Nicked this morning!!!!!

Rich158

Me, not the bikes this time.

That's right, on entering Greenwich Park by a side entrance I was met by a very nice female community officer who wanted to take my name and number I thought word had got out and this was my luvky day, but no, evidently it is prohibited to cycle the 50 metres or so between the gate and the cycle path and there have been complaints :shock: Now I'm on a warning, have had a stern ticking off, and if I do it again am liable to a hefty fine :shock:

Honestly have they nothing better to do :twisted:

MonkeyMonster

he's not the messiah, he's a very naughty boy!

artaxerxes

Naughty! You didn't come in via the flower garden did you?

navt

Well, sort of. Thanks to a posting on Greenwich cyclist, I managed to avoid the PCSOs at Vanburgh gate although said femaile PCSO told me to remain unmounted until I reached the marked cycle lane. Fair enough. Was that you she was chatting to then?

Coming down the cycle lane along Park Avenue, I peel off towards King George gate only to eyeball a Met officer (no less). I was told that although not committing an offence at this stage, I was cycling along an unauthorised path against the signage. I point out that the signage is at the entrance of the gate and not for exiting.

I asked was was an authorised path and was pointed towards Park Avenue. I then point out the 'LCN2' sign behind the officer above the gate and advise that I was simply making my way towards a cycle route. He agreed with me, but advised me to dismount in future instead.

He took me details.

My points are this.

There is no specific signage at Vanburgh gate requesting cyclist to dis-mount upon entering the park. The signage is only upon leaving the cycle lane. The opposite being true at King George gate.

Regulation 3 (4) a prohibits use of cycles unless on a park road. Now I intepret a tarmac path as being a road, regardless of being marked out as a cycle lane.

I was told that cyclist are being targeted due to recent complaints (how dare they!) and the upcoming Olympics. Now I never believe anything said anyone in uniform, but I am confident I would have been given a warmer reception if I was mounted on a horse!

Rant over.

cjcp

It's because you ride a SS. :P

The Police and Community Police were on patrol at the SouthBridge/Thames Street junction last week - looking for ASL and RLJ offenders. Would be nice to see that more often and at more major junctions, but I guess that's being a bit hopeful. Had a chat to them - very pleasant. Secretly, I think they'd like CX bikes....

Clever Pun

I'm never really sure why they take details if you're not getting fined... I suspect to double check if you get another talking to and then get fined in retrospect?

Hefty... £30 isn't it?

Getting off the bike is a real pain on a ride...different route?

lost_in_thought

It used to really wind me up in Hyde Park when the Park Police would stop me riding on the road between Speakers Corner and the Police station in the middle. They maintained it was not a road, but a footpath.

Why did it annoy me?

Because they pulled me over in their cars.

Grr.

Rich158

navt wrote:

Well, sort of. Thanks to a posting on Greenwich cyclist, I managed to avoid the PCSOs at Vanburgh gate although said femaile PCSO told me to remain unmounted until I reached the marked cycle lane. Fair enough. Was that you she was chatting to then?

very probably, a pink Condor :oops: and High Viz jacket, that was me. And there was me thinking 'You lucky bastard' as you nipped past without being stopped.

Actually I've just re-read the above sentence, it may not have been the park police after all, more like the fashion police :shock: Yellow High viz and pink, what was I thinking :roll:

deptfordmarmoset

That'll be the Maze Hill entrance from Charlton, I suppose. I've been going through the park quite regularly on a ''commute'' to visit my father, who's rapidly losing his marbles and dignity in Queen Elizabeth Hospital so I'm pretty familiar with the route.

Apparently, the ''correct'' way to enter through that entrance is to dismount for about 15 metres through the gate till you get to the cycle path alongside the railings, and then dismount again for 10 metres to cross a broad traffic-free road where the path leaves the line of the railings. There are no signs saying no bikes at the entrance and just the smallest of ''cyclists dismount'' signs on short pillars at the end of the unjoined up cycle path sections. Unless, of course, you're under 10 years old; when you can do what you like. (If 10 year olds can cycle anywhere, methinks it can't really be a safety issue.)

Because I like to cycle legally but baulk at having to dismount for no good reason, I now always use the south gate.

If it's any consolation, there was a bundle of bobbies stopping traffic coming up the hill yesterday afternoon - speeding, tax and insurance? Perhaps they're getting cars down to 30mph before they introduce the 20mph speed limit. But anyway, it's not just bikes.

Dudu

navt wrote:

I was told that cyclist are being targeted due to recent complaints (how dare they!) and the upcoming Olympics.

Rant over.

Oooh we can't have people doing the one thing that might win us some medals, can we.

cee

cjcp wrote:

The Police and Community Police were on patrol at the SouthBridge/Thames Street junction last week - looking for ASL and RLJ offenders. Would be nice to see that more often and at more major junctions

in my experience, there are sometimes little 'projects' to stop cyclists RLJ etc....

it would also be nice if they would take their blinkers off and then be able to see all of the motorised traffic that is committing the exact same offences, and either note their reg, or stop them as well.

navt

Clever Pun wrote:

Getting off the bike is a real pain on a ride...different route?

I'd sooner dis-mount. I dislike cycling around Greenwich town square if I can avoid it.

navt

Rich158 wrote:

very probably, a pink Condor :oops: and High Viz jacket, that was me. And there was me thinking 'You lucky bastard' as you nipped past without being stopped.

Nice bike. Not quite so lucky, but I was feeling smug initially.

soy_sauce

Dudu wrote:

navt wrote:

I was told that cyclist are being targeted due to recent complaints (how dare they!) and the upcoming Olympics.

Rant over.

Oooh we can't have people doing the one thing that might win us some medals, can we.

or trying to raise fund for the Olympics by fining cyclist/driver/dog/cat/homeless? :shock:

Clever Pun

navt wrote:

Clever Pun wrote:

Getting off the bike is a real pain on a ride...different route?

I'd sooner dis-mount. I dislike cycling around Greenwich town square if I can avoid it.

I never thought it was that bad...

I've noticed the police rarely give a monkeys about rlj'ing if they're in their cars, i'm starting to see more incidents where some cretin jumps the light and edges across the junction and the cops just ignore it

Rich158

Clever Pun wrote:

I'm never really sure why they take details if you're not getting fined... I suspect to double check if you get another talking to and then get fined in retrospect?

Hefty... £30 isn't it?

Getting off the bike is a real pain on a ride...different route?

It's £200 :shock:

They do double check your details, my boss is now on his last warning and on the verge of being kicked out of the the park for good. Mind you I did point out that if you ride a Brompton you deserve all you get

Dismounting isn't a great deal to be honest. I love cycling through the park on mornings like today, sunny, crisp, and a stonking view of the Queens house, the naval hospital and Canary Wharf beyond It always gets me into the office with a smile on my face

artaxerxes

If it's any consolation, there was a bundle of bobbies stopping traffic coming up the hill yesterday afternoon - speeding, tax and insurance? Perhaps they're getting cars down to 30mph before they introduce the 20mph speed limit. But anyway, it's not just bikes.

Does this mean cyclists will have to stay below 20mph going down the Avenue too? Most seem to go down at ~30mph.

Zachariah

I long for this to happen to me, so I can speed away whle shouting "You'll never take me alive, coppers!" over my shoulder.

spen666

Rich158 wrote:

Me, not the bikes this time.

That's right, on entering Greenwich Park by a side entrance I was met by a very nice female community officer who wanted to take my name and number I thought word had got out and this was my luvky day, but no, evidently it is prohibited to cycle the 50 metres or so between the gate and the cycle path and there have been complaints :shock: Now I'm on a warning, have had a stern ticking off, and if I do it again am liable to a hefty fine :shock:

Honestly have they nothing better to do :twisted:

You deserve to be flogged with a rust bike chain

Sinner

Repent

Backsplash

Thanks to whoever it was that was in front of me this morning, occupying the two officious Jobsworths, otherwise I'd have been nicked too, and the chap behind me....

Really unbelieveble; they will be doing speed traps down the hill again too soon, I got shouted at by a very angry pc last year

Stevo_666

Thanks for the tip Rich - I had been considering going over to Greenwich and doing a few rounds of the park (good hill training) while enjoying the spectacular views. Think I'll give that one a miss now...

Rich158

Stevo 666 wrote:

Thanks for the tip Rich - I had been considering going over to Greenwich and doing a few rounds of the park (good hill training) while enjoying the spectacular views. Think I'll give that one a miss now...

If you want hill training my boss does reps up the road at lunchtimes, no traffic and the only obstacle is stupid pedestrians and squirrels on the way back down. He's not had any trouble with the park police over this yet :roll:

artaxerxes

On a day like this Greenwich Park is stunning, shame they are going to dig it up for the Olympics.

Porgy

I used to cycle down through Greenwich Park regularly but stopped after about my 20th run in with vehicles that speed down The Avenue and have to be ahead of the cyclist whatever speed that cyclist is doing, pull in too early, and then slam their brakes on to below 20 nearly taking me out in the process!! :evil:

deptfordmarmoset

Porgy wrote:

I used to cycle down through Greenwich Park regularly but stopped after about my 20th run in with vehicles that speed down The Avenue and have to be ahead of the cyclist whatever speed that cyclist is doing, pull in too early, and then slam their brakes on to below 20 nearly taking me out in the process!! :evil:

Just coasted down the hill, slightly over 30mph, and, you're right, cars can't bear it, they simply have to overtake, regardless of the road conditions and speed limits. I was praying for a speed trap. But the police had all gone back to the station to do their paperwork.

:idea: maybe we could use bikes for entrapment...

n.battison

Its pathetic.

navt

deptfordmarmoset wrote:

I was praying for a speed trap. But the police had all gone back to the station to do their paperwork.

No doubt drafting a letter to yours truly.

Retch

Any Canary Wharf-ites might be interested to know that the last week or so the security bods have been out standing at the Pelican crossings with clipboards again, ostensibly watching for RLJers.

prj45

lost_in_thought wrote:

It used to really wind me up in Hyde Park when the Park Police would stop me riding on the road between Speakers Corner and the Police station in the middle. They maintained it was not a road, but a footpath.

Why did it annoy me?

Because they pulled me over in their cars.

Grr.

I once saw four officers on bikes riding down that path, like a little line of elephants, illegal ones.

Gussio

"I fought the law, and the law won"

Rich158

deptfordmarmoset wrote:

Porgy wrote:

I used to cycle down through Greenwich Park regularly but stopped after about my 20th run in with vehicles that speed down The Avenue and have to be ahead of the cyclist whatever speed that cyclist is doing, pull in too early, and then slam their brakes on to below 20 nearly taking me out in the process!! :evil:

Just coasted down the hill, slightly over 30mph, and, you're right, cars can't bear it, they simply have to overtake, regardless of the road conditions and speed limits. I was praying for a speed trap. But the police had all gone back to the station to do their paperwork.

:idea: maybe we could use bikes for entrapment...

I've had many a butt clenching moment when they then slam their brakes on for the speed ramp at the bottom :shock: I've found out just how quickly I can stop from 30, bastewards :twisted: