To remind you all that you should not be cycling on a footpath

[frillyfarmer]

In law, cyclists are not permitted to use footpaths.

Every few days since lockdown we have intercepted people cycling down our footpaths and most of them have been obtuse at best, aggressive at worst when stopped and turned around.

I'm not even doing it to be an arsehole - the footpath in question culminates in a series of stiles and kissing gates which are almost impossible to get a bicycle through without knocking down walls or damaging gates. Additionally these footpaths are well used by people on foot and they are often not suitable to be shared use.

One of the few benefits in all this is that the roads are quieter and surely more pleasant to cycle across? It's lambing time, we're in the middle of spring drilling, it is so mindlessly stupid to try and cycle through these footpaths but day on day they keep coming.

I realise most of these posts are reduced to a good farmer bashing on mumsnet, but we're really just trying to get on with spring planting after a long wet winter and having to contend with cyclists trying to cycle three a breast down a drilled field of peas whilst scowling are me is really starting to get rather boring.

Bridleways, BOATs, byways all permit cycling, footpaths do not.

YABU for reminding ‘us all’ about it. I am aware, and I don’t even own a bike... but thank you oh wise one.

Op I get your frustration and for the record I’m not a cyclist hater at all.

Local footpath, wide enough to be safe for exercise with baby in pram and 3 year old. Separate path for cyclists but it was so busy they came on the footpath. Had to turn around after maybe 200 meters because I had to stop and pull my toddler on to the verge must have been more than 20 separate times.

If they had stuck to their route it was plenty quiet enough for walkers.

Resorted to walking on the streets around my house. Every family who owned a bike had the their kids on the pavement.

Really just not fair to be honest. Decided to try keeping the kids up and going around 7ish tonight otherwise my toddler won’t get out.

I hear you OP. We were out walking recently and two adults and their child were cycling down a very narrow pavement. We had to step into the road to avoid them, they didn’t even have the decency to stop to let us past.

When I pointed out very calmly that they shouldn’t be cycling on the road the lady responded “we’re all just trying to get through”. Sure lady, but do it on the road, as per the law. Or in a park. Or whatever.

Can I just say, that if you’re cycling on a bridle way, cyclists are to give way to horse riders

Cycling flat out straight at a horse shouting “get out the fucking way” is bloody stupid

Please call out to the rider, slow down and give them plenty of room as you pass

I live in Holland. We have lovely cycling paths everywhere that are the envy of the world - and we STILL get people on the footpaths. They want to bypass a roundabout, or skip traffic at lights....they insist on trying to cycle at the market on Saturday even though it's not allowed on those two streets for that one day a week. They are arseholes. All of them. Sadly they are everywhere. As long as being an arsehole is legal there's not much to be done I'm afraid.

Ugh. Yesterday I was out for a walk with the kids (aged 5 and 8). A family came towards us, all cycling on the pavement at the side of the 60mph road. The dad went onto the road to pass us, but the young teenagers just kept cycling towards us on the pavement. I stopped, and asked the girl to go into the road and she stopped too and said 'just go round me'. The pavement is maybe 1 meter wide and she was taking up most of it, so I wound up taking my younger kids into the road to pass her. She was maybe 13 and probably had no idea that you aren't allowed to cycle on pavements, but her parents should have bloody well told her. The mum was 50 yards further back, also on the pavement, and she stopped and pulled her bike into someone's drive so I could pass her rather than going into the road.

The roads are dead quiet most of the time here and still we're getting adult cyclists on the footpath.
There is a cycle lane, ffs!

OP I didn't know that cyclists weren't allowed to use footpaths (and by that I think you mean the rural/countryside/unpaved footpaths rather than just pavements by the side of roads)
I don't cycle but dog walk several times a day and over this past weekend have been astounded by the number of cyclists hauling their bikes over kissing gates and styles, through the cow fields (with calves) and in the woods on footpaths.
I don't think I would ever be brave enough to point out that they are not permitted by law to use them but it's a good piece of knowledge to have up my sleeve.
Hope the spring planting goes well and if the weather gets a bit colder hopefully you will see less of these idiots on the footpaths through your land

I commute daily on my bike and use the road and cycle paths. Since lockdown the cycle path is often full of people walking in it, driving me mad. Can I remind you ALL not to walk in cycle paths? Thanks

Oh god. So much this. I understand if it’s children but I cannot get my head around why adults insist on cycling on the footpath when there’s a perfectly good (quiet and mostly traffic free) road right next to it. I haven’t stopped any of them to ask but it irritates me every time we go out for a walk.

yep....kids out here in force, cycling on the paths with indulgent parents behind them, also on the path!!

YANBU

with less traffic on the roads this would be a good opportunity to teach older kids how to ride on the roads....would build their confidence at the very least

This drives me mad, I had someone ring their bell at me the other day, a full grown adult, I didn't move and reminded him that pavements are for pedestrians, he at least had the decency to go around me on the road.

It is really annoying me that when I'm on my daily walk I'm constantly having to move into the road to avoid families cycling on the pavement.

Another cyclist-bashing thread.

This last week I've had 3 bicycles run in to me, who are the cyclists? children with their parents trailing way behind.

And for the record the path that runs alongside the canals is called a TOWPATH, not a cycle path. So stop shouting at pedestrians using it, please cyclists, it’s a shared path, share with care (which means slow down).

I dont mind people cycling with their kids on the pavements or footpaths. It's not a massive inconvenience

The law is different in Scotland. Cyclists, walkers and horseriders all have the right of responsible access to land, except in certain particular circumstances.

Cyclists still aren’t permitted to cycle on the pavement alongside a road, but most people don’t seem to mind small children doing that.

There are greater problems at the moment

There is a cycle lane, ffs!

have you ever tried using 'cycle lanes'? Narrow, next to the curb, full of potholes and rubbish, cars parked in the way, suddenly ending, having a tree sprouting out of them?

the aren't usable in most places and force cyclist to sway out of their way all the time. Much saver to cycle on the road in a steady line (and no, by law cyclist don't have to use the bogus cycle lanes the UK provides).

I don’t think the problem is cyclists per se rather than I certain type of man.

At the moment the cycle lanes are fine, because there aren't many cars. No need for anyone to use pavements, small children included.

And there are a lot of cycle lanes which are perfectly fine to use all the time (I know, because I've cycled and run along them and there are no potholes - they are 100% fine) but the MAMILs still insist on going on the roads. An example would be the really lovely, separate cycle path alongside the A24 through Dorking. The MAMILs won't use it in case there's a family on the cycle path which holds them up. Oh, the irony.

I've been using the lack of traffic to take my 7 and 10yo's on the road to start to teach them how to negotiate junctions, how to hold their line 1m away from the kerb, how to indicate and how to read the road. Both growing massively in confidence