Pedal reflectors? i think they are a huge help as they really really stand out and can't be confused for anything but a cylist. Personally my bikes have reflective tape all over including on the pedals and I use decent lights if not mega powerful lights but don't really worry over what I am wearing and would never faff about with tabards or sam browne belts or other extra add on gear,
I assume no one has seen me at all times.
I have to say I like the idea of some kind of licence for riding a bike. This has to be one of the few areas in life that can have a major impact on others without recourse.
I consider that if the cycling licence was incorporated into the regular driving licence it would oblige all car drivers to spend time on a bike just so they can get a feeling of what it's like to be a cylist and equally it will be something that the police can remove from rljers and their dickhead mates.
Make drivers more aware, don't give them more excuses.
I consider that if the cycling licence was incorporated into the regular driving licence it would oblige all car drivers to spend time on a bike just so they can get a feeling of what it's like to be a cylist
what if you can't ride a bike ? not all adults can.
I've had people at work state (Times, Telegraph, Daily Mail types...) that hi-viz clothing should be mandatory for cyclists.....
I usualy agree as a cyclist .... which gets thenm nodding at their own wisdom....
I then politely suggest that all cars should be painted statistically safe colours...... which gets an interesting response.....
FWIW I normally commute in hivis + lights reflective tape
Im getting a hi viz next week with "ECILOP" on the front and back,
Like it or not (and I don't) it's on its way. Two weeks ago "the EU" announced that cyclists should be, and I quote, "encouraged" to wear hi-viz. So far we have only seen one form of encouragement come out of Europe and that is compulsion. Perhaps cyclists should be more supportive of the motorcycle world's opposition to similar proposals for "PTW" users.
No great surprise that they are more visible in the half light as that is what they are designed for.
what if you can't ride a bike ? not all adults can.
After many years of just wearing what came out of the drawer I took to wearing hi-viz on the commute (17 miles Bath-Bristol)a few years ago and have this year taken to daylight running LEDs too (Exposure on the front, Smart Lunar on the back).
They're just another tool in the box alongside route choice and general Cyclecraft (riding properly, defensively, assertively etc)
But, like helmets I'm vehemently against compulsion.
Even wearing all that kit I still get too many drivers pull out on me - it's not so much that they 'don't see me' it's that THEY ARE NOT LOOKING or they see me and think "It's only a cyclist".
Plus wearing 'kit' seems to fuel the twisted logic of some of the moron's who deliberately give you less space or drive dangerously merely because you are there (I notice I get treated far better riding to the shops wearing jeans and a beanie).
I love my Chevron courier bag, commute with it every day just for the reflective bits:
i wear a yellow jacket for commuting during the colder months (had it on for a couple of weeks now)
i think its the dawn/ dusk hours where it's the most use - lights are good in the dark but not much use when its a bit lighter.
don't think compulsion is a good idea at all.
Pedal reflectors? i think they are a huge help as they really really stand out and can't be confused for anything but a cylist.
), as the things you get with SPDs stop you using the SPDs properly - however my bike shoes all have retroreflective heels which is surely just as good?
nickc - Memberthe creeping opinion that suggests that victims of crime are somehow partly responsible if they don't take "measures" is a problem in our society.
Perhaps. But perhaps failing to see a stealthed-out cyclist with only a wee single-LED light they got out of a cracker fitted isn't a crime.
Only for peeps that insist on wearing baggies, camelbacks and peeks as they are clearly uncomfortable with their surroundings and should be positively identified as potential hazards!
Yes, all cyclists should wear hi-viz.
And while we're at it, perhaps all pedestrians should wear hi viz too. And helmets in case they trip over. And cars should probably have more hi-viz on them too.
And trees and lamp-posts cos they hurt lots when you hit them so they should be easy to see as well.
And it'll no doubt be enforced by the police who have obviously enforced the rules of the road and pulled over the dozens of drivers I see each day who are on the phone or who jump lights or cut up other road users or drive uninsured cars. Now they've dealt with all those miscreants, they're probably a bit bored and looking for something else to enforce...
TBH, considering how many people ride with no lights, adding another legal requirement that everyone would ignore probably isn't the way to go.
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