RLJ (Red Light Jumping). (The definitive bikeradar thread)

Is it even worth bothering?

What actually happened was that I was approaching the junction of Aldersgate/Long Lane, a police car in front of me goes through on the green and I follow, he waits to turn right into Long Lane and I'm trackstanding behiond and to the right of him. The light turns amber and I think 'Fuck waiting for him to move' so I take the right turning. I hear a shout 'Oi! Red lights are for you as well you know!' now usually I adopt the yes mr.copper, so sorry mr.copper, won't do it again mr.copper attitude as I really can't be arsed with fines. On this occasion though I couldn't help myself in the heat of the moment
"What are you on about? I clearly went through the light when it was green and turned whilst it was on amber to avoid getting caught in the junction",

"No mate, I went through the light when it was amber and you came through 5 seconds after it turned red, I'm gonna have to give you a ticket"

In short WAFFFFFFFFFFC

Is it worth contesting the decision or should I just take this one on the chin for all the times I have jumped reds in front of coppers and they've done nothing?

Its up to you. Worth a shot perhaps but then its just your word against his. Request the CCTV footage perhaps?

Was it yellow hatching?

Nope

I'd at least try and make a complaint. A couple of people I know have made cycling related complaints about police treatment of cyclists recently and have been very well treated at least. Whether you get results is a very different matter of course

That's super duper lame, but I wouldn't have thought you would get anywhere, not when there's potential fine money involved.

If more than one plod in the car then your goose is cooked take it like a man/woman/child. Your still quids up if you RLJ like most.

If you contest the fine and it goes to a magistrate, you will almost certainly lose. That junction is in City of London, just over the line from Islington. It may be worth trying a pleading letter to City of London Police, saying that you are willing to go to them and discuss what happened and how you always obey the traffic law. My guess is that you have about a 10% chance.
Otherwise just pay the fine and think of the times you haven't been caught.

If you contest the fine and it goes to a magistrate, you will almost certainly lose. That junction is in City of London, just over the line from Islington. It may be worth trying a pleading letter to City of London Police, saying that you are willing to go to them and discuss what happened and how you always obey the traffic law. My guess is that you have about a 10% chance.
Otherwise just pay the fine and think of the times you haven't been caught.

I'm a courier so they will almost definitely laugh in my face.

Yep looks like I'm gonna have to take this one and give Gordon Brown £30 to piss away :(

Yep looks like I'm gonna have to take this one and give Gordon Brown £30 to piss away :(

We all know where that money goes now... http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7970731.stm

Not sure if this has already been discussed, but it's in the news today that
Boris Johnson wants a trial of legal left turning for cyclists at red lights:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2009/apr/14/london-boris-johnson-cycling
http://londonist.com/2009/04/cyclists_allowed_to_run_red_lights.php

Seems surprisingly sensible for BoJo. Should definitely be a trial, to see what happens. We may think we will know what happens, but it does need testing.

Interesting that they seem to think that this could help with lorry accidents, but presume these tend to happen when the lights are on green, so would this really help much?

Yeah cheers Boris. All we need is some hair brained scheme that's never going to happen. How about sorting out some real problems - bendy-buses maybe? That you said you'd scrap? Or perhaps just ban HGVs at rush hour?

What a twat.

Interesting that they seem to think that this could help with lorry accidents, but presume these tend to happen when the lights are on green, so would this really help much?

cant see this helping, in fact if anything it will just encourage people to filter down the left side of stationary HGV's to turn left.....problem is if the lights change and the HGV becomes no longer stationary....and we all know what happens then...

Works fine in the states, where they have much wider roads and fewer cyclists, why wouldn't it work here? Oh wait, have I answered my own question there?

I think this is a refreshingly good piece of news considering I usually have nothing but bile for most of Bogus Jamstain's policies.

Allowing cyclists to turn left at reds is a sensible idea as it would help clear the junction, cost nothing to implement and allow cyclists (who don't contribute to traffic) to move on with less hindrance.

In the main it probably would help reduce truck-on-bike left turn-incidents as hopefully the cyclists would be out of the way of truck as it turned from stationary over the top of them having not had to wait at the lights.

Driver and cyclist education is main answer to stopping someone getting squashed.
Of course you could have the filter to the ASL between the two lanes but there would also be accidents with both drivers and cars trying to get into the same space regardless of a cyclists new found right to turn left at red lights(possibly more so as they would have now have to drift across forward traffic to make the left turn or to get to the edge of the lane).

having experienced crashing in to a car that was turning left at lights without indicating, i'm just going to be into it.

BJ is a twat, but he is trying to push some ideas through. rather then just trialing this left Red Light Turn Policy, he should be campaigning to on TV and radio about the hazards of cycling in London, such a HGV's. I'm sure if people were mad aware of the ill's of filtering down the left of a HGV, by say a graffic TV add, then hopefully cycling mortality rates would drop.

cant see this helping, in fact if anything it will just encourage people to filter down the left side of stationary HGV's to turn left.....problem is if the lights change and the HGV becomes no longer stationary....and we all know what happens then...

That was my initial thought.. Don't think it would change the way most of us act but cyclists who are unaware of the dangers of going up the inside of big vehicles on a left turn would have all the more reason to go for it..

Thumbs up.

thumbs down. just an excuse to mash pedestrians.

i've never mashed a ped. not yet anyhow.

Oh. I thought we were already allowed to do this!? Oh dear.

How about sorting out some real problems - bendy-buses maybe?

is bendy buses are really that much of a problem? they hasn't killed anyone yet we're more vocal about that than HGV!

Boris scrapped half the funding for improving cycling in London and he proposed, this, what a laugh.