Scooby Snacks 23

I passed about half a dozen kids this morning (at various stages of my journey to work) delivering papers. It's pitch black outside yet they're riding on the road with no lights and no reflective clothing.

Young kids don't really know about danger, but shouldn't their parents be aware of the dangers of not having lights? Do they not care? There's no way I'd let my son out on a bike if it wasn't properly lit

Gutmann pug

If there was a way they could attach a trailor to the back of their bikes and were allowed a bonfire in the trailor I bet they would. Problem solved

OllyK

Why should they worry - they can always sue if you hit them

ice maiden

maybe it should be a stipulation by the shops that give them the paper rounds....at the end of the day we were all kids once. and did we worry about lights on our bikes then.....did we hell!!!

andythejock01wrx

Ride a bike myself. When I see adults on bikes without lights and helmets I think "Idiot !". As for kids, then the parents are playing Russian Roulette with the sprogs lives !!

Baby Scuff

This has been my pet hate for ages. I encountered one of these idiots on a pitch black 'B' road the first time I drove at night while learning to drive many moons ago, I would prob get the blame if I had hit them. I still stop and give them an earfull of abuse every time I see someone riding with no lights on.

Baby Scuff - Anti Cyclist Road Ranger.

D1CCY

Come and live in Hull. Apparantly its not macho to have lights on bikes here.

jaytc2003

iTrader: (1)

you get more points for knocking them off with no lights.

Seriously though it is a pet hate of mine as well, and i do think it is down to the parents. Get plenty round ours as well, and even though I live in a "quiet" cul de sac they ride round (we are talking a max age of 7 yrs old) with no lights and the parents just say well its quiet! Not really a good example

David Lock

There's lots of kids around here after school when its dark just riding around without lights. Yes parents to blame completely.

As for newspaper rounds I would bet that the newsagent - the employer - has a duty in this regard. After all you wouldn't employ a van driver and disable his lights would you?

TelBoy

What many don't realise is that no light at the front is just as dangerous as not having a light at the back.

J4CKO

iTrader: (1)

Thats funny, I was going to post the exact same thing having had a paper boy on a mountain bike come out of a side road this morning at 7.20 am, on the worng side of the road with no lights.

I must admit I used to do it as a kid to conserve batteries as it was easy to spend more on batteries than you eearnt, but I did only go slowly, on the pavemnt on the round (or pushed it) and used the lights for the ride to and from the shop.

Makes a change to have an acutal boy delivering the papers rather than a surly old bloke in a 206 with a passion for very loud radio 2.

Leslie

There used to be coppers once who would book you for no lights, or riding on the pavement for that matter!

Les

wrx-ian

See people with no lights regularly on my way to/from work. This is on a national speed limit road!!!

Abdabz

I look like a soddin xmas tree when I'm cycling along the roads in the dark... Even my well buffed helmet flashes red with splendour...
Any cyclist not illuminating themselves is very silly person who deserves to die DIE DIE!!!!!!!!!! Kill them KILL THEM ALL!!!!!!!!!!!!

nathanb

iTrader: (1)

Makes me mad that!

andythejock01wrx

So true Les. Seems to be outwith the capacity of the GATSOs that replaced them !!

simplesteve

Well... on my way into work yesterday, I came upon a cyclist on my side of the road, in the middle of the lane, coasting with no hands on his handlebars. I gave a little friendly beep beep to let him know I was there. As I went past him he started swearing, gesturing at me. I stopped the car and got out to ask his problem... of which apparently he had none! I pointed out to him that riding on the road with no hands is definately not in the highway code and I was warning him of my presence. I then explained that I'm not really a morning person and he's lucky I won't be planting his shiny red nose into the tarmac! I then went on my way.... but I'll be looking out for the prat in future! Oh, and he had no lights either...

jaytc2003

iTrader: (1)

Dirty bugger, wouldnt go posting stuff like that on a public forum

adturb

Cyclists- the bain of my life! I drive through south london on my way to work where cyclists (with and without lights) prefer to ride in the road. Normally this wouldn't be too irritating, however there is a cycle lane on the pavement!!!!! Is it just me, or am I getting angry over nothing?!

Simon C

You ain't wrong, I got nicked for speeding!!!! (32 in a 30)

My shop did issue their paper rounds with hi viz vests and that was back in the early 90's.

King RA

Cycle lanes are very rough and predominantly designed for 'casual' cyclists. The fact that you have to stop for every junction they cross greatly reduces their use; It is far quicker and safer to ride on the road. Segregating cyclists in this way greatly increases their danger as car drivers are less used to their presence. To conclude: yes you are getting angry over nothing.

King RA

You stopped your car to have a go at someone swearing at you?? You are unique in the fact most of us have lives to get on with. This coupled with the fact the story is probably true aside from the stopping and lecturing (lets face it, who would EVER do this???....no-one).

corradoboy

As a driving instructor I'm out on the road all day, every day now, and as I aren't driving I can observe not only my pupil, but everything going on on the road. Cyclists are my number one object of hatred, even more than arrogant white van-man, brain-dead taxi drivers and the plethora of foglight using pillocks (mostly people carriers, Peugeots and BMW's ). It is rare to see any cyclist with reasonable safety clothing and equipment, lights are even rarer, and the basic legal requirement of a bell renders just about all the bloody lot of them illegal. In this health & safety obsessed litigious where there's a blame there's a claim culture we live in, the total disregard afforded to these menaces is shocking.

I would love to see all bikes on the public highway be forced to have lights fitted at all times, and the compulsory wearing of at least one item of high visibility clothing. I think anyone under 12 should be restricted to roads with a 30mph limit, and to qualify to go on roads up to 50mph there should be a compulsory cycling proficiency test. Over 16's whom have sat both the CP and an advanced cycling test should then be able to get insurance to travel on all roads except motorways. It really is ridiculous that you can buy your 4 year old a bike, and they are perfectly legally allowed to ride, without any supervision or mandatory training on any public highway, including 70mph dual carriageways amongst 42 tonnne trucks

Flaps

iTrader: (1)

I don't like cyclists either. It just doesn't seem safe and they get in the way!
I think they should be encouraged to use the footpaths. On my way to work i see more cyclists than walkers so why not?!?

Suresh

Holland is full of cyclists and around half ride around in the dark with NO LIGHTS WHATSOEVER . Theoretically they have right of way at a lot of junctions, but if the ******* don't have their lights on then I just don't see them if I'm driving. Nothing dangerous from my side you understand, just a little inconvenience for the unlit cyclist who is forced to stop....

I cycle to work occasionally myself (fully lit of course) and am invariably surprised by one of these lightless buggers coming at me on an unlit cycle path . Occasionally the police set up a checkpoint and dish out 20 quid fines - but not nearly frequently enough.

simplesteve

Well I did!

Robertio

iTrader: (1)

You'd have trouble getting that one through until it applies to other vehicles as well - can remove the headlights from your car if you like as long as it is only used during daylight hours. It's also completely ridiculous IMHO - my bike is only used for a few hundred yards on the road to get to a canal path, why should I have to put lights on to use it for a few hundred yards in daylight?

Given your occupation I assume you do know it is already illegal to cycle at night without lights? and must have pedal reflectors if manufactured since 1985.

No point creating extra laws when there is already one in place to deal with the problem.

Rhana

Bikes should be have to have insurance if they are to go on roads

I saw a guy last week cycling down a badly lit main road holding his mobile phone behind him as a rear light - honestly- what a bell-end

corradoboy

Then apply it to all
Would it pain you so much to walk alongside your bike on the footpath until you reach the canal path, the way all these unlit cyclist should anyhow once it gets dark. This also opens another can of worms about unlawful cycling on the footpath.
Yes, I did.
There is a point if the existing laws are flagrantly disregarded and are in need of updating.

Why shouldn't they take responsibility for their actions as much as car drivers do ?

Robertio

iTrader: (1)

Explain the logic behind that to me. If people ignore one law, how would creating another law to cover exactly the same thing make any difference?
Millions exceed the speed limit every day, do you suggest they introduce another speed limit law to resolve this? how could that possibly help?

You didn't give the exact wording to your new law, so I was unaware I would be allowed to push my bike along the road to get to the canal, thank you for your generosity. I'm glad I wouldn't be expected to carry my bike. I suppose I could just stick it in the back of the car and drive it to the canal instead.
I still fail to understand how me pushing a bike a few hundred yards, rather than cycling it, will benefit the rest of the population though.
Would you also be proposing an MOT for bikes as well? if they are going to have to have lights fitted then surely these will have to be checked on a regular basis to ensure the wattage of the bulbs is OK and that they wont dazzle other road users? in which case you are going to have to introduce height restrictions for mounting locations. Possibly also worth mentioning that unlike cars, bikes do not have a necessary battery source, so even if a bike has lights fitted there is no guarantee they can even be used.
Are we also going to have to genetically modify horses, etc so that they have lighting units fitted as well if they are to be used on the road?

If you propose adding this requirement to all vehicles on the road, then how is it to work with cars with popup headlights? They don't have forward facing external lighting (ignoring pathetic sidelights) at all times. Is your ruling going to insist anyone with such a vehicle spend hundreds of pounds to have their headlighting changed over? I'd be even less enthusiaistic about your new law if I had to modify my RX-7 to comply, unless it would be OK if I could push it along the pavement to get to race tracks?

The last thing this country needs is more laws, it needs less, not more. Then maybe those that exist can be enforced.

I never said cyclists should not have to abide by laws, I walk 6 miles a day to/from work and can do little more than shake my head at people cycling through traffic, in the dark, with no lights on.
To suggest that car drivers take responsibilty for their actions is IMHO a joke. 90% of the population take no responsibility for anything anymore, doesn't matter whether they travel by car, bike or on foot.

In a time when people need to do more exercise, not less, the last thing anyone should want to do is put people off doing exercise.

I tend not to spend much time on here these days, and have no intention of having some sort of debate on this, so will leave it at that.