E-bikes should not be on pavement

[GoldenRosebee]

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-15235471/E-biker-killing-great-grandfather-crashing-pavement-putting-bins.html

These e-bikes absolutely run at speed where they could kill or hurt somebody.

No bikes other than small children should be on the pavement. Bikes should be on the road or in bike lanes.

I agree. His death is sad enough for his family but to read he died after spending months in hospital is just tragic. Those things are fast, heavy, and silent.

The first reply nails it.
All bikes (other than small kids - and I mean small. Top end of primary need to be off the pavement 'cause I had one if those go past me too close, clipped me with their handle bars, and left a stinking bruise) shouldn't be on the pavements.

100%

Definitely should be on the road.
Personally I think anything that isn't powered purely by a human should have to be taxed and insured, and the driver should have a licence.
We are plagued by them and e-scooters in our area (which are flat-out illegal). I've come across them on the wrong side of the road, they have no lights, the drivers are almost always dressed completely in black, they rude them on the pavements, weave on and off the pavement and are usually glued to their phones with earbuds in.

My friends mum was knocked over by a 10 year old child on a bike on the pavement outside school (picking up her GC) and badly broke her arm.
No apology from child or child’s parents.

Agreed. It’s absolutely ludicrous that these bikes and e-scooters are capable of some speed and there is no tax or insurance requirement. They are so dangerous.

The only lawful E bikes are those that assist pedalling with a 250 Watt motor where the power cuts out at 15mph. Most competent cyclists can exceed 15 mph without assistance.

Reading the article it appears the offender had a lawful vehicle.

E scooters are illegal on the street ( other than authorised council schemes) and what are effectively E motor cycles require the same stuff that petrol motorcycles require.

I live in a town with a pedestrian only centre. Bikes as far as I'm aware are allowed through however the amount of delivery drivers on e-bikes (with really big thick tyres - I don't know anything about these but they don't even look like push bikes) going through at such speed makes it scary to walk through sometimes, especially with small children in tow. I think e-bikes should have the same rules as motorbikes. I don't know how this would be enforced though

The only lawful E bikes are those that assist pedalling with a 250 Watt motor where the power cuts out at 15mph. Most competent cyclists can exceed 15 mph without assistance.

But surely those are only allowed on the road @Nolongera ?
And they are bigger and heavier than a standard pedal cycle so can do more damage hitting a pedestrian.

But the authorised schemes in places like Cambridge include bikes that easily surpass 15mph and yet there is no insurance requirement and the riders are on roads (and pavements) with no helmets and no means of identification.

Cambridge also has an e scooter scheme and some riders are an absolute menace.

Well yes, the same rules apply to them as normal cyclists.

Hence his conviction, the problem here is on the pavement,not the e cycle, I thought that was obvious.

We have so many electric scooter around here and the kids seem to be getting younger.
I was ran into by a electric wheelchair as the old person couldn't manage it, was a shame as they needed the chair to be mobile but was unsafe to drive it.

UK authorised scooter scheme.

To use a rented e-scooter legally in a trial area, you must:
Hold a valid driving licence (full or provisional) with a category Q entitlement.
Be covered by insurance, which is provided by the rental company.
Adhere to local rules, which may include a maximum speed of 15.5 mph or a lower limit set by the local council.
Ride alone; carrying passengers is not permitted.
Never use a mobile phone while riding.
Do not ride on pavements.

I can find no evidence of a Cambridge authorised electric cycle scheme , authorised or not they are not permitted to be electrically powered over 15 mph.

I don't think anyone thinks they should be do they?? Hence this conviction.

Totally agree. They need to be on the road only. It needs to be much more forcefully policed nationwide.

A couple of years ago my DD1 was injured by one after a night out with friends in London. It was a takeaway delivery rider who was haring at speed along the footpath in the West End. She was actually knocked unconscious for a few minutes and lost part of a front tooth, which has had to be rebuilt

Fortunately DD's friends were still with her and helped get her to A and E, where she was checked over before being discharged. DH and I drove up to collect her from her house in London the next day and she spent a couple of weeks with us recovering. She wasn't seriously injured as it turned out, and made a full recovery, but it was just luck that it wasn't so much worse.

The police were called to the incident but didn't show up and we were generally useless. They only issued a crime number and tried to claim that there would be no cctv footage despite this being in a very busy part of the West End.

Nothing bigger than a balance bike should be on a pavement.

Blimey! You’re invested in this thread. The ones I see are the delivery drivers - zero respect for pedestrians or rules of the road.

Agree.

I think it may be necessary to have another look at e-bikes in general though. I see them causing a lot of problems in the city here, they are just so fast. When there wren't as many it wasn't really such a big deal but now they are multiplied so that they seem to represent about a third of the bikes I see on the road. More if you count the rentable scooters.

I've never thought bikes need to be licensed, but I am somewhat changing my mind on this. In part because of e-bikes - but also because the driving now for all bikes in the city is far more complicated with special lanes, special lights, and just increased traffic. People need to show they understand safe biking practices and be accountable. Including kids if they are biking in the normal bike traffic. Their age doesn't make it less of a problem if they try and pass a car making a right turn while they are in a bike lane.

I genuinely thought that cycling on the pavement was illegal unless it was a small child.

It is.

I probably am, but I am not making stuff up.

You may as well start a thread entitled "People shouldn't be breaking and entering - AIBU?" Of course bikes, E or otherwise, shouldn't be ridden on pavements unless they are designated shared paths as it is against the law.
There are already perfectly adequate laws governing the use of E bikes. The problem is failure to enforce. As a PP has already stated, in the UK and the EU E bikes must be pedal assist only and only receive motor assurance up to 25kph which is a speed plenty of cyclists exceed on regular bikes anyway. Any bike that moves without the rider pedalling or is assisted beyond this speed is already illegal or is classed as an electric motorbike and already does need a driving licence and insurance.
The problem is humans, not E bikes. E bikes are not a menace - people who ride them illegally are. Just like people who ride regular bikes, motorbikes, quadbikes or drive cars illegally and incompetently are. People who ride illegal bikes or break the Highway Code are already breaking the law and most of them know they are. Adding further rules won't suddenly make them see the light and become model citizens but could make life unnecessarily difficult for law abiding riders. Enforcement of the existing laws would do the job nicely. The issue is inadequate policing not inadequate legislation. That said, I'd like to see hefty fines for delivery companies if people riding on their behalf are caught breaking the law. I think that would significantly cut the number of illegal bikes on the streets of many towns and cities.

Nobikes should be on the path. It's illegal and dangerous.
Unfortunately there's no deterrent so lawbreakers and people who couldn't give a fig carry on.