Topic: Bicycles

[flowerofshona2007]

Ok i drove home last nigh and passed/saw 31 bikes on the road of those only 2 had lights on front and back !!
What i dont understand is this... If its illegal to ride a bike in the dark without lights front and back why are bikes not fitted with lights when they are made ???????? If i buy a car, motorbike they have lights fitted.
If i drive down the road with no lights on my car i will get stopped, but bike riders are ignored !
I laugh when i see the 'Think bike' adverts, why should i think about them if they can not think about themselves and take responsablity for their own safety ! a small flashing light on a ruck sack is not legal, lights at the front are needed to give drives a fighting chance to see them  :-\
Why can manufactures not be made to put dynamo lights on ALL new bikes ??
Sorry just makes me mad that car drivers are ment to see idiots in dark clothes with no lights on in the dark.

[Phil G]

Bicycles are not supplied with lights because it's up to the rider whether they want to ride in the dark. That makes it an optional extra.
Lights have to be removable so they are liable to get nicked if they are left on the bike. If they are made permanent on the bike then they are an unnecessary weight for those who only cycle during daylight hours.

Like you, I'm amazed at the number of cyclists who ride in the dark without lights. I can only assume that they are blind australians who are unaware that it is winter in the northern hemisphere. If they weren't so difficult to see from a distance I would have more time to aim my car at them and swipe them off the road before they cause any other motorist some grief.

[flowerofshona2007]

But i could say i don't drive my car at night and dont need lights ??? not sure i would get away with that on the MOT  ;D
If all bikes had lights fitted like in Holland there would be no need to nick bike lights.

[Phil G]

Car lights are a very small proportion of the total weight of a car. If you fix lights to a bike then you have the weight of the battery (or dynamo) AND the mountings. That is a much greater relative weight on a bike. For those of us who only cycle in the daylight, the addition of unnecessary lights would be an unwelcome imposition.

[flowerofshona2007]

The new lights are very light and the answer to the weigh is not to have so much in the rucksack  ;D sorry the weight issue does not hold up when you are talking about safety of both the bike rider and the car drivers ! And its the law at the end of the day.
When i rode to school we had to pass a cycling test and all bikes where checked as they left at the end of the day to make sure the lights where on, no lights no riding a bike to school ! why they do not do this now is behond me !
Don't get me wrong i agree with more bikes but why should drivers have to abide by the laws of the road and bkies not have to ???

[asbean]

And the ones who ride without lights are the ones who ALWAYS jump the lights, ride on the pavements, and ride the wrong way in one-way streets.  And they are also the ones who wear dark clothing.  >:( >:( >:( >:(

[Phil G]

And the ones who ride without lights are the ones who ALWAYS jump the lights, ride on the pavements, and ride the wrong way in one-way streets.  And they are also the ones who wear dark clothing.  >:( >:( >:( >:(

I don't jump lights, I don't ride on the pavement and I don't ride down the wrong way on one-way streets. I don't have lights on my bike and I don't ride in the dark.
That's your theory debunked.  ;D

[flowerofshona2007]

Well you in a BIG minority !!!
We saw 2 bikes last night nip onto the pavement to avoid the traffic lights, 3-4 scraped down the side of cars one almost took the paint of one car, one shot onto the pavement to avoid a que of traffic nd a few ccled over a zebra crossing, not getting OFF their bikes!
But this is about bikes having lights fitted and the argument that 'I dont cycle in the dark' does not hold up or there would not have been so many doing just that last night and evey night !
Sorry but its not one rule for cars and motor bikes and one for cyclists, saftey is for all !!

[asbean]

When one of my sons was in his early teens he and his friend had gone for a bike ride in the country, one Sunday afternoon.  They didn't have lights because they weren't planning to be out in the dark.  However, one of them got a puncture or something, can't remember what, which they managed to repair but it delayed them.  No mobile phones in those days.

They were both too worried about riding back home (probably not more than 3-4 miles) in the dark so found their way to the nearest house and my OH had to take the car out to pick up 2 bikes and 2 boys. I was relieved they didn't risk riding the lanes in the dark with no lights.

So even if you only ride in the daytime - there is always the chance you will get stuck without lights.

[Obelixx]

It's not just cyclists. 

Pedestrians need to think about wearing something light to make them visible.  I have good eyesight and drive carefully (defensive rather than wimpy) but have had several near misses on dark winter mornings with pedestrians in dark clothes leaping out to cross the road without looking first as they rush to or from their morning train or head for their first class of the day.  - It's a school and university town with a fast train to Brussels.

We can all do things to make ourselves more visible on foot or bicycle and all need to be more aware of other road users for the safety of all.

[mummybunny]

We love going on bike rides and i have got caught without lights !!. We decided to go for a bike ride with the little ones we both have a child seat on the back of out bikes and our son rides his own bike. We did the Bristol to bath cycle track set off quite early picnic in tow by the time we got there and had our picnic it was starting to get dark. Wasn't late but very overcast luckily there was an Argos close by and we fitted the adult bikes with lights (my son already had some) By the time we got home it was dark.  Yes i do know it wasnt planned very well but all was good in the end and we had a great day  ;D
 
So like asbean said there is always a chance that you'll get stuck without lights!

And weight isn't really that much of a problem unless your a racer! and even a racer wouldn't go out racing in the dark with no form of lighting!Would they???

Its the cyclists that don't wear helmets that worry me and the parents that don't insist that the kids wear one. Seen far to many accidents involving cyclists not wearing helmets to ever consider not wearing one!

Lucy x

[Phil G]

Well you in a BIG minority !!!

Yes, there are lots of cyclists who obey the rules of the road.
The post I was replying to said "ALWAYS". I was pointing out the error in the statement.

Sorry but its not one rule for cars and motor bikes and one for cyclists, saftey is for all !!

Agreed. However, you have to agree that I'm quite safe without lights on my bike when they would never be switched on because I don't ride in the dark. Cars are different because it's feasible to have permanently attached lights with no weight problem.

[Uncle Joshua]

I don't have lights on my bike because I don't ride it at night.

Something that bugs me about bike lights is those new fancy flashing ones, whats the point? they're off over half the time.

[Phil G]

A flashing light is more noticeable than a light that doesn't flash.

[Uncle Joshua]

A flashing light is more noticeable than a light that doesn't flash.

When its off so much?

[flowerofshona2007]

We saw a few with the flashing lights but they had nothing on the front so a car pulling out of a side road would have no idea there was a bike there !
Its up tot he bike rider if they wear a helmet its their life but by not having lights on they are endangering many others on the road/pavement. THINK CAR !

[mummybunny]

Think it would be pretty upsetting if you did knock them off because they had no lights. Then find out they werent wearing a helmet not a pretty site. I think helmets should be as important as lights.

[Uncle Joshua]

I think helmets should be as important as lights.

I'm guilty of not wearing a helmet, I don't know why I don't, (maybe I've seen it as "uncool") but I will be going out to buy one before I get back on my bike.

[SamLouise]

It's not just cyclists. 

Pedestrians need to think about wearing something light to make them visible.  I have good eyesight and drive carefully (defensive rather than wimpy) but have had several near misses on dark winter mornings with pedestrians in dark clothes

Oops, I was guilty of this last year.  Started work at a new place and have to walk up a remote road by Epping forest to get to the bus stop - no street lights, just me and a little torch (I walked in the hedge, not the road) but a couple of cars tooted me (thought my luck had changed) and my husband said it's because drivers can't see red very well in the dark (my coat colour) so I bought a brighter torch - which I shine on the floor not at the cars! and I got some reflective arm bands with little red flashing lights built in.  I'm a regular walking light display when the clocks change.

[BarriedaleNick]

I ride a bike and always have lights on in the dark - they clip on and off easily - Cyclist who ride without lights cant maon if they get damaged.
What really annoys me is the constant moaning about cyclists when every day I see drivers that don't indicate, ride me into the pavement, pull out without looking, have only one headlight working or no brake lights, produce a cloud of smoke and fumes to rival bonfire night, do indicate and dont turn, open their bloody doors without looking...

I could go on.  Why all the maoning about cyclists - cars kill thousands of people a year - bikes not so many - get it in perspective.