Number plates for cyclists...

[Hades]

This is what far too many people don't seem to have any sense of. This is also why the punishments for bad driving are so laughable. You are driving a 2+ tonne weapon at speed and if you do something stupid enough then the consequences are massive. It should be a privilege to hold a licence and all this crap about not banning people because they need to get to work should stop. If you cared that much then you shouldn't drive dangerously. No one should risk their lives because another person can't take the care and attention driving requires.

Yep. I'm still recovering from being hit by a car back in March. Injuries so far: Broken leg, broken hand with further soft tissue damage, the other hand has gone numb with nerve issues and I had a second stint in hospital with a very painful and life threatening blood clot on the lung causing it to collapse. None of these are likely to heal 100%.

Penalty for the driver for not paying attention: A one day safety awareness course that he probably slept through. It was a conpany car so his insurance won't even increase. Yippee, that will get him to pay attention in future.

 

[Richie]

Usual comments and whataboutism going on. This thread is about identifying cyclists and enforcing all relevant road rules are applied to every road user... No sure what is deemed unfair about this by some on here.

Some drivers are bad and some are downright dangerous. They skip red lights, cut up other road users and drive very aggressively for the road conditions.

If we can agree that then, surely, we can agree that not all cylcists are angels of the road?

Is it  possible that some cyclists act in a similar way (red lights, cutting up road users and being aggressive on the roads) consciously knowing they can't be identified?

Would the number of occurrences of this reduce if, in the back of their head, they think they might get identified and caught?

 

[TheVoice]

The police, it’s really quite obvious when one has been modded. They only have to ride it for a few minutes to check it’s top speed.

It’s also their job to do it.

I think what @Hotwired is saying is that there isn't any kind of cycle MOT where these things are checked. It isn't the job of the police to stop every single ebike, inspect it and ride it for a few minutes to ensure it complies with the law.

 

[Foghorn Leghorn]

Excellent! Bring it on, and when I'm sporting my registration plate and insurance means now I'm paying for it I'll be riding right in the middle of my lane right on the speed limit, suck it up losers! and I'll still be able to jump the lights like the car drivers do.

 

[I_M_Weasel]

Cadence is just how fast (RPM) you turn the pedals; so even if the bike weighed 5tons and had triangle wheels, it's possible with the right gearing to turn the pedals any cadence you like.

But we won't be achieving that easy 18mph though.

 

[Hades]

Excellent! Bring it on, and when I'm sporting my registration plate and insurance means now I'm paying for it I'll be riding right in the middle of my lane right on the speed limit, suck it up losers! and I'll still be able to jump the lights like the car drivers do.

Isn't the current guidance that cyclists should be riding centrally now? Maybe I'm wrong?

 

[Haggisman]

Usual comments and whataboutism going on. This thread is about identifying cyclists and enforcing all relevant road rules are applied to every road user... No sure what is deemed unfair about this by some on here.

Some drivers are bad and some are downright dangerous. They skip red lights, cut up other road users and drive very aggressively for the road conditions.

If we can agree that then, surely, we can agree that not all cylcists are angels of the road?

Is it  possible that some cyclists act in a similar way (red lights, cutting up road users and being aggressive on the roads) consciously knowing they can't be identified?

Would the number of occurrences of this reduce if, in the back of their head, they think they might get identified and caught?

Yeah, it seems the main argument against this is "car drivers are bad, so lets ignore the bad cyclists"

 

[Foghorn Leghorn]

Isn't the current guidance that cyclists should be riding centrally now? Maybe I'm wrong?

To be fair yes it is. That caused a great deal of anguish amongst the hard of thinking.

 

[b0rn2sk8]

I think what @Hotwired is saying is that there isn't any kind of cycle MOT where these things are checked. It isn't the job of the police to stop every single ebike, inspect it and ride it for a few minutes to ensure it complies with the law.

While true, they are pretty easy to spot from just observing. You don’t need an MOT to enforce this stuff.

The massive motors, massive batteries, not peddling and their speed are dead obvious give aways.

Yes I know that some ebikes are grandfathered in to old rules so they don’t have to peddle but there are so few of those actually on the roads which genuinely are, the chances are they are not.

As I said in a previous post, modified ebikes are not illegal to own. If you are pushing it down the street, it’s perfectly fine and you can do what you want on closed land. The issue is riding it on public roads/spaces. Having an MOT will do nothing to prevent that.

 

[touch]

Usual comments and whataboutism going on. This thread is about identifying cyclists and enforcing all relevant road rules are applied to every road user...

No it's not. The article in the OP is mostly about creating new road rules (eg speed limits for cyclists). So some discussion of how existing road rules work is valid (but maybe not to the extend of some posters with the "all cyclists are bad" and "all car drivers are bad" posts)

 

[Hades]

I think what @Hotwired is saying is that there isn't any kind of cycle MOT where these things are checked. It isn't the job of the police to stop every single ebike, inspect it and ride it for a few minutes to ensure it complies with the law.

Should be easy to spot the illegally modded ones though. They usually have a food delivery box on the back

 

[Deleted User 234324]

To be fair yes it is. That caused a great deal of anguish amongst the hard of thinking.

I can see the articles already, motorists fuming at cyclists hogging all the lanes. Well you wanted them to play by your rules, now they are etc etc

 

[Gregvivi0401]

Car driver and cyclist myself and have found the opposite locally to me to be the case.
I even had to pull my Glock on a car driver last week

Wow not bad. I known there's always idiot's car drivers and cyclists but after highway code changed I have found cyclists using main road where is cycle lane next to them.

 

[Deleted User 234324]

While true, they are pretty easy to spot from just observing. You don’t need an MOT to enforce this stuff.

The massive motors, massive batteries, not peddling and their speed are dead obvious give aways.

Yes I know that some ebikes are grandfathered in to old rules so they don’t have to peddle but there are so few of those actually on the roads which genuinely are, the chances are they are not.

As I said in a previous post, modified ebikes are not illegal to own. If you are pushing it down the street, it’s perfectly fine and you can do what you want on closed land. The issue is riding it on public roads/spaces. Having an MOT will do nothing to prevent that.

There's a bloke who rides between Torquay and Newton Abbot on a modded halfords special, flies past me on a hill at 30mph+, got a 1000w hub drive bafang motor on the rear wheel. The legal limit is 250w, he doesn't care, no one says a thing.

 

[Bear]

Yeah, it seems the main argument against this is "car drivers are bad, so lets ignore the bad cyclists"

No, the argument is that the ideas seem to be not realistically implementable and just an exercise to throw red meat to angry gammons

 

[inflames]

I have been saying this for years, but can’t ever see it happening.

 

[hood1971]

Isn't the current guidance that cyclists should be riding centrally now? Maybe I'm wrong?

If the road conditions make it unsafe to pass then they should ride centrally.

 

[Foghorn Leghorn]

I have been saying this for years, but can’t ever see it happening.

Of course it's not going to happen, it's Grant Shapps, I'd be amazed if he could spell his name correctly without assistance

 

[b0rn2sk8]

There's a bloke who rides between Torquay and Newton Abbot on a modded halfords special, flies past me on a hill at 30mph+, got a 1000w hub drive bafang motor on the rear wheel. The legal limit is 250w, he doesn't care, no one says a thing.

Yup, it’s absolutely happening but I can’t see any other way they could be stopped outside of the police actually being out and about with the relevant knowledge they need to enforce the current rules.

I suppose you could stop him, but I doubt the police will take any action on the information. It’s just not a priority unless they take out a pedestrian.

That said, I think the 250w limit should be higher, perhaps 350w but the 15mph top speed is perfectly sensible as is the current rate they can accelerate. I only propose the extra power to assist heavier riders up inclines.

 

[Richie]

No, the argument is that the ideas seem to be not realistically implementable and just an exercise to throw red meat to angry gammons

The ideas could be implemented though. You don't need to stick ID plates on the bikes. Cyclists could be required to have high vis vests with the assigned ID printed on the back and are required to wear at all times when on the bike.

Could be cloned - yes but so can number plates.
Could be deliberately obscured/defaced/modified - yes but so can number plates.
Could "forget" to wear - yes but plates can "fall off"

No it's not. The article in the OP is mostly about creating new road rules (eg speed limits for cyclists). So some discussion of how existing road rules work is valid (but maybe not to the extend of some posters with the "all cyclists are bad" and "all car drivers are bad" posts)

I say Applying/extending existing rules, you say creating new ones - let's not get caught up in semantics and a end up in a Dowie hole - What are your thoughts on speed limits for cyclists?