Southwark council fining cyclists at Peckham today

Just a shout out that Southwark council had a whole bunch of council officers fining cyclists for riding on the pavement at the end of Rye Lane here https://goo.gl/maps/SShHU6mtK1z

Most people cut through the last few metres to go straight to the lights where it continues onto the Surrey canal path. A bit frustrating as most of the area is not very clear where you can and can't cycle.

A bit rich, considering most pedestrians seem to treat Rye Lane as shared space anyway!

I thought it's a shared path there?
There's a pavement cycle lane going south against the one-way traffic, but just at the top end it turns into two-way cycle lane to enable cyclists to 'turn right' to get to the bike+ped crossing?

Yeah, most people (including me) heading north in the mornings usually go along that path to get around buses and cut across the paved bit at the end. Supposedly we are meant to stay in the road with the buses only turning right at the end where the northern direction "bike lane" starts going north... The dotted line is the "illegal" bit.

It's really inconsistent generally as it is where the pedestrian and cyclist realms tend to intermingle a lot. There are no obvious signs on the Peckham library forecourt area on the north of this that say it is ok to cycle there or not either... but it seems to be OK! If they don't want cyclists there they should just put a big spraypainted bike with a cross through it rather than fining people!

Oh wow. That is totally ludicrous.
I think there are some tiny "bike ok" signs as you go towards the library but there's no path, it's just freeform. Freeform is okay! Everyone can get along! I think I only ever do the 'approved' route, but it's also noticeable that the bike and ped paths are level and both in normal colours, so it's not like BRIGHT BLUE BIKES GO HERE or raised kerbs/edges to make pedestrians more aware when they're crossing. It is annoying not to be able to filter past buses going north.

Agreed - totally ludicrous.
Someone with too much time on their hands anna uniform / someone has made a complaint so something must be seen to be done. Just guessing thobut...
A fine and noble use of tax-payer's money. Can they actually do that? Stop you, I mean.
I thought it was only uniformed police that can do that -Or has Rye lane become a privately owned road?

Well apparently the council officers have the right to ask for ID when something like this happened. I complained to the guy that it's so inconsistent and not clear what is what, poor design. The bike lane going right at the end of rye lane is only 15m long or so. Here's the street view with the "illegal" path dotted. I think most cyclists tend to just ignore these urban design afterthoughts as often they make little sense. I'm up for a £50 fine for this... ridiculous and have 28 days to pay or can argue it in court. Anyone ever gone through something similar?

You only have to stop for the Police (sometimes).

Everyone else can gtfo.

Obvs, I wasn't there, but I wonder exactly how much of the first PDF here:
http://www.southwark.gov.uk/downloads/download/178/enforcement
was adhered to when they stopped you this morning?
That document is dated 2007 BTW, at which time the current cycle facility on Rye Lane had yet to be built.

I would refuse to both stop and hand over any details unless it was the polis

Local authorities can have authorised officers who are able to issue fixed penalty notices for cycling on the pavement.

But can they make you stop?

Legally yes, practically that depends on what you're prepared to do to not stop.

Speaking as devils advocate here, there is a pretty clear change in surface from the Southbound cycle path (which you'd also cut across) and the pavement.
It sucks, but I can't see how you could complain that its not clear which way you're meant to go

Got stopped by a traffic warden a couple of years ago as I had popped onto the empty pavement to go to a cashpoint. He asked me for my ID at which point I discovered I had left my wallet at home anyway. Asked him where we went from there and he said to wait for the police/pcso who he would radio, so I just walked away and he didn't bother following.

/csb

The thing is that bitumen stops where the lamp post is and the rest of the cyclepath which is southbound turns into the same paved surface as the footway for the next 100 or so metres when it stops and it turns into the road.

I guess my point is that generally even if there is a surface change or not, london wide there is little to no standardisation so I'm not sure what to think. Across the road on the north side of the road they use the same paving and it is seems fine to cycle there, but there are no signs to make it clear.

Reminds me a friend stopped to look at his phone, he was standing astride his bike on the pavement (empty, at night), stationary for a few minutes, when a policeman gave him a stern telling off and threatened to fine him. Really what pointlessness.

when a policeman gave him a stern telling off and threatened to fine him. Really what pointlessness.

And they wonder why people won't help them.

Really, a traffic warden thought he could ask for ID for catching on a pavement with a bike, isn't that a bit above and beyond? No wonder he didn't follow, I am sure if he called the police to attend a cyclist riding on a pavement he wouls have been laughed at.

I'm not hugely up on civil rights, but unless a police officer is telling me to do something they can GTFO, especially someone asking me to hand over ID/personal details.

Fuck me, 4 coppers to catch people cutting 10 yards? Will they fine the pedestrians for using the bike lane as a footway too? How about the lorries and buses that straddle the pedestrian crossing there? How about the suicidals who cross rye lane without looking?

I saw that the other morning. A cyclist was chatting to one of the officers saying how retarded it was. Every day still people just cut across that bit

These enforcement blitzes usually do nothing to improve rider behaviour when the enforcement is not in place and only confirm that the traffic scheme that's there was rubbish in the first place.

Amen.

This is slightly unrelated to being stopped at Peckham, but about a year or so ago, I stopped at the red light at a junction minding my own business. A PCSO came to me, tapped on my shoulder and started telling me how inappropriatly dressed I was while on the bike - it was a sunny summer day, I had a black t-shirt and blue jeans on with a bright colour backpack that had reflectives on... I initially ignored him, then he moved onto telling me that the chances of women cyclists getting killed on the road are higher because of the way we dress. I didn't want to start an argument but I couldn't help but ask him if I had broken the law at all by the way I dress? He said no. I then asked him is it illegal for a law abiding citizen to igonre a law enforcement agent because they are acting like an idiot? Then I cycled on as the green light came on.

During our mostly 1 directional conversation, I witnessed peds jaywalking and cyclists jumping the red. He decided that wearing a black t-shirt riding a bike is the biggest offence out of all...