5 ms·

When cycling to the train station (as part of my commute) almost half of the way I use the sidewalk. Do I break the law? Yes. Do I care? No. The road next the s

When cycling to the train station (as part of my commute) almost half of the way I use the sidewalk. Do I break the law? Yes. Do I care? No. The road next the sidewalk is busy and I'm relatively slow for a cyclist - both due to my personal fitness and due to the route being mostly up a hill.

PaulRobinson 4y ago
Cyclists on sidewalks are the reason why most non-cycling pedestrians despise cyclists. I’ve walked along a pavement in London, and a cyclist has come towards me at over 20mph when there is a cycle lane just 6 feet away - that cost hundreds of thousands of pounds in public money to install - is completely empty and unobstructed, and it was utterly terrifying and very, very frustrating. I don’t want cyclists to be in danger - and I always give plenty of room to them when driving - but at the same time, I’ve yet to encounter a more selfish and tone-deaf community of road users in London, particularly the pavement riders. If you don’t feel safe cycling on the road, please don’t cycle at all: stop endangering pedestrians and making life worse for everyone (including other cyclists).
- ClumsyPilot 4y ago
  > stop endangering pedestrians and making life worse for everyone > it was utterly terrifying So you are terrified of a 15 kg bicycle, but you don't accept that maybe cyclists are terriefied of a 15,000 kg vehicle driven by a nutcase? I've beed cycling for 10 years, I have never hit a pedestrian and I dont know any cyclist who has. I've been hit by a car 3 times. London cycling experience, my wife was grazed by a motorbike in a cycle lane (!) going at proper 30 Mph+ I had a sportscar drive up to me and start swerving agressively threatening to hit me while the driver shouted obceneties. This was 11PM, I am cycling on a left side of the three-lane road, no-one else around. We are not talking about 'driver ran red light', we are talking of 'driver escaped a mental asylum'. When it's raining I cycle on pavement - the visibility is too poor and breaking path is too long if I meet another idiot, I am dead. Obviously you go slower on pavement, and usually pavements are empty in the rain. Some cycle paths are actually protected by a curb, but others are just a bit of paint of the ground, often used for parking or just plain driven in
  - PaulRobinson 4y ago
    Pedestrians have been killed by cyclists. Please don’t pretend that the dangers you have observed mean you are entitled to endanger others. It’s sad you’ve suffered this behaviour and come to injury, but this does not mean you get to behave terribly to other people and wave it away and say it’s motorists’ fault.
    - ClumsyPilot 4y ago
      Are you aware many paths are shared use, some pavements, footpaths at the canal, etc? Do you avoid then? Zero pedestrians were killed last year, and the year before that. Stastically more people are killed by cheese. Cycling on the pavement considerately does not 'Inflict terror', but some people do speed and act incosiderately - mostly I see deliveroo drivers do this.
      - PaulRobinson 4y ago
        Department for Transport figures for the UK suggest an average of ~4 deaths per year by cyclists killing pedestrians since 2010. It is little surprise this number dropped during lockdown restrictions. I can't find numbers for hospital admissions, but I'd wager it's a multiple, and some of those injuries will be life changing. I don't know why you think the employer of the cyclist has some bearing on the safety or otherwise of cyclists on pavements. It's illegal regardless of their job. I can not grasp any reason why anybody would argue that cycling on pavements is a good and fine thing. I doubt you see my point that is illegal for a reason, should be more vigorously enforced and is morally disgusting. As we'll never agree with each other, we should probably stop now.
      - cassianoleal 4y ago
        > mostly I see deliveroo drivers do this. In my neighbourhood it's mostly teenagers. Sometimes speeding on e-bikes, those are actually terrifying. A lot of the time when the road is completely free. They are the minority though, and indeed even though I have seen and been on some close calls, I have never seen one of them actually crashing into a pedestrian. Bad, but yeah - not as bad as cheese. :D
- where-group-by 4y ago
  I don't live in London. The route part I use the sidewalk is 0.6 miles long (checked on Google maps) and I go past maybe 10 people at the busiest of days.

PaulRobinson 4y ago

Cyclists on sidewalks are the reason why most non-cycling pedestrians despise cyclists. I’ve walked along a pavement in London, and a cyclist has come towards me at over 20mph when there is a cycle lane just 6 feet away - that cost hundreds of thousands of pounds in public money to install - is completely empty and unobstructed, and it was utterly terrifying and very, very frustrating. I don’t want cyclists to be in danger - and I always give plenty of room to them when driving - but at the same time, I’ve yet to encounter a more selfish and tone-deaf community of road users in London, particularly the pavement riders. If you don’t feel safe cycling on the road, please don’t cycle at all: stop endangering pedestrians and making life worse for everyone (including other cyclists).

ClumsyPilot 4y ago
> stop endangering pedestrians and making life worse for everyone > it was utterly terrifying So you are terrified of a 15 kg bicycle, but you don't accept that maybe cyclists are terriefied of a 15,000 kg vehicle driven by a nutcase? I've beed cycling for 10 years, I have never hit a pedestrian and I dont know any cyclist who has. I've been hit by a car 3 times. London cycling experience, my wife was grazed by a motorbike in a cycle lane (!) going at proper 30 Mph+ I had a sportscar drive up to me and start swerving agressively threatening to hit me while the driver shouted obceneties. This was 11PM, I am cycling on a left side of the three-lane road, no-one else around. We are not talking about 'driver ran red light', we are talking of 'driver escaped a mental asylum'. When it's raining I cycle on pavement - the visibility is too poor and breaking path is too long if I meet another idiot, I am dead. Obviously you go slower on pavement, and usually pavements are empty in the rain. Some cycle paths are actually protected by a curb, but others are just a bit of paint of the ground, often used for parking or just plain driven in
- PaulRobinson 4y ago
  Pedestrians have been killed by cyclists. Please don’t pretend that the dangers you have observed mean you are entitled to endanger others. It’s sad you’ve suffered this behaviour and come to injury, but this does not mean you get to behave terribly to other people and wave it away and say it’s motorists’ fault.
  - ClumsyPilot 4y ago
    Are you aware many paths are shared use, some pavements, footpaths at the canal, etc? Do you avoid then? Zero pedestrians were killed last year, and the year before that. Stastically more people are killed by cheese. Cycling on the pavement considerately does not 'Inflict terror', but some people do speed and act incosiderately - mostly I see deliveroo drivers do this.
    - PaulRobinson 4y ago
      Department for Transport figures for the UK suggest an average of ~4 deaths per year by cyclists killing pedestrians since 2010. It is little surprise this number dropped during lockdown restrictions. I can't find numbers for hospital admissions, but I'd wager it's a multiple, and some of those injuries will be life changing. I don't know why you think the employer of the cyclist has some bearing on the safety or otherwise of cyclists on pavements. It's illegal regardless of their job. I can not grasp any reason why anybody would argue that cycling on pavements is a good and fine thing. I doubt you see my point that is illegal for a reason, should be more vigorously enforced and is morally disgusting. As we'll never agree with each other, we should probably stop now.
    - cassianoleal 4y ago
      > mostly I see deliveroo drivers do this. In my neighbourhood it's mostly teenagers. Sometimes speeding on e-bikes, those are actually terrifying. A lot of the time when the road is completely free. They are the minority though, and indeed even though I have seen and been on some close calls, I have never seen one of them actually crashing into a pedestrian. Bad, but yeah - not as bad as cheese. :D
where-group-by 4y ago
I don't live in London. The route part I use the sidewalk is 0.6 miles long (checked on Google maps) and I go past maybe 10 people at the busiest of days.