Bikes to be fitted with number plates?

[loddrik]

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i was thinking of buying a new bike, what do you recon to this baby click here

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Just buy my old one

link

[bazza_g]

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This has absolutely nothing to do with safety and everything to do with £££.

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Whilst I agree that this is yet another way for the government to screw us for more £££ - there is a little part of me that thinks registration and even insurance for bikes could have its merits.

I've been driving along a road and crashed into by a cyclists shooting out of a T-Junction - the rider crashed in to my drivers side rear door - who would have paid for the damage to my car?

I've also seen cyclist cause car accidents with frankly crazy riding - the cyclist only to look back and cycle off whilst the car drivers try and work out how to sort it out - especially in London cyclists are a law unto themselves - perhaps a little regulation isn't such a bad idea?

[RedRobin]

I was insured for my bike racing and activities (first five £zillion IIRC) and my (valuable) bikes were also insured.

Rather than discourage biking and make it only available to the wealthier, surely might it not be better to police bad biking behaviour and stop those irresponsible bikers. On the spot fines and confiscations where appropriate.

[patently]

Yes, you can make the argument in favour of registration plates for bike. But you can make the argument with equal force for pedestrians - there have been plenty of times I've been on the receiving end of something prosecutable done by a pedestrian.

The question (in relation to bikes) is whether it is worth spending £xbillion on a new system of registration, employing y hundred thousand new civil servants to run it, making every cyclist pay their £100 (or whatever) a year to maintain the registration, and spending Court time prosecuting people who fail to tell RCLA (Rider & Cycle Licensing Agency ) of their new address, kids who ride their new bike on the pavement outside their house on their birthday.... and so on.

If your political support comes from the huge swathe of the population to whom you have given a range of highly paid pointless non-jobs over the last 9 years, the answer is obvious, I fear.

And what do you do with pedestrians? Easy - scrap the National Identity Card and introduce a "National Identity Forehead Tattoo"?

[RedRobin]

If it became law - What would other TSNers want as a personal plate on their push bike?

[bazza_g]

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And what do you do with pedestrians? Easy - scrap the National Identity Card and introduce a "National Identity Forehead Tattoo"?

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nah, thats over the top - I'm sure a barcode on the back of the neck and a RFID tag under the skin would be sufficent

[v15ben]

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If it became law - What would other TSNers want as a personal plate on their push bike?

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"F**K OFF BLAIR" perchance? To be fair I wouldn't bother personalising it too much as I'd cover it in gaffer tape so the cameras couldn't read it.

If you commit an offence in a car and another member of the public reports it, but cannot remember the number plate, they will at least know the colour/make/model of the car. Can you imagine the average member of the public being able to do the same thing for a bike?

Police: "What kind of bike was it?"

Public: "erm..."

Police: "What colour?"

Public: "erm... lots of colours."

Police: "Did you get a look at the rider?"

Public: "Yes, couldn't see the face as they were wearing a cycling helmet..."

I don't see this scheme making a great difference except to the amount of tax, bureaucracy and red tape it creates. If cyclists break the law by riding on the pavement, don't stop at red lights, scare pedestrians and drivers etc, why would they want to go to all the hassle of registering their bikes and having speed measuring equipment fitted so they can stay below the speed limit?