CYCLISTS A DANGER TO THE PUBLIC

CYCLISTS
For over 15 years I have been complaining about Cyclists riding on the pavement, riding the wrong way up one way street, ignoring traffic lights etc but over the years I have given up telling people to get of the pavement. Why do they ride on the pavement and ignore most of the traffic laws? It seems once somebody mounts a bicycle they become a rebel to the establishment. There main excuse is that the roads are too dangerous and pavements are safer, for whom? Certainly not the pedestrian, I said many years ago people would get injured by these cyclists. There have been reports of fatalities and in the paper last week a 52 year old woman was knocked over by 17 year old cyclists as she came out of a Supermarket she is in a critical condition. This was compounded when a leading Cycle Experts stated that cyclists should never be prosecuted for being involved in accident with a car, as the car driver would always be at fault, can I say what sort of idiot statement is that. I would be more tolerant if the those cyclists had manners, the path outside my house is only wide enough for two people yet we still have cyclists riding at very high speeds although it is mainly school kids and the worst time being finish of school, we still have adults the worst are those kitted out in complete cycle regalia occasionally you will get a cyclist who see there are people walking on the pavement and they will wait till everyone passes or get of an walk. Although they should not be on the pavement at least they are thinking of other people. The Police as per usual do not want to know and more interested in arresting people for using racist or homophobic language, so what can we do? Nothing. Surely the time has come for Cycles to Road taxed, Insured and MOT like they do in other countries especially as the amount of Cycle Lanes being installed is becoming a drain on public finance and before you say that Car Lover Clarke I do own a cycle.
Cycles are, in law, carriages (as a consequence of the Taylor v Goodwin judgment in 1879) and should be on the road not pavement.

Martin Clarke Sittingbourne