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IANAL etc...
Original 1997 legislation here
Amended 2004 hereOriginal wording is
'Speeds at which vehicles may be driven or ridden on a Park road'
I would guess their argument is that a bicycle is a ridden vehicle. Here (a website in association with the royal parks) there is
speed limits on the park roads apply to pedal cycles as well as other vehicles
I know there's been plenty of argument, but as its covered under a different piece of legislation than public roads it is a very grey area. I guess someone needs to challenge it and set a precedent!
Edit: Slater and Gordon have a piece here that backs up that interpretation of the Royal Parks bylaws.
hamrack-
And for the sake of completeness, both the 1997 Regulations and the 2004 amendments are secondary legislation made under primary legislation in the form of section 2(1) of the Parks Regulation (Amendment) Act 1926 which reads as follows:
'Subject to the provisions of this Act, the Commissioners of Works may make such regulations to be observed by persons using any park to which the principal Act applies, as they consider necessary for securing the proper management of the park, and the preservation of order and prevention of abuses therein, and if any person fails to comply with, or acts in contravention of, any regulations so made, he shall be guilty of an offence against the principal Act and shall be liable on conviction thereof by a court of summary jurisdiction to a penalty not exceeding level 1 on the standard scale.'
My view, and IIAL, is that the term 'vehicle' invariably includes bicycles in other contexts, and that while the imposition of a speed limit in the Royal Parks differs in that regard from the speed limits imposed generally by the Road Traffic Act, the latter uses the term 'motor vehicles' while the Royal Parks regulations do not.
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Isn't there also the problem with determining the speed of the bicycle- something about the speed guns not being calibrated for bikes. (might be talking out of my arse)
Brommers
salmonchild
What's the latest thinking on whether the 20 mph speed limit in the Royal Parks is applicable to cyclists? Bonus points for referencing the actual legislation.