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Old December 10th 12, 11:18 PM posted to uk.rec.cycling
Bertie Wooster[_2_]
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Posts: 2,958
Default Pavement cyclist loses in court

On Mon, 10 Dec 2012 21:57:02 +0000, JNugent
wrote:

On 10/12/2012 20:07, Mrcheerful wrote:

Mr Arnold, who cycles to Cambridge station daily, was caught in an operation
by special officers who said residents were angry at cyclists avoiding
traffic lights by riding on pavements.

The 35-year-old, who was convicted of riding a pedal cycle on a footpath
after a one-hour trial at Cambridge Magistrates' Court, was one of 40
cyclists caught at the junction of Arbury Road and Milton Road on September
6 - but chose to fight his case as he said the path followed on from a
shared use pavement and there was nothing to show it was illegal to cycle
there.

A Cambridgeshire County Council spokesman said: "Shared use footpaths are
clearly marked and our advice to cyclists would be that unless the footpath
is clearly signed as such they should not use it as a cycleway."

Looking on google earth the pavements are awash with cyclists, it must be
awful for pedestrians.

http://www.cambridge-news.co.uk/News...t-06122012.htm


I see that the cyclist was "given a criminal record" and that the:

"... Arbury Court resident was fined £30 plus a £15 victim surcharge.
Fixed penalty notices on the day involve a £30 fine".

Bearing in mind that he must have been *observed* committing this mean,
nasty, selfish, offence, he should have had an additional exemplary fine
(say, £1,000) for wasting the time, and insulting the intelligence of,
the court and all involved.


While I wouldn't put his offence in the same terms as you, I'm minded
to agree of the order of the fine you suggest should have been
imposed.

A one hour trial must cost something in the region of £1000.

As an alternative to court and such a fine, I propose he should have
been given a meaningful act of public duty to carry out, such as
removing all the D-locks, without bike attached, some cyclists leave
attached to public bike stands.
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