Aibu to think this was pretty dangerous and a little irresponsible?

[Slugsandsnails2014]

Fully prepared to be corrected and told I'm BU, however I'm very intrigued to hear opinions

Yesterday I saw a woman cycling and when she stopped to get off the bike I noticed that she had a baby in a sling strapped to her front. It struck me that this seemed like a rather risky activity?! For context I should add that the baby was clearly very very tiny-couple of weeks max judging by the size and was in one of those stretchy wraps, the area she was cycling in is one that even a confident cyclist might get a little nervous about-a very busy roundabout in central London so it's not like she was in a park or pedestrianised area.

I suppose I wondered if she was trying to make a point because I couldn't think of a reason why you would want to cycle with a little baby strapped to you when there are other less dangerous options available. Perhaps she was in a hurry to get somewhere so decided not to walk and couldn't afford the bus etc? I'm not sure. Anyway, aibu to think this is dangerous?! Is this a thing that cyclists with babies do?

www.dailyrecord.co.uk/incoming/video-mum-pole-dancing-baby-5393873

YANBU to say it's dangerous.

YABVU by saying she was making a point.

I cycle with my child in London since he was 9 months old not to make a point but because it is the quickest way for me to get from A to B.

TheChandler

"According to the Road Traffic Act, two people are not allowed to ride on a single bike (even if it’s a BMX with ‘stunt pegs’) unless the cycle is ‘constructed or adapted for the carriage of more than one person’ – i.e. a tandem or a bike with approved equipment such as child seats, properly fitted.

If you do carry a passenger on a bicycle not constructed or adapted for the purpose, you are breaking s.24(1) of the Road Traffic Act, as is your passenger (unless they are under the age of 10 and therefore below the age of criminal responsibility). The maximum penalty for this offence is a fine of £200."

From here.

OutofCheese the sling is not an adaptation to the BIKE it's something attached to the rider. The law states that the cycle must be constructed or adapted blah blah and doesn't allow for the cyclist to have any kind of equipment attached to their person.

I biked with Dd when she hit twelve months and her head was big enough for a bike hat. She was in a weeride seat that was in front of mine on the crossbar with a five point harness. We came off once,not one part of dd hit the ground. She was strapped in though, not sure the same would apply to a baby in a sling.
The trailers bother me as they are not in sight and too low to the ground for my liking.

I'm pretty sure that the government approved cycling safety manual "Cyclecraft" actually lists this as a valid option. (I remember because when I read it I thought WTF?!?)

I'll check after I finish bedtime.

Personally, I wouldn't dream of it. I waited until 1 year to get a bike seat. But lots of people say they wouldn't even walk around in a sling in case they fell over. It's degrees of the same thing.

Yep, cyclecraft says:

"In the earliest weeks, a baby can be carried in a sling strapped to the chest of a parent. This is most easily done riding on the back of a tandem. The parent needs to adopt a near upright riding position... Babies carried this way are kept warm and secure by the parent and seem to enjoy the rhythm of cycling which pacifies them and makes them sleep easy."

Suspect that the person who wrote that wasn't picturing central London, right enough.

DrsSpouse which part of a baby do you think is of the age of criminal responsibility?