Plans to introduce licenses for bikes on the IOM

cat_with_no_tail

So, my local government has decided to consider plans to license bikes.

It's a sad sad day for the Isle of Man

http://www.iomtoday.co.im/news/Call-for ... 6132083.jp

Oh, and before anyone starts thinking "well, this dosent impact me, I cycle in London not the Isle of flippin Man" I should point out that we had 24hr opening in pubs before you too.

I particularly like the argument that "They ride four in a row, they will not drop behind, a motorist gets annoyed and overtakes in a bad spot, they have an accident and the cyclists race on,"

Yet more anti-cyclist drivel :roll:

I didn't mind it when it was confined to London and other UK cities, but now it's spread to the Isle of man I'm most annoyed

Porgy

Ken Livingstone's already called for it in London - and then as the implications of it came home to the GLA it was quietly dropped.

I wrote a letter to Ken asking if my daughter had to be licensed in which case I'd have to lock her bike in the garage and driver her everywhere instead.

Porgy

in the comments underneath the article:

I'm sorry but Kevin Weir has got the issue completely wrong. Regulating and taxing cyclists is not going to reduce any of the problems which he cites. First, if a motorist gets angry with a cyclist, or group of cyclists, and crashes, he is liable, not the cyclists. The law does not compensate for anger. Secondly, regulating the owning and use of bicycles for anyone over the age of 16 would be completely unworkable. As a society we have enough problems trying to get young motorists to pay tax and insurance on cars and motorbikes, let alone on push bikes. The government and local authorities have a lot more important issues to be dealing with than chasing young kids for £10 for a bicycle. Thridly, £10 tax for what could be a £50 push bike is ridiculously disproportionate, and if this was applied to the car driving population then there would be an uproar. If people were forced to pay £4000 tax for a £20000 car, plus the insurance and petrol costs, there would be outcry. Picking on cyclists because they are hated by the majority of the population is completely unfair. Fourth, we pay road tax because of the damage that motor vehicles do to the roads and the surrounding environment, which has to be met by the government. Can Mr Weir come up with any statistics, other than the anecdote of his rage towards cyclists, which proves that cyclists cause any damage to the road surface which must be recovered through taxation? Finally, in an age where we're constantly being warned of our damage to the environment and the need to move towards greener sources of energy and transport, this is moving in completely the wrong direction, and would only discourage people from taking up cycling as either a sport or a means of transport.
MATT, Peel

There are some completely stupid comments in there too.

cat_with_no_tail

This is the Isle of Man. It's a small island in the middle of the Irish sea with not much to do other than ride your bike or post stupid comments on local rag websites.

Bet they never showed THAT in the TV adverts.

Welcome to the Isle of "get that F**king bike off the f**king road"!

el_presidente

Mark Cavendish - your island needs you!!

cat_with_no_tail

Don't forget Jonny Bellis.

biondino

I'm all for them giving it a go. Either - and by far the most likely outcome - is that it will be an unenforceable bureaucratic nightmare, or it will prove a surprisingly workable, positive step in the accountability of cyclists. I hope our Manx brethren don't have to jump through too many hoops, but I'm very interested to see what the result is.

zanes

All I will say is: It will come here. Sooner than you think.

owenlars

On thye mainland they'll licence those mobility scooters before they do bicycles I reckon.

boneyjoe

If they're as lax enforcing it, as they are the speed limit for motorbikes, there is absolutely nothing to worry about!

And what about the 1000 odd visitors who come over for the End2End challenge every year. Will they each need a licence too? Sounds like a sure fire way to kill off that event and its tourist revenue.

cat_with_no_tail

boneyjoe wrote:

And what about the 1000 odd visitors who come over for the End2End challenge every year. Will they each need a licence too? Sounds like a sure fire way to kill off that event and its tourist revenue.

Apparently not.

I have got a copy of the proposed regulations, and in there, it states:

4 Application

(1) These Regulations apply to every pedal cycle other than –

(a) a pedal cycle so constructed that the pedals act on any wheel or on the axle of any wheel without the interposition of any gearing or chain;

(b) a pedal cycle which –

(i) has been brought temporarily into the Island,

(ii) is being ridden by a person resident outside the Island, and

(iii) complies with article 26 of the International Convention on Road Traffic signed at Geneva on 19th September 1949 as amended; and

© a competition bicycle.

Not sure what you mean about the speed limits though? If anything, I find the coppers over here to be no worse than the ones across the water.

cjcp

'They ride four in a row, they will not drop behind, a motorist gets annoyed and overtakes in a bad spot, they have an accident and the cyclists race on,' he added.

The cyclists (i) are apparently responsible for the motorist's dangerous overtaking and (ii) go from riding to racing in one sentence.

And people like this have a role in making legislation...

My best mate lives on the IoM. He's an mtber. Will see what he makes of it.

cat_with_no_tail

I think I speak on behalf of all IOM cyclists when I say, it's a load of b0llocks spouted by a media whoring gobshite with nothing better to do with his time.

Eau Rouge

Have I got this right....they have a problem with cyclists riding a few abreast? A stacked column of bikes is far easier to pass than a long chain of them, provided you're passing both safely, i.e., on the other side of the road. That's not the case if you intend to pass them dangerously close while squeezing between them and on-coming traffic. Perhaps someone should have a quiet word with the local police.

Bikerbaboon

Cat With No Tail wrote:

boneyjoe wrote:

And what about the 1000 odd visitors who come over for the End2End challenge every year. Will they each need a licence too? Sounds like a sure fire way to kill off that event and its tourist revenue.

Apparently not.

I have got a copy of the proposed regulations, and in there, it states:

4 Application

(1) These Regulations apply to every pedal cycle other than –

(a) a pedal cycle so constructed that the pedals act on any wheel or on the axle of any wheel without the interposition of any gearing or chain;

(b) a pedal cycle which –

(i) has been brought temporarily into the Island,

(ii) is being ridden by a person resident outside the Island, and

(iii) complies with article 26 of the International Convention on Road Traffic signed at Geneva on 19th September 1949 as amended; and

© a competition bicycle.

Not sure what you mean about the speed limits though? If anything, I find the coppers over here to be no worse than the ones across the water.

I wonder how long it temporarily is..... I mean 50 years is not for ever now.

cjcp

Cat With No Tail wrote:

I think I speak on behalf of all IOM cyclists when I say, it's a load of b0llocks spouted by a media whoring gobshite with nothing better to do with his time.

supersonic

Apparently in the event of a global nuclear war, the IOM is calculated to be the safest and most sustainable place to be.

Feck knows who calculated that!

Eau Rouge

supersonic wrote:

Apparently in the event of a global nuclear war, the IOM is calculated to be the safest and most sustainable place to be.

Feck knows who calculated that!

Isle of Man Estate Agents.

cjcp

supersonic wrote:

Apparently in the event of a global nuclear war, the IOM is calculated to be the safest and most sustainable place to be.

Feck knows who calculated that!

If it's surrounded in fog at the time, the fog is so dense it's impenetrable, even by radioactive nasty stuff.

My eldest daughter affectionately calls it Fraggle Rock.

supersonic

WHich is just as well - only a short hop to Sellafield ;-)

cjcp

supersonic wrote:

WHich is just as well - only a short hop to Sellafield ;-)

I picked up Manx FM when I was in the western Lakes a few years ago. Classic stuff.

daviesee

Could it raise money?

If the answer to that one is yes, then it is coming to the mainland very shortly :evil:

It may be unenforceable but if the law abiding citizens are likely to cough up, the government will collect.

Porgy

daviesee wrote:

Could it raise money?

If the answer to that one is yes, then it is coming to the mainland very shortly :evil:

It may be unenforceable but if the law abiding citizens are likely to cough up, the government will collect.

it's not only unenforceable but I think when the GLA looked at the costs they couldn't see any way of making money from it. So I guess we're safe then.

Eau Rouge

If it were to look suitably like a race number.....

petejuk

If it did happen, then the powers that be would be inundated with calls for safer roads in better condition and we couldn't have that could we?
I agree, completely unsustainable.

Splottboy

Licenses and insurance suggested for dogs too...and mine don't even drive!

downfader

Sounds like the guys who have proposed it have a) no idea of the image they are creating for the island, b) the legal costs of overhauling law, c) the administration costs for maintaning the information, d) the costs for the Policing of the cyclists involved, and having to stop cyclists and check that they are indeed islanders and not visitors, check IDs and such...e) any stolen bike will be simply broken down for parts and flogged on ebay.

Yet again it stinks of a Police force that cannot (or will not in some cases) cope with the problems it is charged to deal with. So if the Police are undermanned and under financed then just make things illegal.

I also note how commenters on there are mistaking the word "should" in the HC as law. It is not, it is simply guidance and only that. I take it the HC is the same as ours, as the numbers tally up? :?

Every cyclist, whether commuter or clubber etc from the island, needs to write and express their concerns about the above imo.I worry that a small government such as the IOM's might be more inclined to make the mistake of bringing this into law, as they do not have the access to the legal teams and experts we do on the mainland.

Porgy

I think one of the most absurd things about it will be that it will not apply to under 16s. So under 16s will be free to cycle in any way they like and suddenly have to be licensed on their 16th birthday.

That's going to be a hard one to justify.

downfader

Porgy wrote:

I think one of the most absurd things about it will be that it will not apply to under 16s. So under 16s will be free to cycle in any way they like and suddenly have to be licensed on their 16th birthday.

That's going to be a hard one to justify.

And they'll turn to the kid on the bike and ask "prove your under 16"

"I cant mate, I dont have ID, I'm under 16!"

How many 15 year olds have ID anyway?

nwallace

downfader wrote:

How many 15 year olds have ID anyway?

Quite a few, but not for the purposes of proving they are under 16.

holybinch

The revenge of the U16: "Can't drink, can't smoke, but at least I can ride a bike the way I want!"