"Cracking down on cyclists"

[Maffie]

I'm confused. Are you allowed to keep your helmet on when you are pushing your bike on the pavement?

  I knew that helmet had a use didnt know what though

[Regulator]

If you have the e-mail address, can you PM it to me, or send me a copy of the e-mail.  I quite fancy responding to this.

[Phil]

CYCLISTS REMEMBER... pavements are for people!

Chilling! Are cyclists no longer classified as people?

[JT]

If you have the e-mail address, can you PM it to me, or send me a copy of the e-mail.  I quite fancy responding to this.

I'd rather not at the moment. We're still waiting on a response to our reply but if that ever arrives and it isn't a grovelling apology, I might reconsider.

[dkahn400]

Reading it again, the City Centre Neighbourhood Policing Team seem to be under the impression that the reason people ride on the pavement is that they don't have a helmet. Read that way it almost makes sense in a sort of parallel universe way.

[mattc]

Reading it again, the City Centre Neighbourhood Policing Team seem to be under the impression that the reason people ride on the pavement is that they don't have a helmet. Read that way it almost makes sense in a sort of parallel universe way.

Yes, I see where this is going ...

So the answer is - buy helmets for pedestrians, so they can safely walk in the road.

[Gattopardo]

Reading it again, the City Centre Neighbourhood Policing Team seem to be under the impression that the reason people ride on the pavement is that they don't have a helmet. Read that way it almost makes sense in a sort of parallel universe way.

Yes, I see where this is going ...

So the answer is - buy helmets for pedestrians, so they can safely walk in the road.

Full face so they can hide their faces from the CCtv and take up a five finger discount.

[Gattopardo]

Actually what if the bikes exceed the 20mph limit?

[Wascally Weasel]

Actually what if the bikes exceed the 20mph limit?

Posted speed limits on roads do not generally apply to cyclists.  Exceptions to this have to be specifically applied for (to the secretary of state?)

[Gattopardo]

Actually what if the bikes exceed the 20mph limit?

Posted speed limits on roads do not generally apply to cyclists.  Exceptions to this have to be specifically applied for (to the secretary of state?)

Do you know if the application has been done?  If it hasn't lets speed up and down the intimedating the cars and pedestrians

[iakobski]

The press version is a little more balanced:

Police crack down on two-wheeled pavement pests

[iakobski]

In my experience pavement cycling is not an issue in this area as it has 20mph speed limits and many, many speed bumps.

Pavement cycling is a huge problem in central Peterborough. Some adults I've spoken to believe there is a local bylaw allowing pavement cycling anywhere there aren't signs explicitly prohibiting it. It also isn't helped by cycle paths that become pavement without warning or means to get on to the road. The 20mph area is north of the city centre, the area in the email is to the south where the cycle paths are disjointed and variously cross dual carriageway, pedestrianised areas and the new, improved 5-lane bridge. For a city that proclaims itself a cycling flagship, and is almost completely flat, it's a disgrace.

[JT]

In my experience pavement cycling is not an issue in this area as it has 20mph speed limits and many, many speed bumps.

Pavement cycling is a huge problem in central Peterborough. Some adults I've spoken to believe there is a local bylaw allowing pavement cycling anywhere there aren't signs explicitly prohibiting it. It also isn't helped by cycle paths that become pavement without warning or means to get on to the road. The 20mph area is north of the city centre, the area in the email is to the south where the cycle paths are disjointed and variously cross dual carriageway, pedestrianised areas and the new, improved 5-lane bridge. For a city that proclaims itself a cycling flagship, and is almost completely flat, it's a disgrace.

The area I was referring to was Hampton which has 20mph speed limits.

We subscribe to our local police email alerts. Local in this case being the Orton and Hampton area. I was unaware that this crackdown was Peterborough-wide.

[iakobski]

Ah! I see!

Sorry, I thought when you said "this area" you were referring to the area discussed in the email.

[phil d]

The press version is a little more balanced:

Police crack down on two-wheeled pavement pests

Indeed, not only is that press report reasonably well balanced (so far as I can tell from a distance) there is even a cyclist-supportive comment from a driver. 

Pavement cycling is a problem in many places (I have experience of Reading) and one of the causes is as referred to somewhere in that Telegraph article - it is far from clear where cyclists can and cannot go (apart from being on the road, obviously) and so while I detest the constant dodging I have to do as I walk along the footpath, I do have some sympathy with these cyclists.

[JT]

Ah! I see!

Sorry, I thought when you said "this area" you were referring to the area discussed in the email.

But I thought I was.

As I said, as far as we were concerned that email came from our local police station in Hampton and was sent to the Hampton and Orton subscribers only. We've never had any emails from them that weren't specifically Orton/Hampton related.

Until now.

[Pete]

The press version is a little more balanced:

Police crack down on two-wheeled pavement pests

But...

And on Friday city police swooped on illegal riders spotted flouting the highway code and slapped Fixed Penalty Notices on 18 of them.

'Flouting the highway code' is not in itself an offence and ought not to attract a FPN.  Only flouting a specific traffic Law can do that.

The 'comments' below that article are of course the usual 'assortment'....