Shared Path Usage.. Etiquette for Cycles?

[funnymummy]

Just wondering if there was any 'official' rules when on a shared path?
We have a cycle path that runs all along the coast, the part from my house to Worthing is clearly segerated & marked Cyclists on the green, Bipods on the normal (not that it stops them wandering in your way)
The other direction used to be segregated, but the council decided last year to remove the white lines on a 2 miles stretch & make it shared use - giving right of way to pedestrians.
I have my youngest son (6) in front of me on his bike & am towing my other son (8) who is disabled on his trailer. I have always taught them to be polite & say Excuse me or Thnak you when passing or approaching pedestrians.
And I always worked on the principal that we should treat these sort of paths like the roads... Basically ride on the left hand side.
Most days we use this path we only encounter one or two people, but yesteday being the nicest day of the year so far made it very busy - To the point I had to get off & push!
I tried to keep to the left, but had folks walking towards me...You can spot me with my trailer a mile off, but they seemed to delight in walking down the path staright at me, some even veered into my path in what seemed a deliberate manner. I was riding at less then 5mph which makes streering even tricker with my son on the back.
It just seems that since the council gave pedestrians the 'right of way' they seem to think that we should stop or even get off the path for them to pass, twice my youngest was forced onto the pebble beach - causing him to actulay fall off his bike - as someone just walked in his way, both times they could clearly see him coming towards them & did not bother to even chcek he was ok, just carried on walking. Once I tried to move so far over, the left wheel on my sons trailer ran off the path tipping him over the pebbles, One person did stop & help me, but several others passed some even tutted - His trailer clearly has a big disabled sticker accross the back

So is there a rule for which side we should ride on, on shared paths or do we just have to put up with inconsiderate people?

 

[Norm]

Pedestrians can be bipeds anywhere, they have always had 'right of way', so maybe that's why the council removed the lines.

Ask them for space and give them a cheery thanks afterwards and it'll make the day happier and their next encounter more likely to be less confrontational.

 

[661-Pete]

I think there's only one rule for shared paths, if you have to use them (as, evidently, you do). Be prepared to give way to anything or anyone. There just aren't any rules that you can hold other users to.

When I lived in Hove (in my youth) I used to belt along the sea-front promenade (between the lawns and the beach - there was no cycle path anywhere in those days) at top speed - but only at quiet, off-season times, when there was hardly a soul about. Illegal, but there was never anyone around to nick me. I wouldn't do it now, I think I've become a bit more of a 'model citizen' since!

I can't think of anything to suggest other than, choose less busy times. Cycling through and around hordes of day-trippers in hot sunny weather is not my idea of fun. And to be honest, cooler cloudy days are better for cycling!

 

[tyred]

There's a very nice 6 mile stretch of shared use path along a river bank near me and I've started riding it pretty regularly, adjusting my speed depending on what else is on it. What I've found is that pedestrians are not the problem. Other cyclists are. I work on the keep left point of view as well as and I'm alarmed at how many groups of BSO mounted people (even a few on top line road bikes) who ride 3 or 4 wide, blocking the path for me coming in the other direction and even though they are often looking straight at me, they do not fall into line like I would expect and on a few occasions, I've had to take to the grass to avoid a collision.

 

[summerdays]

Pedestrians have the right of way but if it is shared use then you don't have to stick to the left hand side - use the whole space as you need to but check behind before moving over of course and stick to very low speeds. If they need to give way to a pedestrian then your son shouldn't need to cycle off the path but instead stop and allow them to pass around him (which would be much better than falling off on cobbles). Turn it into a game ... how slow can he ride ... can he guess which ones he will need to stop for. It's good preparation for the road if he gets used to looking for hazards coming from any direction!!

 

[pshore]

If they are being willfully obstructive then they are simply a-holes who are probably taking revenge on innocent people after being clipped by an 18yr old hoodie (warning! stereotype!).

Most normal people will surely be lost in conversation and not realise they are blocking your path until you are right next to them. I think this is the pedestrian SMIDSY :-)

Has your son got a nice loud by friendly sounding bell ? A 6 year old plus bell is a wonderful combination for getting attention and hopefully clearing a path through normal people.

At the end of the day, if it is crowded, you have to slow down to the lowest common denominator. It's a shame if there is enough room and that segregation has been taken away. You can only cure that by publicising your difficulties with a councillor, paper, or local cycle campaign etc.

I don't know the area that well, but it looks like it is a trial (if the info below is not out of date). Definitely make your views and experiences heard.

http://www.sustrans....uth-east/sussex

Worthing promenade now open for cycling
Worthing promenade is open to cyclists for a trial period. The promenade will benefit leisure cyclists wishing to enjoy the delights of Worthing seafront without having to contend with the traffic on Marine Parade. Cyclists and pedestrians are not separated and pedestrians have priority. If the trial is successful, this will become a part of National Route 2.

 

[funnymummy]

Pete... We usually ride on the road, most of our routes don't have cycle lanes on them anyways, but we use this one beacuse it misses out several busy roundabouts which make me nervous let alone when have my bubs with me & tbh, is a very scenic & pleasant route - When not taken over by rambling pedestrians
And Tyred... Yes I have those encounters too, I think that is what annoys most walkers, yesterday there were lots of BSO's flying round, alot at what i consider to be far to an excessive speed considering there where chilren & dogs around, you can gaurantee either of these groups will wander off at a tangent at any given second without any warning
I just find it so annoying when you see a group ahead (walkers or cyclists) blocking the whole path, they can see you coming, small child in front, towing a trailer behind, not speeding, just out for a gentle family day out. It wouldn't take any effort on their part to move over slightly, it takes a whole lot of effort to stop & restart a bike with a 10stone load on the back!

 

[marinyork]

So is there a rule for which side we should ride on, on shared paths or do we just have to put up with inconsiderate people?

If you just stand in a high st or promenade (that may not even be busy) you will see peds vs peds jostling each other, refusing to give way, push chairs vs elderly people, hell's grannies vs young people walking, people with mobile phones doing low speed versions dodging round people they haven't noticed until the last minute. At the same time you'll see other people moving out of the way, smiling, minding theirs Ps and Qs and saying thank you. It is just that we are cyclists we don't notice some of these conflicts that go on and tend to think it is fairly unique to us. It isn't at all, it's just that as we are classified as a different group to pedestrians you'll get even more conflict because there's a difference in speed between us and the pedestrian world.

My advice would be just smile and enjoy it. There are plenty of other seaside towns where there is no off road cycle path along the sea, where cycling is banned all or some months of the year, where the cycle path just ends and you're kicked off rather than it going on for miles and miles. If you don't believe me have a look on various maps.

 

[byegad]

Simple answer. Use the road that's what they're for.

 

[funnymummy]

If they need to give way to a pedestrian then your son shouldn't need to cycle off the path but instead stop and allow them to pass around him (which would be much better than falling off on cobbles). Turn it into a game ... how slow can he ride ... can he guess which ones he will need to stop for. It's good preparation for the road if he gets used to looking for hazards coming from any direction!!

It was more a case of people walking towards him, who had a clear view of him appraoching, then stepped directly in his path, giving him less than a second to think what to do, he just aimed for the clearest space!
His road skills are great - He rides a 4 mile round rip to school on the road & he has never had any problems with cars LOL!

 

[summerdays]

Simple answer. Use the road that's what they're for.

She has already given her reasons for not doing so - and cycling roundabouts with a 6 year old when you are limited by towing would be fairly intimidating.

It's a shame if there is enough room and that segregation has been taken away.

In some ways it is preferable ... theoretically on a delimited shared use path cyclists should stick to their side of the path whereas pedestrians aren't restricted to only walking on their side.

 

[funnymummy]

Has your son got a nice loud by friendly sounding bell ? A 6 year old plus bell is a wonderful combination for getting attention and hopefully clearing a path through normal people.

At the end of the day, if it is crowded, you have to slow down to the lowest common denominator. It's a shame if there is enough room and that segregation has been taken away. You can only cure that by publicising your difficulties with a councillor, paper, or local cycle campaign etc.

I don't know the area that well, but it looks like it is a trial (if the info below is not out of date). Definitely make your views and experiences heard.

http://www.sustrans....uth-east/sussex

He uses his bell & can be so polite it is sick inducing LOL!

And yes, Worthing Prom has now been opened again to cycles... and we never have a problem there (and as fas as i know there has not been any reported accidents yet) - It is a nice wide space, plenty of room for bikes & pedestrians to move around each other/get out each others way. We get cheery smiles, waves & shouts of "love the trailer" as we toodle along there,

 

[BSRU]

Simple answer. Use the road that's what they're for.

That's too simplistic an answer, I hate shared paths but due to road design I have to use one for a few hundred metres.

 

[funnymummy]

She has already given her reasons for not doing so - and cycling roundabouts with a 6 year old when you are limited by towing would be fairly intimidating

Thnaks Summer - I don't intimidate easily, I lived in Kensington before I moved here 12 years ago, never had a problem with London traffic, used to ride round with my eldest (now 18) in a seat on the back of my bike. I'm also a teacher in a Special Needs school... Now that can be scary!
But i'm not stupid or suicidal, i'll ride on roads where I deem them safe, i'll ride on paths if they are safer or just because the view is prettier

 

[Jezston]

Sorry to go OT, and sorry to sound like a total snob ... but ... funnymummy - would you mind using the standard fonts?

Shocking pink AND ... oh God ... comic sans ... I just can't bear to look at it! Sorry!