Time to clamp down on the lawless world of cyclists

REARVIEW: WHEN IT comes to the enforcement of traffic laws, car drivers receive the majority of Garda attention.

Rightly so, some would argue, given that they form the largest group using the roads and are most likely to kill or be killed as a result of a collision.

The Dublin Cycling Campaign recently made this point on the Letters page of this newspaper and pointed out that cyclists who illegally cycle on the footpaths must be “too scared to cycle on the road” and others are confused by the design of cycle lanes.

Yet a large number of the same cyclists are not too scared or confused to speed around our city without helmets and with brakes that don’t work: I’m presuming the brakes don’t work since surely a cyclist couldn’t be so scared of other traffic that they would intentionally race through a red light?

The same fearful cyclists can often been seen heading the wrong way up one-way streets, turning without using hand signals, not using lights when it is dark, and, in some instances, cycling home after a few pints.

Nobody is calling for unreasonable enforcement of the road traffic laws on cyclists – it is enough that motorists must suffer this through the NCT and inappropriate speed checks on dual carriageways.

However, there must be a stepping up of enforcement of laws that apply to all road users, particularly in cities where pedestrians, cyclists, and motorists come into contact most.

It is not good enough to excuse law breaking by saying those who have broken the laws were too afraid to behave lawfully, or to say it is okay because nobody died or was injured. The lawless world of the cyclists should consider this the next time they look for a tax break for a new bike or a new €10 million cycle lane.

If all road users are to operate in an environment of mutual respect, all must behave according to the law. No excuses.