[Closed] Pushing your bike along a footpath clarification

It’s legal to push your bike along a footpath

Can you possibly show me this for deffo in law? I feel like I want to go round with a print out.

It's what I said to them but as I was saying it I realised that might just be my interpretation.

Thats terrible Kayak, they shouldn't have acted like that, there was no need and a simple explaining on their feelings would have been sufficient.

I've only had one run in with a landowner, who got a bit shirty, but i threatened to beat the shit out of him if he didn't wind his neck in, and that pretty much settled that.

http://www.cyclecraft.co.uk/digest/pushing.html Any use?

I was taught, on my cycling proficiency test... that bikes should be pushed along the road while walking on the footpath
this was some 35 years ago...
so i guess if that's true then it could you were in the wrong, but no one ever is going to confront you on it, so i you'd think at least

Assault is definitely a criminal offence, so is criminal damage (to a mountain bike).

When this comes up normally there is reference to it being a grey area. That whilst a pram is considered a 'usual accompaniment' to a pedestrian a bike isn't. Neither is a horse. So both a cyclist walking a bike and a rider leading a horse are committing trespass. But as I say, such thoughts are normally accompanied by "it's a grey area". So....it's a grey area.

More to the point - what's going on in sad little life of people wanting to enforce/make a fuss about this? Baffling and very much says more about them than it does the law.

In other news, living in Scotland rocks!

Dont confuse pavements with footpaths, very different rules apply.

Where is this? Can we organise a mass [s]trespass[/s] walk along pushing our bikes?

I'm not an expert on this but I do have a modicum of understanding (a guy from cycling UK did a good report on it a year or so ago).

In brief though a footpath is a legally protected right of way. Cycling on it is only illegal per se if there is specific local legislation to that effect. Otherwise it is a matter for the landowner and you. And would be a civil matter at most (ie you can't get nicked for it). As I understand it the landowner would have to prove trespass and that ultimately boils down to whether or not he/she can prove unreasonable use of the footpath on your part. Unreasonable use seems to be utilising the public right of way in a manner that isn't in line with how such rights of way are normally used. In the past protesters on a verge and a lady pushing a pram have been found to be reasonable users.

The article in question is here -  https://www.cyclinguk.org/article/campaigns-guide/cycling-on-footpath-trespass

In brief though, there is no way he could prove trespass in a civil court if you're pushing a bike and very little chance if you're riding it. On the other hand if he and his family pushed and threatened you and struck your bike, you'd probably have a case against him!

edit to my above - this 'briefing' by cycle uk is their case for why what you did was fine.. page 7.

I was taught, on my cycling proficiency test… that bikes should be pushed along the road while walking on the footpath
this was some 35 years ago…

This is kind of a classic example of a common misunderstanding. You are kind of right - in that riding a bike on a footway is illegal - and I'm not sure about the pushing aspect; but the key thing is understanding the difference between a footway - a path running next to a road (usually, but not always, pavement) and a footpath. They are different and the rules governing each are very different. So that which was taught in the cycling proficiency has no relevance to the OP's situation

As @funkrodent says - a bike is technically (by the letter of the law) an "unnatural accompaniment" so pushing / carrying it isn't allowed.

That said, trespass is a civil offence, not a criminal one and the most the landowner is allowed to do is ask you to leave via the "nearest appropriate way" which can include back the way you came. Any hint of threats or physical violence is a far more serious offence.

It's worth reporting to the police but without witnesses or video footage, it's unlikely that much will come of it. Even if the police just go round and have a word though, that might be helpful.

Where was this out of interest? Not the exact location if you don't want to say that but a rough area?

Where was this out of interest? Not the exact location if you don’t want to say that but a rough area?

Near Leamington Spa, Warwickshire.
I was walking the footpath to get to the bridleway that goes back to 'Radford Semele'.

Just to clarify, it's a footpath as in off-road, not a paved pavement.

the most the landowner is allowed to do is ask you to leave via the “nearest appropriate way” which can include back the way you came. Any hint of threats or physical violence is a far more serious offence.

They did ask me to go back to the gate and leave my bike, then I could walk through without the bike.
I declined. Not a great situation 😐

It’s worth reporting to the police but without witnesses or video footage, it’s unlikely that much will come of it. Even if the police just go round and have a word though, that might be helpful.

I'd be tempted to suggest that a policeman borrows my bike and pushes it along the same footpath (in plain clothes, of course) so that they can witness the behaviour first hand

Turn his livestock into sausages and hammer them into his fields.

I shall take a ride down there in a couple of weeks.

Also to clarify, it was 3 females.

Lady maybe in her 30s, her daughter and her mother. All of them barging me, trying to stop me passing.

I can confirm it's fairly difficult to get a fatbike and a big dog over two large gates with 3 women jostling, pushing and shouting at you whilst blocking said gates. 😂

As above, it's a grey area. There could be a specific bylaw that bans bikes on footpaths regardless of if they are pedaled or pushed which overwrites basic English law but most likely the guy is just a nob.

get your phone out and start video recording in those situations. You are perfectly within your rights to push a bike on a footpath. Did you turn around?

I'm up for a bolshy mass protest next weekend. Anyone else likely to be in the area, by coincidence?

They aren't allowed to barge you or hit your bike. That's assault, and you should be reporting it to the Police.

The rest is mere detail.

You are perfectly within your rights to push a bike on a footpath.

Well this is the thing. Am I well within my rights? Some of the above doesn't really suggest I am.

Did you turn around?

No. I was totally...

Crank v Brooks was the case I was trying to recall. It's mentioned on p7 of ^ that Cycling UK paper. Once I read this years ago I decided if ever I was challenged riding a bit of cheeky FP, i'd dismount and become a pedestrian (quoting Crank v Brooks if needed 😂). So, well within your rights, especially if you had dismounted. (ByeLaws aside)

STW has had this thread a few times before

https://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/row-question-is-pushing-or-carrying-your-bike-on-a-footpath-legal/

https://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/wheeling-your-bike-on-a-footpath/

Last time I read about this I seem to remember reading that there was a test case for someone pushing a bike along a footpath, and it was determined that a bike WAS in fact a normal accompaniment to walking in certain circumstances, so it's ok.

But even if it wasn't, it'd be a civil offence meaning that the landowner would have to sue you for the damages incurred by you doing it. Assault however is a criminal offence.

My thoughts

First report the assault to the police, they shouldn't be as aggressive as they are, getting a briefing from the local plod might calm them down

Second, put a bridleway claim in on the footpath with the local council, just to wind them up

Third report the incident to local rights of way people at the council

Let the ramblers association know (or other local walking group) know there may be history here

You could always state that "you believe higher rights exist on the PRoW and that you will continue to exercise them until settled at a public inquiry" perfectly legitimate

Finally go again and put the bike on your shoulder, film any reaction, tell them thanks for the YouTube income and don't forget to like and subscribe

How are your raspberry powers? I finds a near constant rasp is preferable to talking in such a situation.

Interestingly, the one and only time I've been harassed by a landowner was when I was riding the bridleway that goes from Radford Semele to the Fosse on your map. It was 30 years ago, mind you. Must be something in the water around there.

Turn his livestock into sausages and hammer them into his fields.

As ever, STW never fails to lift the mood of the depressed. Thank you 😄

Turn his livestock into sausages

During all the arguing, I said that I'd lived round here most of my life, ridden and walked all over the county and never had met such incredibly negative and aggressive landowners as they were. She asked where I lived and I told her Leamington Spa.

She then says, 'oh a bloody townie. I bet you're a bloody vegan too'
😂😂😂

I'm a veggie, but I didn't tell her that. 😉

That said, trespass is a civil offence, not a criminal one

Isn't that about to change?

As said above this is a grey area I have done the same pushed my bike on National trust land in the past to get to a Bridleway and a member of staff went nuts at me for even doing that so you just cant win had the same issue the other year when I just parked my trail bike just of a byway in Wilts to have a stop and someone moaned about that so now I just cycle footpaths from time to time a lot of this anger has come from the first two months of lockout just look around at the signs up in places that have never been their in the last 20 years.Farmers are a strange bunch.

Possibly pushing a bike on the pavement is an offence:

S. 72 Highway Act 1835
If any person shall wilfully ride upon any footpath or causeway by the side of any road made or set apart for the use or accommodation of foot passengers; or shall wilfully lead or drive any horse, ass, sheep, mule, swine, or cattle or carriage of any description, or any truck or sledge, upon any such footpath or causeway; or shall tether any horse, ass, mule, swine, or cattle, on any highway, so as to suffer or permit the tethered animal to be thereon;. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . F2; every person so offending in any of the cases aforesaid shall for each and every such offence forfeit and pay any sum not exceeding [F3level 2 on the standard scale], over and above the damages occasioned thereby.

The "lead or drive" bit. It doesn't refer to bikes, but it was 1835...

Farmers are a strange bunch.

Red sky at night, gerroff my land

La la la I cant hear you, ive been deaf from birth, yes its rather unfortunate,isnt it a lovely day, please stop touching my bike, i dont understand what your screaming.
Why are ypu so angry? Maybe some therapy would help. Have a great day, bye.

Red sky at night, gerroff my land

Red sky at morning, but keep handing over the subsidies you townie scum.

Pavement != footpath

Pick it up, turn it into luggage and tell them to **** off.

Or keep riding and tell them to **** off.

Simple choice.

She then says, ‘oh a bloody townie. I bet you’re a bloody vegan too’

Whereas she's spent her whole life a full 1.5 miles from Leamington high street in the remote wilderness of @52.28163,-1.517062,15z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m14!4m13!1m5!1m1!1s0x48773134f8c8a587:0xc558ff5e604fbae3!2m2!1d-1.5200789!2d52.2851905!1m5!1m1!1s0x487733f66fdf658b:0x14063ea2d991a7a8!2m2!1d-1.4965271!2d52.2781581!3e0">Radford Semele 😂

As others have said, they were bang out of order.

I used to be really diligent about not riding on footpaths. But during the first lockdown and riding local I just thought, bugger it and started riding footpaths.

I don't ride like a tool and 99.9% of people are fine. Only time I've had grief was when riding a wide gravel footpath that's effectively a road, for access to some old cottages. Woman drove up to me and said I shouldn't be cycling here. Just laughed at her and carried on.

Red sky at night

Hay bales alight 😉

Lumping all farmers together as a strange bunch and suggesting they unfairly benefit from subsidies isn't helpful is it. It's the kind of 'them and us' b0ll0cks that stirs this 5hite up.

Might also be worth recording this as a missing link, sounds like perhaps it should be a bridleway if you’re needing it to get to a path that actually is one? https://www.cyclinguk.org/missinglinks

Lumping all farmers together as a strange bunch and suggesting they unfairly benefit from subsidies isn’t helpful is it. It’s the kind of ‘them and us’ b0ll0cks that stirs this 5hite up.

No I agree. That's not my view at all. I'm always very respectful and courteous. I won't lie though, yesterday I may have used the odd bit of language I wouldn't normally but I've never, ever been physically pushed and threatened like that.

I mean they called and accused me of many things and so I'm pretty proud of my restraint really.

To be honest, as that comment above shows, the lockdowns are very likely the reason why a lot of landowners have become so aggressive from the get go. I think they see themselves being overrun with the general public and all the aggro, lack of care and respect and litter that this always entails.

Most of us here ride the odd footpath now and again I'm sure and in the past it's rarely been an issue as overall, we tend to be respectful and leave no trace.
I think the lockdowns have made everything much worse for sure.

This is what I was, as calmly as I could, trying to get out of them. That, yes I was pushing a bicycle and they thought that was against the law in some way, but really, what possible harm was I doing and why would they go so far out of their way in a beautiful day to get incredibly angry and borderline violent for a bloke simply walking his dog and bicycle along a footpath?
They weren't interested in my asking of course, just kept repeating that I wasn't allowed.

They said could I not read signs, did I drive up to Give Way signs on the road and just ignore them? I pointed out that there was a bit of a difference between an official metal sign on the road, than a scrawled mess on the back of a sheep feed lid. Just because you make a sign, doesn't mean that it's law.

I think this would be a really good thing for a cycling magazine to look into. There must be examples of this all over this backward little England.

I can't think of a magazine whose readers might have an interest in this sort of thing though... 🤔😉

Edit-Thanks Hannah. Nice to have input from one of you guys 😊

The “lead or drive” bit. It doesn’t refer to bikes, but it was 1835…

That's a brilliant find! Three years ago it snowed on this date, and I've just been reminded on FB of my 3 year old daughter breaking the law by pulling her 5 year old brother along on a sledge on the pavement.

What about carrying a bike, over the shoulders, on a footpath whereby none of the bike is touching the ground?

As @funkrodent says – a bike is technically (by the letter of the law) an “unnatural accompaniment” so pushing / carrying it isn’t allowed.

That said, trespass is a civil offence, not a criminal one and the most the landowner is allowed to do is ask you to leave via the “nearest appropriate way” which can include back the way you came. Any hint of threats or physical violence is a far more serious offence.

It’s worth reporting to the police but without witnesses or video footage, it’s unlikely that much will come of it. Even if the police just go round and have a word though, that might be helpful.

This is correct. It might be worth looking into making a claim, especially if the link would be useful. Even if a successful claim is unlikely, it's free and will only cost your time, but has the potential to cause a headache for the landowner.

Sounds scary. In order to protect yourself from the violent people who have previously made threats to your person, next time, if you see them, jump on your bike and ride to cover the ground more quickly.

Whether there’s a law here is an interesting discussion but practically speaking kind of irrelevant. Some people are just arseholes who inexplicably hate people on bikes. Don’t sweat it.

As @funkrodent says – a bike is technically (by the letter of the law) an “unnatural accompaniment” so pushing / carrying it isn’t allowed.

No existing right != “not allowed” or illegal. Is a kite a natural accompaniment to a walk? No. Is some batshit farmer going to contest you taking your kite across their land? (Stopping to fly a kite would be a different matter, but not what we’re discussing here).

It's really not a grey area, A footpath is a public place. To suggest then that a bicycle is an "unnatural accompaniment" you're saying that cycling in a public place is unnatural. Is that what you really think the law says?

Report the incident to the cops, and then carry on what you're doing.

On a slightly different note, regarding being pushed:

I was riding on a bridalway through a local farm when the elderly owner / worker drove a quad bike at me. I logged it online with the local police (chronological, factual, not subjective), the police visited the farm and then me at home.

No real outcome, but it hopefully made the guy aware that high risk behaviour wasn't without repercussions.

Maybe you could log having hands laid on you?

“unnatural accompaniment” so pushing / carrying it isn’t allowed

You can carry, that's well established, otherwise you are claiming a bicycle is a restricted item in a public space like a knife or a gun.

What is grey is whether you can push.

When it's carried it's luggage, when it's pushed it's transport

I'd definitely consider reporting to the police. If they've gone that far with you (actual violence) they may go further with someone else (actual physical harm).

These things can escalate over time. Help the next person and report IMO.