£300 fixed penalty for cycling at night without lights.

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At night two weeks ago. A main road filtered right turn at the lights. I'm at the front of the turn.

Light go green indicating for me to go looked up the oncoming road no vehicles no lights proceed to turn right and looking in the direction I'm going clear to go.....foot down.. ...slamed on breaks idiot cyclist had gone through a red light, no lights and dark bike and clothing.

If I'd have hit him my fault ( bikers, cyclist and mountain bikers in the family so pro bikes ! ) ......despite him ignoring traffic lights and not having lights on his bike. The laws an ass !

A few nights later two bikes no lights on a road which had trees causing dark patches on the opposite side of the road to me.
It should be a fixed penalty of £300 for cycling without lights ( for goodness don't say it can't be enforced, that's what was said about seatbelts years ago !)

It would save cyclists lives and protect drivers from been found guilty of a driving offence due to idiot cyclists.

Cyclists have carte blanche at present to ignore traffic rules !
 
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I sort of doubt you would have been found guilty. Yes laws were changed so as you have to take more care around vulnerable road users (and quite rightly so). But jumping red lights at night with no lights or reflexive clothing is not doing to get much sympathy from any jury. I'm an obsessive cyclist but would more than likely be on your side on what you describe.

Agree with the fixed penalty, but traffic offences like that should also attract penalty points onto your driving licence. Obviously that won't bother yooths, but most cyclists also drive...
 
perhaps a re-education/cycle/awareness type course where you pay a small fee to attend and you get the fee back after a clean year or fine for the full course cost if same offence less than the year with no chance off getting the money back
so carrot and stick
 
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As the nights draw in then the usual rants come back yet again...

I could go on about the massive increase in scooters with 'L plates' breaking road laws when delivering various dodgy fast foods...

Let alone the badly/inappropriately ridden mobility vehicles on pavements...

But it always seems that cyclists are the main cause of raised blood pressure amongst the motoring fraternity! :rolleyes:

(No doubt there will soon be a moan about fireworks as that season is almost upon us)
 
Well they can't ban fireworks. What else could we fire at cyclists riding without lights? Nearly finished fitting that special roof rack - a chap needs a hobby.
 
perhaps a re-education/cycle/awareness type course where you pay a small fee to attend and you get the fee back after a clean year or fine for the full course cost if same offence less than the year with no chance off getting the money back
so carrot and stick
doubt anyone needs educated about traffic lights, most riders will have driving liciences, give them 6 points, they will soon learn.

Of course it is not just cyclists that ignore red lights
rlj.jpg

and there was I being a law abiding cyclist
 
Ah, I doooo believe you'll find that is not a red light, as in traffic lights, behaviour in front of which is subject to law.

Those popup things don't share the power.
MB will doubtless confirm.
 
"doubt anyone needs educated about traffic lights, most riders will have driving liciences, give them 6 points, they will soon learn."

its more to bring "i know best" down to a level where they may listen
 
Well they can't ban fireworks.
They could...

Of course they could also provide decent cycle lanes, but then the ones put in place during the lockdowns have disappeared..

What happened to the 'virus' cycling effect?
 
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What happened to the 'virus' cycling effect?
That was just a sop to the tofu eating wokistas who were getting carried away "campaigning" while they were being paid to do nothing on furlough.
Now they're all driving to work they've sold the bikes they thought they might get round to using but never did, because they got too fat at the keyboard. ;)
 
I also have to say that it most definitely would not have been your fault if you had hit the cyclist.

He was on red with no lights, you were on green....
 
It's quite common, see a lot round here, factory workers on their way home, no lights, no helmet, dark clothing, meandering on pavements, dropping onto side roads to avoid traffic lights etc ....

Many years ago when I was the RAF i used to commute down the a17 from Sleaford to Norfolk and we used to see a guy on a bike daily in the dark with a high Viz vest, no lights at all. As time went by the vest got less reflective so we got him another and one day saw him stopped in a layby so stopped and gave it to him explaining that he really needed lights as sometimes he was barely noticeable until the last minute. He nodded and thanked us for the vest. A few months later, early morning and the a17 was closed due to a serious accident, he'd been hit and killed outright. Still saddens me to this day.

When I ride at night, I have 2 rear lights, one as spare and same on the front. Front is very bright and whilst it may annoy some drivers, (I do angle it down slightly) I'd rather be seen than dead.
 
I have rarely seen any cyclist stop at a red light, most cycle straight through, some wait for a gap.

Blup
 
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