illegal to cycle on the pavement in london?

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"only a lousy small red flashing light"

You can't see bikers with those old style low brightness LED lights. In fact a single flashing LED light is illegal, you should have a constant, and another flashing is good. We've been behind cyclists with naff LED rear lights and you can't see them.
 
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divosuk said:
Actually, statistically it has been proven that - it is safer to ride your bike on the Road. You are less likely to have an accident.

As was pointed out, It is also illegal to ride on the Pavement.

And, numerous people have actually been killed by cyclists on the pavement.

And lastly - cyclists are responsible for approx 90% of the accidents / collisions they are involved in - simply because they are careless, unsure of the law and haven't taken any sort of training.

So why would you want to ride on the pavement ?

Where do you get your statistics from :p

I saw analysis of cyclist deaths in accidents taken from police/court investigations that showed that over 80% of accidents causing the death of the cyclist were the fault of the car driver not the cyclist.

"Numerous people killed by cyclists on pavements". :D :D

I have been cycling in central London for several years and yes, there are a lot of idiotic cyclists but there are also lots of aggressive, irresponsible drivers who also break the highway code repeatedly. I wonder how many of the drivers who moan at cyclists never break the speed limit, never drive when using their mobile phone, etc etc. Cyclists in accidents tend to be injured or killed, car drivers kill and maim thousands every year through speeding and bad driving and then squeal like little kids about speed cameras.

I was recently in Germany and there were loads of people of all ages on bikes. There were lots of wide cycle tracks in good condition but in the city/town people were cycling on the pavements. There weren't pedestrians being mown down left,right and centre and there weren't lots of stroppy, aggressive ****s complaining about it. Both cyclists and pedestrians seemed able to use pavements responsibly and safely.

I think the whole issue in the UK is just another example of the selfish, unresonable, aggressive attitude that most people have here which makes the UK such an unpleasent place to live.
 
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I got called a ****** by a cyclist the other day because he was riding down the middle of a major roundabout on a dual carriage way with his arm out to show he was going round past the exit i wanted, so i whip up the inside and get a torrent of abuse because the leotard clad, half witted tree hugger doesnt understand the importance of using the correct signals when surrounded by several tons of fast moving traffic and he wants to turn off.
 
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Maybe you should slow down and let the cyclist finish what he is doing if he is infront of you. I think there are plenth of people that dont use the correct signaling at a roundabout. Dont say youve never done it
 
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yeah i'm a snail :| (in my defence i had to walk the bike a bit, didn't know where i was going and i'm very unfit! :p)

I went through a speed detector thing on the road (the only one i've seen tbh) so just a big board that detected the speeds of cars so i told my friend to tell me how fast i was going and i was doing 20..21...23... which i thought wasn't bad. Do you think i should ride on the road if im doing that kind of speed? i don't want to hold up motorists (my road is pretty busy and they wouldn't be able to overtake :|) so should i go up on the pavement if it is clear? its pretty wide.

I need to be more confident on junctions now and learn how to ride the bike with just my left hand properly.. I can do it with my right but if i do it with my left i'm steady for a second then i'm not :|
 
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You should be on the road if your doing that speed unless it is a huge wide path/grass area with no one else on it and no blind corners/drive ways. Hitting someone at that speed will hurt you and them. I always just casually cycle at a low speed when on the pavement
 
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squiffy said:
"only a lousy small red flashing light"

You can't see bikers with those old style low brightness LED lights. In fact a single flashing LED light is illegal, you should have a constant, and another flashing is good. We've been behind cyclists with naff LED rear lights and you can't see them.

Point not really being made about my flat batteries powering my light, more about the Police actually telling me to break the law!!
 
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Fishman said:
Maybe you should slow down and let the cyclist finish what he is doing if he is infront of you. I think there are plenth of people that dont use the correct signaling at a roundabout. Dont say youve never done it

No when you are on the inside lane of a roundabout indicating to go right you go right, if you are then stupid enough to try and get infront of traffic because you are too dense to of got in the right lane on entry and on going round the roundabout you cant complain when people assume you are going to do what you indicate.

And no i dont use the wrong lanes on roundabouts, or fail to indicate, roundabouts are a personal bugbear of mine. They never fail to expose the hopelessly inept.
 
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growse said:
Overtake on the right, yes, but filter on the left.

Filtering, yes, fine.

However, there where representitives of a cycling group on the london news a couple of months ago complaining about the number of people who don't check their mirrors before turning left and consequently hit cyclists.

They were up in arms about the situation which clearly makes them spanners.

If a cyclist chooses to overtake moving traffic on the left then they are dicing with death and deserve anything they get. May as well juggle chainsaws and then complain about them being sharp.
 
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Still not sure I agree. If you as a car driver want to perform any manoeuvre whatsoever, it's your responsibility alone to make sure the way is clear for that to happen. You can't just drive around and assume that there's nothing on the left hand side of your car. The highway code say mirror, signal, manoeuvre for a reason.

Oh, and if a road-users' group is up in arms about irresponsible drivers killing their members, they are quite clearly spanners. Obviously.

The highway code said:
158: Use your mirrors and give a left-turn signal well before you turn left. Do not overtake just before you turn left and watch out for traffic coming up on your left before you make the turn, especially if driving a large vehicle. Cyclists and motorcyclists in particular may be hidden from your view.
 
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what have i started :|

So i'm on the roads now with helmet, and occasionally going on the pavement at a slow speed if the road is too busy. I enjoy cycling so i think i'm going to sell my FS bike in a week or something and get a better one. How much difference would it make? Friend o mine says that it makes quite a big difference.. hmm
 
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a lot, if you're always on road. I can notice difference between a hybrid with full lock out and a roadbike. And a hybrid is much faster than a FS bike. Usually when I overtake FS people I do notice they're struggling, probably around 11-15mph at the most along the flat.

Although at this stage I wouldn't buy a new bike, use that for a while until you're confident to always stay on the road (you don't want to bunny hop on and off kerbs with a roadbike) A roadbike has a more crouched position, since you've just started going straight to a roadie might feel uncomfy.

What do you need a bike for? Browse the Wiggle site on the bike sections and have a look. Mudguard/pannier/bar types/budget etc.
 
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seriosuly everyone just ignore all this conflicting rubish and just use your common sense

if you think its safer to use the path at a time then do it

if the path is busy and roads look safe or have a cycle lane

if the paths are busy and the road looks too dangerous get off and walk

same goes for busy junctions. if you dont want to become just an other statistic get off and walk , for the few minutes it takes its worth it.


ive been told by police to go on the path before and also been told the opposite by them too
 
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growse said:
Oh, and if a road-users' group is up in arms about irresponsible drivers killing their members, they are quite clearly spanners. Obviously.

MSM is correct and probably a lot of drivers don't check their left mirror before turning left but you're missing the point about the spanners thing.

My complaint is that too many cyclists put themselves in dangerous postions by filtering though moving traffic on the left and then blame the drivers for not seeing them.

Bikes are vehicles, just the same as cars, lorries and motorbikes yet everyone (apart from some mini cabs drivers in South London) has done a test before they can go on the road. Admittedly I don't think that test is stringent enough, but that's for a different thread but how many cyclists on here have done their Cycle Proficiency Test to make sure they know the rules of the road and how to stay safe? Very few I'd wager.

There has been evidence though this short thread that some poeple didn't know bikes were supposed to overtake on the right like everyone else.

Bikes are also subject to all the other laws of the road including traffic lights. The average blind person in london has their cane broken at lease once a year by a cyclist going though a pedestrian crossing and those canes aren't cheap.
 
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thanks for the reply squiffy ;)

well i think i go around that speed maybe a bit more on flats comfortably.

I use the bike for leisure and commuting. going to g/f's house about 10 miles away, cycling to the shops, station, park.

You're right i think i'll keep my bike for a while longer. The journey to my g/f's house goes through a few trails and stoney/gravel paths so i don't think a road bike would be suitable. But if i did travel with a road bike i could go on the main roads & dual carriage ways and get there quicker. But if i got a road bike i'd have to get skin tight clothing right? :|
 
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There has been evidence though this short thread that some poeple didn't know bikes were supposed to overtake on the right like everyone else.

"Supposed to" and "safer to" are entirely different things. I would not overtake (with stationary traffic on the left) to the right unless the road ahead is clear, and there is enough space in case so that I nip back in if oncoming traffic appears.

If there's space I would trundle slowly on the left, making sure passenger doesn't open a door, and if there's a possibility that they'll turn left.

Motorbikers usually pass down the middle, but they have the power to overtake, and are more visible (and audible) than a cyclist.
 
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[DOD]Asprilla said:
The average blind person in london has their cane broken at lease once a year by a cyclist going though a pedestrian crossing and those canes aren't cheap.

ROFL :D :D Please give a source for that statistic, I don't believe it for a second.

As to drivers doing a test, how many drive in the way they were taught to and did on their test. When I did my test I seem to remember speeding, driving while using a mobile, cutting up other road users, pulling out of junctions without looking properly, driving when drunk, aggression to other road users etc etc being frowned upon and yet I see this sort of driving every time I ride my bike.

Get a bike and cycle through central London obeying every rule and riding like the highway code tells you to and see how you are treated by drivers. I stop at most red lights but there are junctions where I have learned that jumping the lights is much safer than obeying them because of the danger of going through the junction amongst cars who don't mind endangering me just to save a second on their journey.

I agree that there are many cyclists who don't know what they are doing and put themselves at risk but the point is that they mainly put themselves at risk. There are also huge numbers of drivers who drive like idiots but they mainly put other people at risk.
 
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ja3h, for what you want it for I would perhaps look for a tourer.

Shopping (panniers) Much comfy and safer than backpack

10 mile distance (want something nippy/not so much drag) Thinner tyres than MTB, more crouched position. Drop bars to change hand position. With flats you're stuck in a single position - unless you get bar ends, so if your hands are sore a quick position change solves it.

Slight off-road- not so thin. 35-38.

Mudguards, all-year/weather use.

Brake levers on the "flats" so you can safetly ride on the flats in traffic, and be able to brake. Road bikes only have brake levers on the hoods.

What do you think of this type of bike?

b6-rev-country.jpg


I wear lycra, it's a lot more comfy than jeans/cotton Tshirt. Lycra shorts with pad for comfort and no rubbing (I went back to underpants and shorts for a day and they're horrible) Imagine a soaking wet pair of underpants plus jeans/cotton shorts. :( Lycra only keeps some moisture, so it basically dries straight away whilst you're constantly sweating. A cotton T-Shirt gets soaking wet and will not dry during a ride. tbh once you're out riding lycra looks fine.

This is my bike.

ocr1sideon.jpg


Rode about 1000 miles so far, 36 mile ride is pretty easy, along the flat I cruise 18-22mph.

oh I would also look into clipless pedals, but only once you're really comftable about riding, and riding in traffic. You get a lot more power and control with clipless pedals (pull on the upstroke as well, rather than just down-down-down which tires the same muscles)
 
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