News: Bills would require license plate for all [bicycles], annual registration

Here's an idea. Bicycles are now mopeds, only you can get some sort of bike permit if you are under 16.
 
I wouldn't have a problem with allowing minors to ride on the sidewalk (and obey pedestrian rules) if they didn't have a license. They're not in the street, it's not an issue.

But if you are on the road itself? Oh hell, yes, they better have a license.
Here's an idea. Bicycles are now mopeds, only you can get some sort of bike permit if you are under 16.


Yup, that works, too - some states allow moped licensure as early as 12 or 14.
 
I think this is for the best. If you want to ride on the road, you gotta be subjected to more or less the same shit drivers and moto riders do, including licensing (which this bill doesn't seem to require). It's really not fair that someone gets to use the same facilities just because they bought a different vehicle.
Yep. It goes a bit further even than that tho. For example, here you have to affix a license plate to and pay to register one of these before you can use it on the road:

https://pic.armedcats.net/h/ha/habanos/2011/03/02/Trailer2.JPG


Everything that gets used on the road has to be registered. Even god damn parade floats. There's no reason at all for bicycles to be exempt.
 
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God damn, I've been wanting this here [Australia] for years.
I believe riding on the sidewalk is permitted here which in the end would probably be safer for the kids to ride on anyway. As Austere said - trailers need licence plates, bikes should too. I'm pissed off that they freely use the roads and disobey the rules without contributing to the upkeep of the roads they use. I've seen countless examples of things like Spectre posted with cyclists not having lights on their bikes and one step further that just pisses me off is incorrect mounting of lights.
If the lights are mounted improperly (i.e. incorrect angle) then those fucking LEDS shine right into your eyes after you pass them. They're typically brighter (percieved anyway) than high beams that us motorists are required to dim at 200m (Aus rules, idk about foreign rules).

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I'm all for it.
 
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I am with the majority.

1. We have a cycling profeciency test - it is not compulsory but could be made so, and the infrastructure is in place so to do.
2. All bicycles should have an ID mark a la Reg Plate. All bikes should be registered - this would also assist with theft recovery
3. The Police should be permitted to check that the bike is ridden with respect to the rules of the road and if not then the licence should be subject to points - same as a car drivers
4. The bike must be mechanically sound and although I would not go with a MoT test for a bike, but if the bike is ridden then it should be subject to Police inspection
5. The bike should be insured to go on the road at least to the 3rd party level - "Casualty Cover"/3rd Part Liability Cover

There you go - not rocket science.
 
Guys... they are bicycles. You know, the two-wheeled things with pedals that kids ride around on. I can honestly say that I've never had an issue with a cyclist on the road. Want to know why? Because I'm in a car and I can just pass them. Its really not a big deal, idk why everyone has their panties in a bunch over bikers. Hybrid drivers tend to annoy me much more than cyclists because they are always going under the speed limit, so why don't we start charging them more for registration? This proposal is nothing but a clear indication that someone has sand up their va-jay-jay. That video that you posted, Spectre - were you really that annoyed by that guy and his little girl? You're in a damn car, just pass them and move on with your life. Its not like they sat in the road right in front of you for 20 minutes while you couldn't get around them.
 
That is fine but - bikes should stay off the road unless they obey all the safty rules everyone else has to.

Everyone is exercised about them because of pushy cyclists going through red lights, kicking your car, spitting on you car and shouting at you and making rude jestures.
 
I can't wait until they do the same to rollerblades, skateboards, Razor scooters, tricycles, Power Wheels, Fisher-Price Cozy Coupes, riding lawnmowers, Segways, a pair of Nike Air Max Lebron 8" South Beach sneakers, and - in my case - your mom.
 
I can't wait until they do the same to rollerblades, skateboards, Razor scooters, tricycles, Power Wheels, Fisher-Price Cozy Coupes, riding lawnmowers, Segways, a pair of Nike Air Max Lebron 8" South Beach sneakers, and - in my case - your mom.
Bikes have their own lanes and are considered traffic, that's why people want them to face some of the same rules as all other traffic.
 
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Funny how everybody is applauding bureaucracy. This won't make anything better for car drivers, but will be a needless hassle for cyclists. You don't pay a road tax for your bike because it doesnt stress the surface at all. You don't pay a sidewalk tax for shoes (I take that back, better not give them ideas)
By the way, what happened to balance? Don't most of you own a bike AND a car?
 
That is fine but - bikes should stay off the road unless they obey all the safty rules everyone else has to.
Believe me, they are worried about safety a lot more than you are in your 3000lbs metal shell.


pushy cyclists going through red lights
Why does that bother you? They use their own judgement and if they are right, they get ahead of you for a whole 15 seconds before your light turns green and you speed by them; if they are wrong, its once again not your problem.

kicking your car, spitting on you car and shouting at you and making rude jestures.
Then a) call the cops, b) get out and kick their ass, c) ignore them, or d) just suck it up and move on with your day.

I've lived in Amherst for over four years where everyone and their mother rides a bike and I've never had any issues. I've driven through a Boston neighborhood where everyone and their mother has a bike and also never had any issues. Any incidents that you can pull off of youtube to show me that bikers are oh, so horrible, are isolated occurrences. If we go by those then we should get the following groups off the road because they annoy me far more than bikers do: women, Asians, the elderly, commercial vehicle drivers, hybrid drivers - all of them stereotypically drive below the speed limit and piss me off far more than some kid on a bicycle.
 
God damn, I've been wanting this here [Australia] for years.
I believe riding on the sidewalk is permitted here which in the end would probably be safer for the kids to ride on anyway.

Dont think it is. I think people turn a blind eye to kids, but legally cyclists are only permitted on roads or authorised cycleways.

A lot of cyclists own cars, and therefore pay road taxes and fees via that. I would support a licencing scheme if only to ensure the cyclist becomes accountable for his actions, such as violating traffic laws and abusing pedestrians and motorists.
 
I'm kinda split, i used my bike A LOT as a kid, i'd have hated if we had to pay for me just to use my bike...

But on the other hand, something has to be done, if they're to share the road with us, they need to follow the same rules.
I'm tired of cyclists mettign me head on IN ONE WAY STREETS! follow the rules idiot, traffic laws apply to everyone on the road, not everything BUT bikes!
 
About damn fucking time......now expand to the rest of the world.
 
Vehicles are currently taxed on the amount of CO2 they produce. Since pedalling a bike is far harder than driving a car, logically they must produce a lost more CO2 in expending all that energy than car drivers covering the same distance.

If, therefore, we assume the politicians to be correct in their manifestation that climate change is being caused by CO2 produced by man, and that a man on a bike produces more CO2 that a man driving a car, not only should cyclists be taxed but they should be taxed at a much higher rate than us humble motorists.

Oh, and since methane is also a greenhouse gas and cyclists' farts escape into the open air rather than being kept safely locked in cars they should also be taxed on the basis as well.

And more if they are vegetarian.
 
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Believe me, they are worried about safety a lot more than you are in your 3000lbs metal shell.



Why does that bother you? They use their own judgement and if they are right, they get ahead of you for a whole 15 seconds before your light turns green and you speed by them; if they are wrong, its once again not your problem.


Then a) call the cops, b) get out and kick their ass, c) ignore them, or d) just suck it up and move on with your day.

I've lived in Amherst for over four years where everyone and their mother rides a bike and I've never had any issues. I've driven through a Boston neighborhood where everyone and their mother has a bike and also never had any issues. Any incidents that you can pull off of youtube to show me that bikers are oh, so horrible, are isolated occurrences. If we go by those then we should get the following groups off the road because they annoy me far more than bikers do: women, Asians, the elderly, commercial vehicle drivers, hybrid drivers - all of them stereotypically drive below the speed limit and piss me off far more than some kid on a bicycle.

Now not all bikes or riders many of whom, I agree with you, need to be concerned with bad drivers. I think that you over broad brush by citing Women - some are good drivers but the stats show that they are safer than men en masse. The elderly may have some impairment but not sufficient to warrant them being banned - in Ukania they have to retest at 70 I think and then every 5 years - Asians (Well many 3rd world drivers actually), those who have not been brought up in their new country i.e. Ukania in my experience, and have come from their own culture (I would include Italians in this too) do seem to have difficulty in adjusting to the traffic conditions here but people of different races in general if they have been here for a substantial/decent amount of time soon get the habit. My mate's dad who was Italian went home after being here for 15 years or so stopped at a Zebra Crossing in Italy - got whacked up the bum - and everyone thought it was his fault for stopping!
 
Making the lycra patrol responsible and all is good, but how would this affect the kid who just wants to take his bike out to the park?

Kids (up until the age of 14 IIRC) are allowed to ride on the sidewalk. You can also walk your bicycle on a sidewalk in which case you would be considered a pedestrian and would have to follow rules of a pedestrian.
Remember also that that fee (theoretically) includes the bicycle's share of the upkeep on the traffic controls, lane markers, and other road features that the rider makes use of, so yes, it can and should be more than an admin fee. Equal rights means equal treatment and equal responsibility. Don't want the last two, don't ask for the first one.
AFAIK there is a special tax that bike makers pay for that right now, not sure how it works as far as who decides where the money goes though.
Trained to operate a bike? You're joking right? You can prove you can operate a bike by RIDING it.
Not sure how your country works but I had to take a written test before I was given a learner's permit that allowed me to start learning how to operate a vehicle. I then had to take a 5 hour lecture before I would be allowed to take license test. I was free to learn how to operate a vehicle any way I wanted though. Same thing here, make them take the test so that the state is reasonably sure that they know the rules of the road simple really.
Guys... they are bicycles. You know, the two-wheeled things with pedals that kids ride around on. I can honestly say that I've never had an issue with a cyclist on the road. Want to know why? Because I'm in a car and I can just pass them. Its really not a big deal, idk why everyone has their panties in a bunch over bikers. Hybrid drivers tend to annoy me much more than cyclists because they are always going under the speed limit, so why don't we start charging them more for registration? This proposal is nothing but a clear indication that someone has sand up their va-jay-jay. That video that you posted, Spectre - were you really that annoyed by that guy and his little girl? You're in a damn car, just pass them and move on with your life. Its not like they sat in the road right in front of you for 20 minutes while you couldn't get around them.
What you fail to take into account is the fact that there is very little enforcement that can be done to a vehicle that does not have any kind of registration. Passing them is all fine and good but what if one jumps out in front of you? How about them going through red lights and hitting pedestrians (happened to my dad unfortunately for the cyclist he is quite large and still has good reflexes :p ) How about them riding in a street in a way that safely passing them is impossible? I won't even go into the way they can antagonize cars if they so please.

As Spectre mentioned earlier the government is very fond of pointing out that driving/riding (motorcycle) is a privilege not a right any time people get speeding tickets. It's a simple matter of fairness if you are going to be a regular road user you need to pay for that privilege. After all cyclists get their own lanes that cost money to set up and maintain (for instance there are a few here that have concrete dividers and in some cases a whole car lane was converted for bicycle use with special bike crossings and lights not cheap) which are paid out of the normal road budget. So cars are paying for cyclists instead of paying to get the damn potholes fixed.
Why does that bother you? They use their own judgement and if they are right, they get ahead of you for a whole 15 seconds before your light turns green and you speed by them; if they are wrong, its once again not your problem.
Because if I do that I will get a ticket. Now its funny that you tell me you never had a problem with cyclists in Boston because I know a couple of people in Boston who happen to cycle and THEY say that a huge majority of Boston cyclists are assholes and were happy to see some get ticketed by the police.

From personal experience sharing a road in Manhattan with cyclists is a murder, other boroughs are easier because there are less of them. I saw a retard on the BQE on a bicycle once going against the traffic (BQE allows trucks...)
 
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