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Cyclists to be awarded equality with motorists.

Woodface said:
A bell on a road bike is completely useless. I used to have one on a mountain bike as I was using shared trails, I found people hated the sound of it so ended up just saying “excuse me”. I tend to give a verbal warning of coming up behind a horse rider.

It’s just common sense & courtesy.
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I don't have a bell but I call "ring ding a ring ding" and generally get a laugh. I go past at a sensible speed, say thank you and that's it done. I think that there's a legal requirement for some sort of audible warning on a bike, but as I have a voice that will do.
 
Woodface said:
A bell on a road bike is completely useless. I used to have one on a mountain bike as I was using shared trails, I found people hated the sound of it so ended up just saying “excuse me”. I tend to give a verbal warning of coming up behind a horse rider.

It’s just common sense & courtesy.
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I find a single ping one doesn't antagonise, and if followed up with slowing down and a verbal diolch or thankyou when passed, no one feels imposed on.
Face it, on shared areas and paths, bikes are the ones that need to rein in speed, and a sense of entitlement.
Just as on the road...well, who needs to on the road?
 
Brian said:
Hilarious how the usual tough guys are still refusing to accept everyone should be treated equally under the law and that (some) people riding a bicycle should not adhere to the rules of the road.
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Have another look at this post.
Andrew C! said:
The causation and consequences of all such offences deal with use of respective vehicles. The end point is you can’t go and recklessly, intentionally or (by omission) go hurt someone anyway. What size vehicle it is is in proportion to skill, experience and training etc. As I’ve said before, PACE copes with this by pointing out you have to attribute the most specific offence to a given set of circumstances, and there is always the ability to escalate given and attendant aggravating factors.
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Woodface said:
A bell on a road bike is completely useless. I used to have one on a mountain bike as I was using shared trails, I found people hated the sound of it so ended up just saying “excuse me”. I tend to give a verbal warning of coming up behind a horse rider.

It’s just common sense & courtesy.
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I don’t see why it would be useless, especially in the case of a road cyclist out on his or her own, as in the cases I referred to. Why shouldn’t they give other cyclists warning if they intend overtaking (at close quarters) you can’t hear them like you would a car etc.
 
stevec67 said:
I don't have a bell but I call "ring ding a ring ding" and generally get a laugh. I go past at a sensible speed, say thank you and that's it done. I think that there's a legal requirement for some sort of audible warning on a bike, but as I have a voice that will do.
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Quite, I find a polite ‘Ting Ting’ normally goes down well.
 
Has this really descended to cyclists should have bells?

It’s worth remembering that road deaths would be massively reduced if we had automated speed enforcement and fines on urban roads and speed limits reduced by about a third. That’s how you stop people dying on the road. Not by making cyclists have number plates and bells. I’m a motorist and I love the freedom a car gives me, but I’d be happy to see cars (electric and ICE) taxed out of reach of 80% of the population and am convinced the country would be a better place to live if this happened.
 
Bart said:
I don’t see why it would be useless, especially in the case of a road cyclist out on his or her own, as in the cases I referred to. Why shouldn’t they give other cyclists warning if they intend overtaking (at close quarters) you can’t hear them like you would a car etc.
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Background noise makes them pretty much inaudible. I always say “coming through” or “on your right” when climbing, bells don’t really inform other riders where you are.
 
I don't have a bell but I do think their friendly ting quite a welcoming sound, as ever it's all down to tone.
 
tiggers said:
I can’t believe drivers are genuinely moaning about cyclists’ lights being too bright. Firstly were these the same people complaining about those with no lights and secondly do they also complain about the significant numbers of drivers with misaligned headlights? The latter I find far more annoying than bicycle strobes no matter whether I’m driving or cycling.
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I don’t know whether you’re thinking about my post…if you are, I wasn’t referencing brightness but the flashing which causes me visual problems. You called it strobes…are you old enough to remember strobes in clubs in the 70s and their effect? Of course no lights is worse in general. Bright lights I can manage, as I said.
 
clivem2 said:
I don’t know whether you’re thinking about my post…if you are, I wasn’t referencing brightness but the flashing which causes me visual problems. You called it strobes…are you old enough to remember strobes in clubs in the 70s and their effect? Of course no lights is worse in general. Bright lights I can manage, as I said.
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Sorry, I just think cyclists need to use lights and if the best option on the market is a flashing light then so be it. I should not have used the word strobes as the cycle lights are flashing lights with a longer interval between on and off and on again than a typical strobe. I appreciate what you're saying about visual problems and my post wasn't aimed at you per se, it just seems that people can find any number of reasons to denigrate cyclists whereas drivers seem to get a much easier ride (pardon the pun).
 
stevec67 said:
Flashing lights are more noticeable. That's what you need.
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I said something similar in my original post. I may be unusual in having my vision disturbed by flashing…I also intimated this. I wonder whether others struggle with the same. What if motorbikes used flashing lights, surely there’s equal justification there. Small cars such at Fiat 500s too. If most people are ok with this then fine.
 
clivem2 said:
I said something similar in my original post. I may be unusual in having my vision disturbed by flashing…I also intimated this. I wonder whether others struggle with the same. What if motorbikes used flashing lights, surely there’s equal justification there. Small cars such at Fiat 500s too. If most people are ok with this then fine.
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That's what indicators do, so cars do have flashing lights.
 
ff1d1l said:
I find a single ping one doesn't antagonise, and if followed up with slowing down and a verbal diolch or thankyou when passed, no one feels imposed on.
Face it, on shared areas and paths, bikes are the ones that need to rein in speed, and a sense of entitlement.
Just as on the road...well, who needs to on the road?
Click to expand...

Agreed. I have a bell and a polite ‘ting’ and thanks as I pass has been helpful 99% of the time. The other 1% of the time they’re wearing headphones… or are just plain antagonistic..!
 
I've got a bike, you can ride it if you like, it's got a bell and a basket and things to make it look good. I'd give it to you if I could, but I got busted for having no insurance or number plates.
 
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