Cycleists should have to take a test

I'm a cyclist/motorist. I ride my bike as I drive my car. I don't cut in as I know how annoying it is, and I don't ride along lines of stopped traffic for the same reason. I don't ignore red lights either. I do find that I notice FAR more morons driving cars when I'm on my bike than when I'm driving. I think people with car/motorcycle licences need not take a test, but at least Cycling Proficiency should be made compulsory in schools.

I still haven't come a cropper yet, but the way things are going it won't be long!
 
and I don't ride along lines of stopped traffic for the same reason
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Riding through halted traffic is perfectly safe, as long as space..obviously don't bomb down the road, go at a speed which if a idiot car driver opens there door to empty fags, then at least can stop. Or give plenty of room, and watch oncoming traffic, pay attention to any right hand turns as someone could cut right in front of you. That's the joy of bikes, can cut through traffic jams :-)
 
Must admit when I used to cycle to work you did have to be fairly aggressive, ridding towards the middle of the road otherwise you'd end up forced in the gutter. Never rode on the pavements though, not that much of a ****. Did ignore the lights too, not blindly though, being hit by a car hurts.

Fog
 
hate it when bike users go through red lights... if their on the road surely they should abide to road rules?

actually seen a wee accident where a woman was hit by a guy on a bike cus he went through a red light... the woman had a green man to cross :(
 
burnsy2023 said:
You're one of the few.

I hate cyclists who blatently run red lights. It's one of my pet hates.:mad::mad:

Burnsy
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I was waiting at lights, lights went red, green man, car stopped whilst half way she decided to speed off..had to step backwards otherwise would've gone over the bonnet. So it's not just cyclists either.

BMX's and people on MTB are usually the worst culprits, those on tourers and road bikes are usually sensible...don't kerb hop, because they can't.
 
The amount of people that would quit cycling if a compulsory test was introduced would negate the resulting benefits of the test.

Just as forcing people to wear helmets does more harm than good and shouldn't be introduced.
 
As (theoretical) road users they should have to pass a competancy test before being allowed to ride a bike in public. I'd even go as far as to suggest that they should have to display a licence/identification plate so that they can be held accountable for their actions.
I can't even begin to convey the contempt I have for about 75% of London cyclists.
 
Of course they should, and they should be insured too!

My mate's car (a Fiesta) was wrecked by two cyclists just belting out of a junction and hitting the front of his motor! My mate couldn't carry on, yet the two cyclists could quite easily pick their rides up and go, even though they were both on the public highway!

Just how does one claim against someone who isn't insured, taxed or licenced?
 
Simon said:
I'd be happy if they simply learnt what Red lights meant
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So true :(.
We don't need a test, taht would stop kids cycling. What we need is police on the street issuing fines for cyclists. Gloucster road would be a much better cash crop than speeding. red lights, paths, speeding, no lights etc etc.
 
Simon said:
I'd be happy if they simply learnt what Red lights meant
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Honestly, as a cyclist, that is one of my biggest pet hates. Everyday I cycle into London and everyday I see the same guy, he jumps every set of lights without fail and then rides like a total granny in between, thus he gets nowhere and I'm always well ahead of him by the time we get to waterloo anyway.

As mentioned by a few others you do need cycle aggressively because otherwise you do get people trying to push you around, but it is perfectly possible to do this and stay inside the law. It is worrying the lack of road skill that some cyclists display and I'm not going to shy away from that fact, but it is also worrying how often drivers simply don't notice cyclists until the last minute.

As badbob said, the more 'casual' cyclists on MTB's and BMX's tend to be worse, as roadies obviously spend a lot more time on the road by nature so generally have better road skills, tend to ride a lot quicker (its not uncommon to be riding at near 30mph, so your not holding cars up really) and don't jump off and on the road.
 
The problem I have with cyclists is their totaly arrogance regarding rural road use. They seem to think that, because it's a country road, and they are a cyclist, they don't have to give way to traffic. That can ride side by side, or in the middle of the lane, around twisty country roads thereby forcing a line of vehicles to trail along behind at 20mph because they can't see if it's safe to go right over into the other lane to get past. Or that it's perfectly acceptable to be so out of control of the cycle that they wobble about like a drunken butterfly and then expect every other road user to get a ton or so of metal out of their suddenly random path.

The amount of times I've seen families of amatuer cyclist families wobbling around like a living representation of brownian motion because "it's a nice Sunday morning, we should all go out for a family ride in the country.... now where's my old bike that I haven't ridden for about a decade"

FFS, learn to ride properly before you go out, and respect the fact that you will only be doing 20 in a 60 limit, and therefore that others will want to get past you safely, so move over, ride single file and try not to swerve into the middle of the road randomly when there is traffic behind.

Oh, and use lights, reflective jackets and so on. Just because you can see our bright lights hurtling towards you in the twilight, it doesn't mean we can see you!
 
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