Local enforcement of ban appears to be minimal according to new report
The number of fines issued to cyclists using the pavement appears to have declined sharply according to recently published figures.
Nineteen fixed penalty charge notices have been issued in Wandsworth borough in 2015/16. This is down from 45 in 2013/14 and 115 in 2014/15. The figures are calculated until the end of March each year.
Figures for Wandsworth are in line with figures for across the capital; the number of cyclists fined for using the pavements across the capital as a whole the number of penalty notices fell from 5,003 in 2013/14 to only 406 to date in 2015/16 despite increasing numbers of cyclists on London’s streets.
London Assembly Member, Fiona Twycross warned that the small minority of cyclists who rode on pavements were putting pedestrians at risk and called for more action to enforce the rules. She said:
“With more cyclists than ever on London’s streets the number of fines issued to pavement hopping cyclists has nose-dived. In Wandsworth, fines have dropped 83% in just two years, that’s a real problem, particularly with the number of pedestrians around.
“This kind of thoughtless behaviour from an incredibly small minority of cyclists endangers pedestrians who have a right to feel safe on the footpaths in just the same way cyclists should on the roads.
“It can be incredibly scary for pedestrians to see a bike hurtling down a footpath towards them. Unless there are the police and PCSOs around, out on the beat enforcing these rules then the small minority of offenders will continue to break the rules.”
January 22, 2016