To suggest cyclists need to be licensed

[savethebeesandthecees]

And also pay Road Tax and risk having their licence revoked for misuse.

I'm saying this as a pedestrian. Nearly hit again by a cyclist going through a red light. Others routinely mount the pavement to swerve red lights. I'm sick of it. If I film them as evidence, so what? What are the consequences?

Something needs to change.

I don't think that Shapps has any qualms about making Britain a laughing stock. Look at his mismanagement of the railways.

I cycle as my main transport - and I totally agree cyclists should follow all road rules. It is the minority who skip red lights and go on the pavement. Licensing would be completely unenforceable and the current tax system is based on emissions which bikes do not create. People should be encouraged to cycle where possible from a health and environmental perspective.
every time I cycle I see multiple car drivers using their mobile phones, skipping red lights and speeding. Licensing hasn’t helped that!

Most cyclist already pay road tax, from owning and driving cars. Would you suggest pedestrians pay road tax too?

If I film them as evidence, so what? What are the consequences?

road.cc/content/news/cyclist-films-rlj-drivers-hears-nothing-back-police-274991

road.cc/content/news/271095-video-when-red-light-jumping-driver-not-red-light-jumping-driver

Probably nothing

Yes. Make everyone wear number plates too. And take a walking proficiency test.

Shocking that.

Love him or loathe him. Cycling Mikey doesn't always get convictions either, despite the insane driving that goes on at Gandalf Corner.

Those clips are literally nothing compared to what you see in my city. They seem to be "driver sees amber light and doesn't stop". If you stop on amber here you're likely to get a car ramming you, or even overtaking you to go through. You get two or three cars going through after it turns amber. I honestly didn't realise how bad it was until I saw how different it is in other cities.

Notbetterthansheoughttobe - so you wish death on someone for irritating you on a shared pathway?!

I cycle for fitness. I wear padded lycra shorts for comfort and a lycra cycling jersey for the pockets. I cycle anywhere between 20 and 60 miles on a ride generally along country roads, quiet ones. I always slow down for horses and pedestrians, as much as possible thank motorists who have been slowed down by me but still passed wide and I generally stick to the rules of the road. I admit to running two red lights in my life, both at the end of a long ride, no other traffic or pedestrians around as it was tipping down and i was really desperate for a wee.

As a cyclist, i would like to see the following rules implemented: 1. All bike helmets should be white or fluorescent yellow or green . 2. All bike shoes should be fluorescent yellow or green. 3. All bikes should have fluorescent features (wheels or tyres or frames) as a matter of course. 4. Max size of a group of cyclist should be 4. No two groups should be closer than 4 car lengths apart. 5. In towns/cities it should be illegal for a cyclist or motorcyclist or moped to pass stationery cars on the left unless there is a dedicated cycle lane on the road. It should also be illegal for motorists to move to the left to stop cyclists doing this

Road tax has not existed since 1937. Vehicle Excise Duty is part of general taxation - it isn't ring-fenced for 'roads'. There are perfectly good laws out there to punish careless or stupid cyclists, but enforcement is lacking. I believe around 2000 people are killed per year by car drivers; something like 3 deaths a year are due to cyclists. Before anyone asks, I am (mostly) a cyclist, and sometimes a car driver. I have insurance for both forms of transport, to cover damage to people and their property, and I think all cyclists should have the same. No objection to a bicyle licence.

As a cyclist, i would like to see the following rules implemented:

No thanks. I'm a cyclist and you can keep that stuff to yourself!

Read to the end, maybe!?

Another vile post, again reminds me of this nasty bastard,

www.afcb.co.uk/news/club-news/statement-scott-parker/

I did. You just seemed to talk about why riding was dangerous for cyclists.

What does that have to do with paying road tax and licences?

Not better - your anger seems to be escalating!

There exists an opportunity to make
money/ revenue and make something more expensive.
it’s just a question of time and for once I don’t think that’s a bad thing .
I know people who’ve been knocked down at crossing by cyclists when they were pregnant. I know people who’ve been knocked down by cyclists who stopped to see if they’d see on and had clearly been drinking. If they’d been in a car the consequences would rightly haven been severe.
why should they not be for cyclists? Is it because it’s environmentally friendly? Then what about drivers of electric vehicles ?

on a regular basis I see cyclists running red lights mounting pavements ad hoc at considerable speed. Of the they have headphones in so their awareness is compromised. Many of the bikes are powerful and high performance and would kill an elderly or very young / small pedestrian if they hit them at speed.

there should be far more regulation

Having a licence won’t stop bad cyclists

Very true but at least you'd know their identity, instead of watching the idiot who just ran into you disappear in the knowledge nobody would ever catch them

I also agree with the need for proper insurance (but not that they need to be taxed)

And FWIW I'm a cyclist too

How exactly?

I think they should at the very least be insured. I worked on a personal injury case where a negligent cyclist crashed into another cyclist on a pedestrian crossing. He heard the beeping and rushed onto the road despite bushes blocking his view. The other cyclist was left with a fractured pelvis, two broken legs, a dislocated shoulder and broken ribs. He was our client and was devastated by what happened but it didn't help the woman he hit. He lost his house paying damages but it barely scratched the surface of what that woman needed to live the rest of her life.

Nobetter, I wasn't trying to be witty, you genuinely seem angry, swearing at strangers on the Internet and all that

Please don't be wilfully ignorant

Oh and my DH is a road cyclist who occasionally goes out training and does charity rides twice a year. When I asked him about third party insurance after we met, he honestly had no idea it existed. He'd been cycling on the road for 10 years at that point and had only ever insured his bike for theft. It never occurred to him that he could cause an accident because it's normally all about what a danger cars are to cyclists, never the other way round.