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  • It’s possible where required to implement speed limits for bikes

    Can you get done for speeding on a bike?
    Generally speaking, on normal public highways, the speed limits do not apply to bicycles. (If you do manage to cycle at 60mph though, please let us know...we'd like to see that).

    The Highway Code and the Road Traffic Act speeding limits apply only to motor vehicles and their drivers.
    However, it is possible for local authorities to impose speed limits on cyclists but this is rarely done. The local council would have to state specifically the limit and the penalty for breaching that limit.

    The case is different however for royal parks. Previously, speed limits in royal parks were applicable to bicycles, because the, The Royal Parks and Other Open Spaces Regulations 1997 amended by the Royal Parks and Other Open Spaces (Amendment) Regulations 2004 outlined that speed limits in the parks applied to all vehicles.

    This was amended to be specific to motor vehicles meaning that it does not apply to bikes. It was then un-amended (revoked) such that speed limits do apply to bicycles in royal parks

  • It’s possible where required to implement speed limits for bikes

    There's a pretty intense debate about cyclists observing the speed limit in Greenwich Park at the moment. There have been two fatalities (maybe three I think) involving cyclists and pedestrians colliding/swerving in recent years and popular opinion (not based in any known facts) is that if they cyclists were observing the speed limit they perhaps would not have lost control.

    AFAIK none of the accident reports or inquests have mentioned speed because how can you know for sure how fast they were going? One of the inquests suggested that the most likely cause of the fatal accident (in the absence of eyewitnesses) was a cyclist trying to avoid a dog or squirrel and losing control. Doesn't stop the locals blaming speeding though. From a park user perspective, now that it is closed to motor vehicles, it is quite jarring to be crossing the road and being buzzed by a roadie doing 30 on the downhill. It is actually quite hard for old folk to cross the road safely...you can start crossing when its clear and end up dodging a cyclist if they are giving it the beans.

    I think the "popular" solution is to speed bump the fuck out of the hill. Not sure how I feel about that.

    https://www.standard.co.uk/news/cyclist-dies-greenwich-park-a4518921.html

    Edit: For balance there have been several deaths of cyclists in collisions with vehicles suspected of speeding in the park too over the lats 15 years or so.

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