Mountain Bike Number Plates
Do you think cyclists that ride on the road should have to register and have a number plate?
Why/why not?
Recently there was a debate as to whether or not cyclists should have number plates on their bicycle like cars do (in particular the ones that ride on the road – not mountain/trail bikes)
Well I can’t drive and I take public transport, so to insinuate that I want to harrass cyclists is ridiculous. I also didn’t mention anything about it raising revenues or whatever.
In Montgomery County, Maryland (where I live) bicycle registration is the law and registered bicycles do have number plates. However, the plates are very small and they can be affixed anywhere on the frame, so they can’t usually be seen by anyone else as a way to stop crime.
Should bicycles have number plates? I don’t know. I’ve cycled on the road for around 40 years without one and I think registration is somewhat pointless. Here in Montgomery County registration is free, so it doesn’t even raise any funds for government. A more useful measure would be to enforce driving tests for cyclists, so that cyclists knew the law and would be expected to practice it. But that would make cycling expensive at a time when the government is trying to increase ridership in an effort to lower infrastructure costs. I’m not against implementation of a cycling test – I think it would tend to make cyclists safer. But I think it’s missing the point and anyway it’s unworkable. The thing is, many motorists would not be happy, as it would force cyclists who now use sidewalks to cycle lawfully – i.e. to use the road (which many motorists believe is their personal property).
A much bigger problem is motorist incompetence. Motorists frequently endanger others with their poor driving. At least a cyclist only endangers himself. Registration, number plates, driving tests, etc. don’t stop motorists from speeding, running red lights, driving dangerously etc., so what makes you think things would be any different if we adopted such measures for cyclists?
Finally, there’s a huge enforcement problem: police don’t even seem to know traffic law. I know cases where police have cited cyclists for riding in the street in localities where sidewalk riding is illegal. I know of instances where cyclists have been cited in accidents where the motorist was to blame. These cases are usually thrown out when they reach court, but in the case of traffic laws where bicycles are involved, even the judges often get it wrong. People working in law enforcement and the judiciary need to be more aware of the law.
The real problem here is not cyclists. It’s ignorance of cycling law – and that applies to everyone who ever gets involved with a cyclist – the cyclists themselves, drivers, police, judges etc.. Many people feel that cyclists don’t belong on the road, yet the roads were originally built by cyclists for cyclists. There’s a lack of respect for cycling that derives from a basic misunderstanding of what bicycles are (a bike is primarily a road vehicle – it’s not a toy), what they do (many people use bicycles as their sole method of commuting to work), and a lack of appreciation for what cyclists have done for us (built our road system).
So I think we need to stop for a moment and consider what the real problem is before we start considering ways to punish cyclists for society’s impatience and ignorance. Also, a little respect for cyclists would go a long way. Many of us are just trying to get to work using the only vehicle we own. We have a right (not just the privilege that car drivers have) to be on the road – a right cyclists earned back in the 1800s, long before cars were using our roads.
FAST MOUNTAIN BIKE RIDING TOWARDS CAUNSALL
