Bike Number Plates
Discussion
Interesting.
So police don't have the resources to deal with far more serious crimes like robberies, let alone deal with the "problem" of illegally used scooters and unassisted ebikes that we already have, but will have resources to track someone jumping a redlight?
Also love the fact this seems to being pushed by a lot of the "anti-woke anti-big government anti-pharma" types, you know, the ones who are against cashless society as it infringes upon right to anonymity and freedom, yet they're pushing to lose one of the last anonymous modes of transport and travel... It's almost as if this isn't a serious issue at all and just a culture war stop gap between Israel-Palestine that covered October and November and Vegan January which won't start for another 4 weeks.
I'm not against it per se. In fact, i'm all for it. One of the biggest moans of car drivers (of which I am one), with regards to cyclists on the road is "they don't pay rOaD tAx and insurance". If I pay the same VED as other emission free vehicles, like EVs which is currently £0.00, pay £10-15 per year insurance and slap a sticker on the frame, does that then give me the absolute same rights to roads as cars? No longer any moaning from Jeremy Clarkson and Piers Morgan about weekend lycra warriors as we're insuranced, recognisable with the plates, and have same VED as electric cars. Bring it on!
So police don't have the resources to deal with far more serious crimes like robberies, let alone deal with the "problem" of illegally used scooters and unassisted ebikes that we already have, but will have resources to track someone jumping a redlight?
Also love the fact this seems to being pushed by a lot of the "anti-woke anti-big government anti-pharma" types, you know, the ones who are against cashless society as it infringes upon right to anonymity and freedom, yet they're pushing to lose one of the last anonymous modes of transport and travel... It's almost as if this isn't a serious issue at all and just a culture war stop gap between Israel-Palestine that covered October and November and Vegan January which won't start for another 4 weeks.
I'm not against it per se. In fact, i'm all for it. One of the biggest moans of car drivers (of which I am one), with regards to cyclists on the road is "they don't pay rOaD tAx and insurance". If I pay the same VED as other emission free vehicles, like EVs which is currently £0.00, pay £10-15 per year insurance and slap a sticker on the frame, does that then give me the absolute same rights to roads as cars? No longer any moaning from Jeremy Clarkson and Piers Morgan about weekend lycra warriors as we're insuranced, recognisable with the plates, and have same VED as electric cars. Bring it on!
ukbabz said:
Don't hire bikes in London have them already?
I wonder how many crimes have been solved using tracing of these ID numbers.
I think they did in this episode.I wonder how many crimes have been solved using tracing of these ID numbers.
www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m001sglk
ClaphamGT3 said:
As a cyclist, I think it's a good idea. Compulsory insurance too
Not sure if I’m due a parrot but why do you want compulsory insurance for cyclists? In 2017 less than 0.1% of car insurance claims involved a cyclist (that’s “involved” not “caused by”)https://www.abi.org.uk/news/news-articles/2018/11/...
While there are many, many reasons why number plates on bicycles won't work in practical terms, the biggest barrier to them is cost. I'm pretty sure the cost (to the keeper) of registering a car doesn't come close to covering the costs incurred by the DVLA to process it. And the same will be true of bicycle registration. If registration fees truly reflected the costs incurred by the administration of such a system, many people would be priced out of bicycle usage. This is contrary to "net zero" aims stated by both of the UK's main political parties. Neither the Government, nor His Majesty's Opposition, are going to sign up to a scheme which actively discourages "active transport" or "cycling as a sport". The only alternative is a subsidised registration model. This might pull the wool over some taxpayers eyes for a short while, but eventually it would be pointed out that general taxation was subsidising cyclists. This would go on to stoke even more idiots into an irrational hatred of cyclists and cycling. And no amount of pointing out that the DVLA, which is already underperforming, and frustrating to use as drivers, would probably collapse entirely under an avalanche of demand from millions of households for bicycle registration, would counsel those idiots against it.
And practical stuff? Well, we've all seen the state of CCTV images when the police make appeals for information. They're mostly absolutely dire image quality, with many systems unable to read even a car's number plate. Now think about the situation in which registrations are going to be of the most use. Collisions with pedestrians, I'd imagine. Cyclist 'A' clobbers pedestrian 'B' while riding illegally on a footway. B is skittled to the floor, along with A. They're both a bit dazed, but A dusts himself down, and selfishly rides away while B lies on the floor. How large will bicycle registration numbers need to be in order that they are readable by folk like B? Most motor vehicle hit and run collisions end with witnesses failing to record the registration number. Things move too fast, confusion reigns, and by the time everyone has their head on straight, the errant driver has disappeared. Many police appeals for information regarding hit and runs fail to positively identify even the make and model of the car, ffs. What hope is there of accurate descriptions of cyclists and their bicycles? My point? Simple really. For the frequency of serious collisions caused by cyclists who are then capable of making off, and for the financial burden crashing cyclists inflict on the roads and infrastructure, what is the advantage of a registration system? Beyond "jobs for the boys" contracts for new buildings, hardware and software (none of which will be delivered on time or on budget, nor function as intended), there are none that I can see.
Examples? Just this week I was very nearly run over on a PeLiCon crossing, by an old Vauxhall Corsa. Green man in my favour, red light against the Corsa. But the driver didn't stop for the red light. And he didn't stop for the next one either. Having nearly been run over, my brain prioritised checking the state of the traffic light over taking the number of the car down. By the time my head was on straight again, the Corsa was long gone. And so it will be with red light running cyclists, unless they are witnessed doing it by police officers who can immediately deal with the offence (just as they can without registration plates) or they are witnessed and reported by someone with a particularly high resolution 360º "dash" camera. That's before you consider the question of "how long will it take for cyclists to learn about all those tricks and dodges used by drivers to avoid identification by witnesses or enforcement cameras?"
Complete non-starter. It's been dealt with by the Department For Transport already. A recent online petition met the threshold for consideration by Government. 10,000(?) signatories wanted such a scheme. The 'Men From The Ministry' rolled their eyes, sighed "not this ballcocks again", and poured the petition into the shredder, where it belongs. Government know it's an expensive, unworkable white elephant. It's about time the foamy-mouthed morons accepted reality too...
And practical stuff? Well, we've all seen the state of CCTV images when the police make appeals for information. They're mostly absolutely dire image quality, with many systems unable to read even a car's number plate. Now think about the situation in which registrations are going to be of the most use. Collisions with pedestrians, I'd imagine. Cyclist 'A' clobbers pedestrian 'B' while riding illegally on a footway. B is skittled to the floor, along with A. They're both a bit dazed, but A dusts himself down, and selfishly rides away while B lies on the floor. How large will bicycle registration numbers need to be in order that they are readable by folk like B? Most motor vehicle hit and run collisions end with witnesses failing to record the registration number. Things move too fast, confusion reigns, and by the time everyone has their head on straight, the errant driver has disappeared. Many police appeals for information regarding hit and runs fail to positively identify even the make and model of the car, ffs. What hope is there of accurate descriptions of cyclists and their bicycles? My point? Simple really. For the frequency of serious collisions caused by cyclists who are then capable of making off, and for the financial burden crashing cyclists inflict on the roads and infrastructure, what is the advantage of a registration system? Beyond "jobs for the boys" contracts for new buildings, hardware and software (none of which will be delivered on time or on budget, nor function as intended), there are none that I can see.
Examples? Just this week I was very nearly run over on a PeLiCon crossing, by an old Vauxhall Corsa. Green man in my favour, red light against the Corsa. But the driver didn't stop for the red light. And he didn't stop for the next one either. Having nearly been run over, my brain prioritised checking the state of the traffic light over taking the number of the car down. By the time my head was on straight again, the Corsa was long gone. And so it will be with red light running cyclists, unless they are witnessed doing it by police officers who can immediately deal with the offence (just as they can without registration plates) or they are witnessed and reported by someone with a particularly high resolution 360º "dash" camera. That's before you consider the question of "how long will it take for cyclists to learn about all those tricks and dodges used by drivers to avoid identification by witnesses or enforcement cameras?"
Complete non-starter. It's been dealt with by the Department For Transport already. A recent online petition met the threshold for consideration by Government. 10,000(?) signatories wanted such a scheme. The 'Men From The Ministry' rolled their eyes, sighed "not this ballcocks again", and poured the petition into the shredder, where it belongs. Government know it's an expensive, unworkable white elephant. It's about time the foamy-mouthed morons accepted reality too...
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