to be annoyed at motorists who say that cyclists don't pay road tax

[toweraboveyou]

There are a lot of motorists who insist that cyclists have no rights on the road as they don't pay any road tax. However, this is bollocks as road tax was abolished in 1937 and all road financing comes from general tax which means that cyclists, such as myself, pay as much towards the roads as anybody else and have just as much right to be on them safely.

In the last three weeks:

I have avoided cyclists on a daily basis running red lights and cycling across the green man, swerving past pedestrians trying legally to cross.

I have almost been run over by a cyclist on the pavement on at least three occasions.

I have seen the same two or three teenage boys, at dusk, without reflective clothing or lights cycling in an exceptionally dangerous manner on road and the adjacent pavements that can be quite busy.

I have stepped out of my house to be almost run over by a cyclist on the pavement - on a quiet residential road.

I have almost collided with a cyclist passing the offside of my car at speed in a very narrow winding road when I was about pull in to give way to a car coming towards me, who did not have lights when it was dark, for which I do not wish to be held responsible.

My boss was knocked over by a cyclist on the pavement and has a sore arm and cut face.

I have had a serious car accident caused by another driver who had number plates and insurance and who has admitted liability for dangerous driving. His insurers paid for the hire car and the repairs and would, if necessary have reimbursed my employers for sick pay and paid my medical bills.

Cyclists urgently need to be registered and to have insurance so that they can be held responsible for accidents which they cause, by not following the law as it applies to public highways, and which harm others and the property of others. In exactly the same way that motorists need to be registered and have insurance. This would safeguard cyclists as well as drivers and pedestrians.

Cyclists should be made to have number plates fitted and punished for skipping red lights, TWICE in the last week I have nearly had my baby knocked out of his pram by an idiotic cyclists who has gone straight through a red light, and another one who went flying down the side of the bus that had stopped at a zebra crossing because there was OBVIOUSLY somebody crossing!!!

So why don't cyclists shout at motorists for getting in the way, causing thousands of deaths and tens of thousands of serious injuries each year on the roads, killing thousands more through diesel particulate pollution, creating a horrible noise, blighting communities, creating an obesity epidemic, making it unsafe for children to get to school any other means than by car, driving at deadly speeds far in excess of the legal limit, overtaking in a manner contrary to the highway code, jumping red lights, funding Islamic extremism through the purchase of petroleum, etc.

Most people, be they pedestrians, motorists or cyclists, on occasion (or for some people, most of the time) use the road in an antisocial manner, yet it's only motorists that try to tell cyclists that they shouldn't be on the road, and never the other way round.

Did you ever hear a cyclist pull up at the window of a 4x4 and say 'Oi, fat bastard, why don't you fucking walk? Did you know that 10p in every pound you spend on petrol goes straight to funding extremism in the Middle East and around the world?' I don't think so. [the 10p in the pound is probably not accurate, but that's entirely apt, given the context]

Yet for some reason motorists regularly tell cyclists to 'pay road tax' 'use the cycle path' 'ride on the pavement' (yes, they do say this, even though it's generally illegal).

Wow, cross post with marriedinwhite but have experienced very similar!

I hate to say this but if number plates where fitted to bikes - then it would be far better for cyclists as it would make cycle theft more difficult. The problem is that it is to much of a nightmare for the government to impliment and therefore it will not happen - it is along the lines of the NHS computer system for patient records x10.

I would be happy to see photograph and shame for cyclists - nice big billboard photographed at junctions of the cyclists that have jumped red lights or not stopped at crossings or pavements cycled. This would force more cyclists onto the road and make them behave in a better manner - not having cyclists on the pavements would be far better as the more cyclists on the roads the safer cycling becomes

Most people, be they pedestrians, motorists or cyclists, on occasion (or for some people, most of the time) use the road in an antisocial manner, yet it's only motorists that try to tell cyclists that they shouldn't be on the road, and never the other way round.

I think cyclists only have themselves to blame, and as more go on the roads the pressure to bring them into line so they obey the rules and bear some responsibility for their behaviour will intensify.

I do wonder if the people that misbehave on the roads do so which ever type of transport they use - are they the same offenders just different mode of transport? has petrol prices increased and drivers of cars that misbehaved just swapped the car for a free bike ride and behave in the same manner?

So now cyclists are better because they do not fund Islamic extremism? riiiggghhhtttt

Still doesn't help my 'don't ride on the fucking path' argument

I just hate paying the tax on petrol and the duty on top of the tax and it going to Dave, let alone give money to anyone else for any type of extremism whether it be nudism or barking madism

Actually I'm getting fed up with this constant rant on MN that VED is all to do with emissions. It has only been linked with emissions in the last 10 years or so. As others have said, the tax itself has been around for a lot longer than that. It just makes it another handy "green tax" by linking it to emissions.

What do the cyclists think would happen if all the drivers decided one day that they weren't going to drive anymore? Do you really think that without the huge sums of road tax and car insurance premium tax and petrol duty coming in to the coffers that the roads would continue to be maintained for the benefit of the non-paying cyclists?

right so at a crossroads the bikes go through on a red light the cyclist on green doesnt stop the car on green goes. its always the cars fault.

I think cyclists only have themselves to blame, and as more go on the roads the pressure to bring them into line so they obey the rules and bear some responsibility for their behaviour will intensify.

The damage caused by motor cars is horrendous, you pick up any local newspaper any week of the year, and you will find a distressing tale of lives destroyed by cars.

I think motorists only have themselves to blame, but as more go on the roads, they are clearly not obeying the rules, and there is very little pressure to make them bear responsibility for their behaviour.

Group Captain Tom Barrett was KILLED by a motorist who couldn't see where he was going (due to the sun) yet still continued to drive his vehicle at high speeds, abdicating all responsibility for what is as much a deadly weapon as a handgun (for instance road deaths in the US, let alone the UK, exceed gun deaths), and what was his sentence? 12 months driving ban and 100 hours community service. www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-17512797

This pitiful excuse for a human being killed a pensioner, while uninsured, and had a string of convictions, at age 23, for wielding his deadly weapon in a manner likely to cause deaths, including a conviction for driving without due care and attention, speeding at over 100mph, driving without insurance (three times). He was convicted of causing death by dangerous driving and will serve as little as four months for taking a life (sentenced to 8 months), and will be able to drive again (legally!) in just 2 years.

This menace to society committed hit-and-run on a cyclist, breaking his arm in five places, only being caught as the cyclist had took down his number plate. He was sentenced to just 140 hours community service.

This man killed a lollipop lady was fined £500 and given five penalty points.

All this evidence that people are largely free to kill, to repeatedly break the law, driving while banned, and uninsured, and that when drivers do kill, they willl face sentences that are no kind of deterrent.

All this, and you're trying to tell me that there's going to be a pressure on cyclists? The reason being that they ('they' being all cyclists in your eyes) don't wait nicely in the queue at the lights like everyone else (well, everyone except the amber gamblers)?

So just because cycles don't tend
To kill people, they shouldn't
Too be made to follow the rules
Of the road?

Death isn't the be all and end all of responsibility on the roads

What do the cyclists think would happen if all the drivers decided one day that they weren't going to drive anymore? Do you really think that without the huge sums of road tax and car insurance premium tax and petrol duty coming in to the coffers that the roads would continue to be maintained for the benefit of the non-paying cyclists?

The roads are maintained by the local council - that is why each March the roads are resurfaced as the council needs to use up the council tax paid into the local government coffers. Do you think though that if the cars stopped using the roads they would get pot holes and need resurfacing? No they wouldn't as it is the weight of the cars that damages the surface and less money would be needed to maintain the roads so only every 4-5 years would the roads need the same type of maintainence.

The only none paying cyclists are those that are children or students as they don't pay council tax.

The VED is not used to pay to upkeep the roads it is put into the general pot

All this, and you're trying to tell me that there's going to be a pressure on cyclists? The reason being that they ('they' being all cyclists in your eyes) don't wait nicely in the queue at the lights like everyone else (well, everyone except the amber gamblers)?

Well of course there is - currently they don't have to insure their vehicles, prove their competence to use the road, identify their cycles so that they can be penalised etc etc - all the usual road usage things.

Never mind help pay for its upkeep......

The roads
Are
Resurfaced each march?!

Where? In fantasy land?
looks at potholes outside window

''Never mind help pay for its upkeep......''

Facepalm.

Don't let actual facts get in the way of your hatred of cyclists.

potholes outside your window - there can't be how did they get there? you are bullshitting again aren't you

yes lockets they are chinchillas unfortunately they died, but my chin is expecting more soon :)
this thread is boring me now i just come back for the occasional look and laugh.
nice to have a healthy debate without a bitchy bun fight somehow every arguement comes down to funding terrorism ha ha ha!

What do the cyclists think would happen if all the drivers decided one day that they weren't going to drive anymore?

That's not going to happen, sadly.

Do you really think that without the huge sums of road tax and car insurance premium tax and petrol duty coming in to the coffers that the roads would continue to be maintained for the benefit of the non-paying cyclists?

Er, you've not been to the Netherlands I take it.

What do you think this 'road' is being maintained for?

www.aviewfromthecyclepath.com/2009/04/tale-of-three-traffic-lights.html

How about this one?

www.aviewfromthecyclepath.com/2010/07/another-new-superhighway-for-bikes.html

I personally am considerably richer than yow, and I pay a lot more tax than you do - income tax, council tax, etc. Therefore I demand that you get the fuck off the roads I've paid for. Wait no I don't. It's only selfish motorists that do that. Silly me.

Personally speaking as a tax-paying cyclist, and being, as I said, considerably richer than yow, I think it's disgraceful that so much money is spent on crappy cycle paths that double as car parking and motorways. I would like to see more of my taxes go to spend proper cycle infrastructure, and less on motorways and other roads that I can't use.

Did I mention by the way, that I am considerably richer than yow, and therefore my priorities for government spending should trump yours.

What do you think would happen if me, and my fellow 1%ers stopped paying our taxes?

Do you really think that without the huge sums of income tax coming in from us (and it's £48 billion a year, 27.7% of all income tax receipts), air passenger duty on all our first/business class travel (double what you plebs pay), VAT on our yachts, etc., that the roads would continue to be maintained for the benefit of poor people?

There is in fact a hole in the Tarmac outside
My
House and across
The road and I have to reverse my car out of my drive to the left to avoid it.

And what do you mean bullshitting again?!
I'm not one for bullshitting.

God
You cyclists are
Mean. Why lie about a pothole and a
Pram incident?

I have better things to do with my time like other AIBUs to read

Kayano - It's motor vehicles that cause the majority of potholes and damage the roads. Cycles don't really have much effect.