Speed Limits and Cyclists.

[Garz]

Interestingly Im going to a wedding on saturday and the groom is a friend who happens to be a policeman. I shall try remember to mention this to him but I bet he will have some way of being able to penalise this kind of incident.

It is interesting then that although we can speed on cycles over the limit, your saying that you haven't committed an offence in respect to being punished somehow as there is no ruling specific to cyclists?

 

[marinyork]

Interestingly Im going to a wedding on saturday and the groom is a friend who happens to be a policeman. I shall try remember to mention this to him but I bet he will have some way of being able to penalise this kind of incident.

It is interesting then that although we can speed on cycles over the limit, your saying that you haven't committed an offence in respect to being punished somehow as there is no ruling specific to cyclists?

This has been covered, under the furious cycling. The HC very explicity states about the major cycling offences under its HC and the Law appendix. There are various things that can get a fine, that is the punishment. Also being a policemen doesn't necessarily mean they are up on cycling law, there have been bizarre examples of all sorts of things like teenage kids being breathalised on a bike.

If you look up the list of endorsements, it is lengthy, the only one applying to a driving licence and cycling/ped is what I outlined wrt special roads legislation.

 

[Garz]

Fine, so unless your being dangerous or in a specific zone like a 20 by a school then mr plod cant penalise you?

 

[marinyork]

They can fine you. If you look at your law or HC you'll see that the fines for serious cycling offences can be very large.

I'm not sure what you are suggesting about 20 zones, I doubt they'd be that bothered, few motorists stick to the speed limit in 20 zones. It would likely be a waste of resources.

A dangerous cycling/careless/reckless charge is normally brought against a fatality such as cycling down a hill at 20mph on a pavement and killing someone or a rather more controversial one that might or might not have been pavement related and polishing off a drunken ped.

 

[wafflycat]

I have a valid UK driving licence, it wouldn't surprise me if they wanted to put them on this.

And they'd be wrong. IIRC this was tried recently but then chucked out. Rightly so.

Why should your driving licence be penalised for any cycling offence? If you shoplift do you expect to have points put on your driving licence? Same logic.

The law pertaining to speed limits applies to *motor* vehicles NOT pedal cycles. For a speed limit to apply to a pedal cyclist, a specific byelaw is required for the particular stretch of highway the limit applies to (such as Royal Parks).

 

[willhub]

I do 20mph in a 20mph speed limit and I get drivers overtaking me, I do 30mph in a 30mph speed limit, and I get drivers flying past me???? Don't they like being behind a cyclist following the speed limit?

Sometimes I am doing 24-26mph where it is a 30mph speed limit and even when safe to overtake cars just sit behind me, are most car speedos incorectly calibrated so when I am doing 24-26 it's showing around 30mph on there speedos?

 

[Dan B]

You also don't have to have a calibrated speedometer (who has a calibrated one at that anyway) so you can always plea that your computer is only to track your miles and time rather than for speed wise as it is probably wrong.

And, er, so what? Speed limits apply to motor vehicles irrespective of whether they have (or are required to have) speedometers.

If I'm pulled over for driving at over the alcohol limit, I don't expect that pleading I don't own a breathalyser is going to get me off.

 

[jimboalee]

What's the worst that can happen?

'ASBO'?
Up before the Beak for 'Dangerous use of a pedal cycle'?

Don't worry about it.

 

[gaz]

And, er, so what? Speed limits apply to motor vehicles irrespective of whether they have (or are required to have) speedometers.

If I'm pulled over for driving at over the alcohol limit, I don't expect that pleading I don't own a breathalyser is going to get me off.

First off a bicycle isn't a motor vehicle. and i was stating that there is no law that states that bicycles have to have a speedometer.
And even if you have one fitted, it doesn't have to be calibrated, in which case the speed that is shown could well be wrong by a big margin. such as your speedometer may say 25mph when your actually doing 32mph. nothing you can do about that because the supplier and yourself have no responsibility to calibrate it.

Where as in your car, the speedometer has to be correct to a certain degree, as all are slowed down to say 30mph when your actually doing about 27-28mph.

There fore, if a coppa tries to say you were speeding, you can easily say that there is no law that inforces the use of a calibrated speedomoter so i had no idea how fast i was going.

 

[Dan B]

There fore, if a coppa tries to say you were speeding, you can easily say that there is no law that inforces the use of a calibrated speedomoter so i had no idea how fast i was going.

You can do, but it's not going to help.

 

[marinyork]

Anyway in my experience you're most likely to get a telling off from plod in a contraflow cycle lane. I've been done so about 6 times now.

Mobility scooters have to have calibrated speed limiters, it's not going to get you told off any/more less as it has a crude speedometer.

 

[Davidc]

Anyway in my experience you're most likely to get a telling off from plod in a contraflow cycle lane. I've been done so about 6 times now.

Mobility scooters have to have calibrated speed limiters, it's not going to get you told off any/more less as it has a crude speedometer.

I've had that too, and also a load of verbal abuse from motons who can't grasp the concept of contraflow lanes.