Cycling on Pavements

[Marcia123]

Hello everyone. It seems since the beginning of Covid I'm finding more people cycling on the pavements.

I'm not against cyclists but we only get kids learning and cycling along side parents who are on the road. But now I'm not only dodging scooters, dog mess and now I'm dodging bikes at speed whilst walking. The government pushed car owners into a tiny lane, made most bike lanes as big as a bus lane in Southwark yet cyclists go on the pavement. All the shops which have delivery collection such as Mcds,KFC,Pizzas and other restaurants seem to think park your bike on the pavement and then cycle on pavement. It's getting ridiculous and no one says a thing. Yet there is a big lane out on the road for them to use.

They say scooters cause accidents what about a bike.

Can the councillors not question Southwark about this?

[Jenijenjen]

I once remonstrated with a woman cycling on the pavement in Dulwich Village. I was told not to be rude!

[Annie5]

Luckily my hearing is ok so am aware when a cyclist is coming up behind me on the pavement. For people whose hearing is not so good this could really be an issue ......

[rachp]

I wasn?t aware we have many/any cycle lanes to not be using in Dulwich?

[Marcia123]

Around Southwark Yes..

Whether or not In Dulwich Cyclists should be on the Road not pavement. You learn to cycle get a competent certificate and then go on the roads. If your not confident enough practice in the parks not by riding on the pavement.

[rachp]

It is easier said than done with young kids, especially as you need to get them to the park in the first place. Personally I'm not willing to let my 7 year old cycle on Lordship Lane so we either give up on the bike or there are stretches where he needs to be on the pavement.

I completely get your point, if there's a cycle lane, use it, and you certainly shouldn't be whizzing past people on the pavement and putting them in danger.

[Marcia123]

Yes as said before I appreciate with young kids because usually thee child on the pavement and the parent on the road.

Now though you mainly see adults on pavements.

It's an accident waiting to happen.

[Nigello]

Adults of a certain ilk thinkg that because they are eitehr carrying tot (precariously but cutely) or shepherding them, they can ride on pavements, be it at night, day, when it's busy with lots of pedestrians or where it's a particulaly narrow stretch. It is called entitlement, selfishness or hubris, epithets they'd likely chuck readily and with a certain amount of venom at politicians, etc. whose own disregard for the rules somehow is different from theirs.

[ab29]

"I'm not only dodging scooters, dog mess and now I'm dodging bikes at speed whilst walking (...)" Totally agree. Add joggers, scooters, electric scooters, skateboards, electric skateboards, rollerblades etc. to the mix.

The pavements are - and should be - predominantly for pedestrians.

[Nigello]

Agreed - pedestrians and wheelchair/mobility vehicle users only at all times.

[gabys1st]

As a powerchair user I find cyclists on pavements scary. Young children with an adult are usually OK asadult will tell them to avoid me. However faast older cyslists send me into a panic as come, and dont know if coming towards me which side they will go,if behind me don't alwayas hear them.

[Rockets]

What frustrates me is when you see people cycling on pavements on roads like Court Lane that have, ostensibly, been closed to traffic. The number of times I have been walking down Court Lane or only for a little cyclist to start ringing their bell to encourage me to move to one side as they and one of their parents cycle down the pavement.

[heartblock]

'We are the cyclists'

[smooch]

or where in west dulwich they have created a cycle lane outside all the shops (by the orthodontist) and still adults cycle on the pavement!!!

[Nigello]

Same in Dulwich Village, where money, time and effort has been spent on the *** (daren't say it) but cyclists still barrel through the lights - even the special, cycle-shaped ones - and cycle on the pavement from the Dog to the park, nearly always with requisite dog on lead or child in bucket seat, bobbing along, defying death in jaunty manner.

I don't make a habit of walking in bus lanes or cycle lanes so please don't think you can "just cycle safely because I am a responsible person" on footpaths. It is selfish and not necessary.

[CPR Dave]

Cyclists seem to be very, very selfish round here.

[legalalien]

I've nearly been taken out twice by the same woman and her child on Woodwarde, in the closure times where there are no cars on the road to be seen. And there's another lady who rides her cargo bike down half moon lane on the pavement, again not during peak periods, and has forced me to step into the road several times without so much as a nod or a "sorry".

[Rockets]

It's the ding ding of impatient cycling children and their parents approaching at speed from behind you on pavements and when there isn't a car in sight on the closed roads that really annoys.

Ding ding....bike coming through....move out of my way IMMEDIATELY....the problem is the actions of a few tarnishes the perception of everyone else.

[sand12]

This is sadly very dangerous at the moment. I?ve seen three different cyclists take nasty spills on court lane in the past few days. Each time it was male adult cyclists speeding over the traffic calming humps in the road.

The pavements and roads are covered in frost/ice in the mornings. Saw a little one slip down just this morning on the pavement as her younger sibling scooted and the childminder pushed the pram with an infant. All after they had emptied out of a car in the Court Lane cul de sac.

The hill is steep and icy. Pavements are meant to be for pedestrians. I?d advise parents who are cycling with their kids to have them get off and walk their cycles downhill. It isn?t safe especially in the morning. If the road isn?t safe for a stretch, then we were always taught to get off our bikes and walk for a bit till we could get back on the road.

Unfortunately, much of the parent/childminder and child cyclists and scooter groups I see are rushing around to get from one place to another and pretty oblivious to others on the pavements.

My favourite though is seeing the lovely parents parking their SUVs on Court Lane, popping the boot to retrieve a cycle or scooter and a dog and or a pram. This is then seen by the local ?Active Travel? and ?Clean Air? folks as somehow better for the environment and health of locals.

[Rockets]

It is going to be very interesting how the Highway Code changes impact things. There was a lot made by the cycle lobby that they now have right of way at junctions etc over cars but what many failed to mention is pedestrians now have right of way over cyclists in the same situation.

[Marcia123]

Do you know I would probably stop and challenge her. Perhaps she wouldn't do it again. If you stand some what safely in her way forcing her to slow down and and ask her why she's on the pavement. She might not do it again hopefully.

[rachp]

I?m not a fan of SUVs either but if someone is parking on Court Lane with kids and bikes, there is a good chance that they are headed to the park. And herein lies the problem, lots of people, especially with kids don?t cycle on roads because there is insufficient cycling infrastructure to encourage people out of their cars altogether for local journeys. So they drive and add to the problem and so it continues. I can just about getting to Dulwich Park on a combination of quiet residential roads and LTNs but it?s still sketchy in parts and can be pretty stressful with kids in tow. I?m not sure which active travel supporters would seriously hail the example cited as an example of active travel to be celebrated, it?s a symptom of the problem they are campaigning against.

sand12 Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> This is sadly very dangerous at the moment. I?ve

> seen three different cyclists take nasty spills on

> court lane in the past few days. Each time it was

> male adult cyclists speeding over the traffic

> calming humps in the road.

>

> The pavements and roads are covered in frost/ice

> in the mornings. Saw a little one slip down just

> this morning on the pavement as her younger

> sibling scooted and the childminder pushed the

> pram with an infant. All after they had emptied

> out of a car in the Court Lane cul de sac.

>

> The hill is steep and icy. Pavements are meant to

> be for pedestrians. I?d advise parents who are

> cycling with their kids to have them get off and

> walk their cycles downhill. It isn?t safe

> especially in the morning. If the road isn?t safe

> for a stretch, then we were always taught to get

> off our bikes and walk for a bit till we could get

> back on the road.

>

> Unfortunately, much of the parent/childminder and

> child cyclists and scooter groups I see are

> rushing around to get from one place to another

> and pretty oblivious to others on the pavements.

>

> My favourite though is seeing the lovely parents

> parking their SUVs on Court Lane, popping the boot

> to retrieve a cycle or scooter and a dog and or a

> pram. This is then seen by the local ?Active

> Travel? and ?Clean Air? folks as somehow better

> for the environment and health of locals.

[redpost]

Rockets Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> It is going to be very interesting how the Highway

> Code changes impact things. There was a lot made

> by the cycle lobby that they now have right of way

> at junctions etc over cars but what many failed to

> mention is pedestrians now have right of way over

> cyclists in the same situation.

Rubbish, there is no priority for cyclists, all the new rules do is reiterate the need to treat cyclists with respect and don't cut them up or cut them off when they are vulnerable in the middle of the road (ie. treat them like a car).

You really need to stop relying on the DM for your information.

Rule H3:

"You should not cut across cyclists going ahead when turning into or out of a junction or changing direction or lane, just as you would not turn across the path of another motor vehicle. This applies whether cyclists are using a cycle lane, a cycle track, or riding ahead on the road and you should give way to them.

Do not turn at a junction if to do so would cause the cyclist going straight ahead to stop or swerve, just as you would do with a motor vehicle.

You should stop and wait for a safe gap in the flow of cyclists if necessary. This includes when cyclists are:

approaching, passing or moving off from a junction

moving past or waiting alongside stationary or slow-moving traffic

travelling around a roundabout?

As for pedestrians, the old rules said that a pedestrian should be free to cross as long as they have started to cross (ignored by some drivers who beep or ram you when crossing the road).

The new rules say that *waiting* pedestrians should be allowed to cross the road freely by stopping, zero chance of this happening with 99% of london drivers.

[Dogkennelhillbilly]

rachp Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> I?m not sure which active travel supporters

> would seriously hail the example cited as an

> example of active travel to be celebrated, it?s a

> symptom of the problem they are campaigning

> against.

The whole scenario has just been imagined for argumentative purposes. It's a straw man. 🤷‍♂️

[sand12]

Unfortunately, this is not near the court lane park gate. It is in effect a cul de sac on the other end of court lane down in the village. It is extremely dangerous at times as well when people are making three point turns in the limited space and dodging young cyclists as well as the speedy adults coming down the hill.

Some of these people are my neighbours and fellow parents in the village schools. So, it isn?t the beleaguered young mums trying to do the right thing by getting their kids to the park. You do occasionally see them, by the court lane gate, but usually they have prams or dogs.

The sensible thing to do would be to put in a CPZ around the Court Lane gate which I think is going ahead and the Court Lane Cul de Sac at school pick up and drop off times.

rachp Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> I?m not a fan of SUVs either but if someone is

> parking on Court Lane with kids and bikes, there

> is a good chance that they are headed to the park.

> And herein lies the problem, lots of people,

> especially with kids don?t cycle on roads because

> there is insufficient cycling infrastructure to

> encourage people out of their cars altogether for

> local journeys. So they drive and add to the

> problem and so it continues. I can just about

> getting to Dulwich Park on a combination of quiet

> residential roads and LTNs but it?s still sketchy

> in parts and can be pretty stressful with kids in

> tow. I?m not sure which active travel supporters

> would seriously hail the example cited as an

> example of active travel to be celebrated, it?s a

> symptom of the problem they are campaigning

> against.

>

> sand12 Wrote:

> --------------------------------------------------

> -----

> > This is sadly very dangerous at the moment.

> I?ve

> > seen three different cyclists take nasty spills

> on

> > court lane in the past few days. Each time it

> was

> > male adult cyclists speeding over the traffic

> > calming humps in the road.

> >

> > The pavements and roads are covered in

> frost/ice

> > in the mornings. Saw a little one slip down

> just

> > this morning on the pavement as her younger

> > sibling scooted and the childminder pushed the

> > pram with an infant. All after they had emptied

> > out of a car in the Court Lane cul de sac.

> >

> > The hill is steep and icy. Pavements are meant

> to

> > be for pedestrians. I?d advise parents who are

> > cycling with their kids to have them get off

> and

> > walk their cycles downhill. It isn?t safe

> > especially in the morning. If the road isn?t

> safe

> > for a stretch, then we were always taught to

> get

> > off our bikes and walk for a bit till we could

> get

> > back on the road.

> >

> > Unfortunately, much of the parent/childminder

> and

> > child cyclists and scooter groups I see are

> > rushing around to get from one place to another

> > and pretty oblivious to others on the pavements.

>

> >

> > My favourite though is seeing the lovely

> parents

> > parking their SUVs on Court Lane, popping the

> boot

> > to retrieve a cycle or scooter and a dog and or

> a

> > pram. This is then seen by the local ?Active

> > Travel? and ?Clean Air? folks as somehow better

> > for the environment and health of locals.