficult. Buses and lorries have a much harder time because they have several blind spots, require much larger turning circles and are harder to stop quicklly. But buses and lorries, in my experience, almost always bahave predictably. Many times I see cyclists cycle alongside a lorry that is either turning, or is about to, because they see an opportunity to make progress themselves, not showing any consideration to others on the road.
I may have more sympathy than most, because I myself hold amotorcycle, car, and PCV driving licences,.and I understand the difficulties each face when driving in traffic.
Cyclists need to follow the rules like everyone else, to help them remain safe on the road, and when they don’t they put their own safety at risk since they are the most vulnerable in a collision. They are all too quick to blame anyone else for the accident, when in fact it shouldn’t have happened because the cyclist shouldn’t have been there at that moment. Sure there are bad drivers, but not as many as the cycluist would like you to believe. I think stricter regulation for cyclists and fines when they break the rules would make London a safer place for all.
Incidentally I cycle to work everyday in central London, and hold many London cyclists in quite low regard.
Great post Kam,
If we all stick to the rules/regulations then that should be sufficient to safeguard all road users.
Lets face it. Those whom choose to flout the regulations are the real cause of concern here.
Sorry this post is completely wrong IMO. I cycle every day and the ONLY way I feel safe is to assume that other drivers and cyclists will do something unpredictable. So I check every sidestreet, every car door and assume every driver/cyclist is likely to cut across me. If you think drivers are predictable you must be driving with your eyes closed – have you seen the number using phones, texting and applying their makeup?!
And as for this “Cyclists need to follow the rules like everyone else, to help them remain safe on the road, and when they don’t they put their own safety at risk since they are the most vulnerable in a collision. They are all too quick to blame anyone else for the accident, when in fact it shouldn’t have happened because the cyclist shouldn’t have been there at that moment”
My friend was hospitalised for seven months by a driver on the phone who hit him and drove away – I suppose that was his fault by your logic? Fines should be the same for all and applied consistently, for all.
Well, for once the Germans have it right! There are dedicated bike routes that are shared with the pavement, at times. Although I ride extremely fast, I run the risk of injury daily as cars no not always give way. I now have to cycle defensively and anticipate dangers as we all should. However I am contemplating creating a situation where a car hits me as I am up for this compensation rule. The injuries will be bad back, headaches…etc… and the question is: Deal or no Deal? Id obviously deal with an offer of 30K !!!
Hackney seems to be a cheaper borough to be fine!
http://www.bealondoner.com/en/blog/melinda/i-just-got-a-fine-for-cycling-through-a-red-light-damn
Fines should be the same for all road users, except where blatantly nonsensical ie a crime that a bike user couldn’t commit (and vice-versa). The problem is that public pressure means cyclists are more likely to be fined for jumping a red light than a motorist would be for, say, using a phone. (Which in my view is a money-making exercise, if the police really want to stop this dangerous, potentially lethal practise, why not a £1000 fine?)
I see idiot cyclists with no helmet, texting, no hands on the handlegrips, jumping red lights. I also see idiot road users opening doors, cutting left across me, deliberately driving too close, texting, phoning and putting on makeup. ALL road users breaking the law should be dealt with the same way, with the same penalty, and consistently. Is this just a pipe dream?