Cyclist nabbed for speeding in school zone

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Cyclist nabbed for speeding in school zone

Postby fixed » Tue Feb 28, 2012 1:46 pm

http://www.inmycommunity.com.au/news-an ... t/7615186/
WEST Metropolitan Traffic’s top officer has issued a reminder to cyclists that they must abide by the same road rules as motorists after a man was caught speeding through a school zone on his bicycle.

Senior Constable Lance Munckton was shocked to clock a professional cyclist doing 56km/h through a children’s crossing outside St John’s Primary School in Scarborough during morning peak hour earlier this month.

It was the fastest speed of a bicycle the officer had ever recorded in 28 years of policing. Sen Const Munckton gave the rider, a 34-year-old Mt Hawthorn man, a fine of $150 – an infringement the cyclist was reportedly “very annoyed” with.

West Metropolitan Traffic officer-in-charge Patricia Lagan said although there was no one crossing at the time, a bicycle hitting a pedestrian at that speed was likely to kill or seriously injure them.

“It was during a time when children and their parents could reasonably be expected to be crossing, along with traffic wardens,” Senior Sergeant Lagan said.

“The key message here is cyclists are subject to the same road rules as motorists and will not be given special treatment by police.”

A cyclist could be liable for up to 10 years’ imprisonment for culpable driving under the criminal code, if a bike was ridden in a way that caused serious injury or death.

Cycling WA chief executive Garry Chandler said 99 per cent of cyclists would not reach these speeds.

“This is the first time I’ve heard of a cyclist being done for speeding,” Mr Chandler said.

“Speeds likes this aren’t uncommon for professional or top-level athletes, but cannot be sustained for a long period of time.

“But clearly cyclists are bound by the same road rules as everyone else.

“Flouting these rules could create a dangerous situation for everyone, especially when recorded in a school zone.”

The cyclist could not be contacted for comment.
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Re: Cyclist nabbed for speeding in school zone

Postby Ozkaban » Tue Feb 28, 2012 4:41 pm

I don't have an issue with that. A reasonably fit cyclist could exceed 40kmh in a school zone, though 56kmh is pretty quick... unless it was down hill.

Actually just checked mapmyride, and if they're heading west then it's a reasonable downhill, so 56 km/h would be achievable. Also, would 'professional cyclist' be 'cyclist in jersey and knicks'???

At any rate, this is all irrelevant. A cyclist was speeding and got caught. Cop it sweet and watch out for school zones next time.

Oh, the police station appears to be right next to the school too...

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Re: Cyclist nabbed for speeding in school zone

Postby Aushiker » Tue Feb 28, 2012 5:07 pm

More accurate than Perth Now which had the cyclist loosing two demerit points, which I am pretty sure is not correct. Need to double check the Road Traffic Code 2000.

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Re: Cyclist nabbed for speeding in school zone

Postby David_G » Tue Feb 28, 2012 5:16 pm

If he was doing more than 40 in a school zone then he copped his right whack.
If he had a car license I don't mind him losing the demerit points either.
Funny thing about school zones is there are usually lots of small children in them most of the time.
Another funny thing about small children is they don't have a lot of road sense and when hit by a moving vehicle/bicycle they break very easily.
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Re: Cyclist nabbed for speeding in school zone

Postby R12RT » Tue Feb 28, 2012 5:32 pm

I can't see that anyone in his position had a right to complain. He was speeding pure and simple - cop the fine.

But if you don't need a license to ride a bicycle, why do you get demerit points on your motor vehicle license?
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Re: Cyclist nabbed for speeding in school zone

Postby Aushiker » Tue Feb 28, 2012 5:38 pm

R12RT wrote:But if you don't need a license to ride a bicycle, why do you get demerit points on your motor vehicle license?
Where is it said that this happens?

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Re: Cyclist nabbed for speeding in school zone

Postby CommuRider » Tue Feb 28, 2012 5:51 pm

Serves him right. Hope the cops booked car drivers that park illegally too near the school.
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Re: Cyclist nabbed for speeding in school zone

Postby TimW » Tue Feb 28, 2012 5:54 pm

CommuRider wrote:Serves him right. Hope the cops booked car drivers that park illegally too near the school.
If there were any that is
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Re: Cyclist nabbed for speeding in school zone

Postby Pravda » Tue Feb 28, 2012 5:56 pm

Aushiker wrote:
R12RT wrote:But if you don't need a license to ride a bicycle, why do you get demerit points on your motor vehicle license?
Where is it said that this happens?

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It's in the perthnow article. 2 points.
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Re: Cyclist nabbed for speeding in school zone

Postby roller » Tue Feb 28, 2012 6:05 pm

all it says it that he was very annoyed.

have to say, last time i got a speeding ticket i was annoyed too.
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Re: Cyclist nabbed for speeding in school zone

Postby Aushiker » Tue Feb 28, 2012 6:06 pm

Pravda wrote:
Aushiker wrote:
R12RT wrote:But if you don't need a license to ride a bicycle, why do you get demerit points on your motor vehicle license?
Where is it said that this happens?

Andrew
It's in the perthnow article. 2 points.
and I said this early on ...
More accurate than Perth Now which had the cyclist loosing two demerit points, which I am pretty sure is not correct. Need to double check the Road Traffic Code 2000.
Perth Now is hardly an authoritative source. The relevant regulation is 104A which is discussed here. If the bicycle that was used is a motor vehicle then yes demerits apply; if not they don't.

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Re: Cyclist nabbed for speeding in school zone

Postby sogood » Tue Feb 28, 2012 6:36 pm

fixed wrote:Senior Constable Lance Munckton was shocked to clock a professional cyclist doing 56km/h through a children’s crossing outside St John’s Primary School in Scarborough during morning peak hour earlier this month.

It was the fastest speed of a bicycle the officer had ever recorded in 28 years of policing...
Gosh! Evidence that there's a technology improvement over the past 28 years to cause that speed increase. What can it be? Ahhh... Must be the introduction of CF in bike technology! :wink: :mrgreen: :mrgreen:
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Re: Cyclist nabbed for speeding in school zone

Postby tallywhacker » Tue Feb 28, 2012 6:57 pm

no problem with the cyclist being fined and losing demerit points but I certainly hope that the next time there is a motorist speeding in a school zone there is a similar article in Perth Now

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Cyclist nabbed for speeding in school zone

Postby herzog » Tue Feb 28, 2012 7:05 pm

Oxford wrote: the gaping double standards.
Actually I was thinking the opposite funnily enough. In this instance it would appear the cyclist was held to the exact same standard as a motorist.

Very rare for a cyclist to get pinged for anything other than helmets and RLJ.

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Cyclist nabbed for speeding in school zone

Postby toolonglegs » Tue Feb 28, 2012 7:12 pm

Didn't he get off lightly ... He was between 10-20 over the limit so should have been a bigger fine?.

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Re: Cyclist nabbed for speeding in school zone

Postby Aushiker » Tue Feb 28, 2012 7:28 pm

Sort of related. Have received an email from Hayley Bolton from you guessed it, Perth Now (thanks Heinrich :)) who wants to have a chat about "few unsafe experiences while riding your bike." Given it is the Sunday Times/Perth Now/News Corporation I am going to have to give this some thought.

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Re: Cyclist nabbed for speeding in school zone

Postby herzog » Tue Feb 28, 2012 7:41 pm

Oxford wrote:
double standard I was referring to was not every motor vehicle infringement is reported, and if they showed as much concern over the carnage caused by motor vehicles as the perceived carnage caused by cyclists, we would have a very different world.


Sure but in this case it it was a general school zone enforcement, as opposed to a "crackdown" on cyclists (e.g. helmet/RLJ crackdown underway in Sydney at the moment) . If anything they were extremely surprised to catch a cyclist. In fact, that's the story here.
just a beat up IMO, really slow news day if that's the height of what they need to report.
It's totally newsworthy in the "man bites dog" sense.

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Re: Cyclist nabbed for speeding in school zone

Postby waramatt » Tue Feb 28, 2012 11:15 pm

David_G wrote:If he was doing more than 40 in a school zone then he copped his right whack.
If he had a car license I don't mind him losing the demerit points either.
Funny thing about school zones is there are usually lots of small children in them most of the time.
Another funny thing about small children is they don't have a lot of road sense and when hit by a moving vehicle/bicycle they break very easily.
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Re: Cyclist nabbed for speeding in school zone

Postby ColinOldnCranky » Tue Feb 28, 2012 11:28 pm

Oxford wrote:I don't have a problem with the cyclist being fined, but is he really a professional cyclist? I assumed you highlighted the text. also if speeding on a bike is so dangerous and a threat to society and yet so few if any people are killed by "out of control cyclists", how do they feel about the road trauma caused by motor vehicles and motorists. I know the subject is serious, but its hard not to laugh at the gaping double standards.
Fining the rider does nothing to indicate that they do not view other matters seriously.

The lack of many fatal incidents from out of control cyclists does not mean that the speed is not dangerous - more that the speeds are seldom achieved. 10 thousand million auto km over 50kph per annum versus what? 100,000 on bikes on public roads? Half a million? And even less in suburban streets. Whatever it is, it will be three or four or more orders of magnitude lower than for cars.

I know what vehicle is more likely to regain control at 56kph if it hits a bad spot on the road, a bit of grease or a bit of pea gravel, has to do a vicious turn. 56kph is, in one way, worse when on a cycle than in a car.

A fair cop. I hope the cyclist learns a lesson.

I note however that we only have the word of the officer that the cyclist reacted as described. I believe that cops have agendas and can spin a story just like we so often do ourselves. (And Warney for that matter - :roll: )
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Re: Cyclist nabbed for speeding in school zone

Postby rambler1au » Tue Feb 28, 2012 11:40 pm

if its fair that a cyclist gets pinged for doing 55k in a 40 my question is how would he know? In order to break a law you need to know what the speed is so when are speedos mandatory on all bicycles?

Its not law that a cyclist has a speedo on his bike, so how can he be held liable for a speed he may not have known he was doing , even if he did have a speedo we all know that bike speedos are notoriously inaccurate so they wont count if this matter was disputed , and anyway what about others who have no speedo ? . So whats the next step in this nanny state fined for not having a speedo on your bike once its illegal to ride a bike with no speedo. I mean gt real St Johns is off Scarborogh beach road so I assume that's were he was doing 56k and its notoriously downhill so cars have a hell of a time keeping to 40 a bike has no chance unless you are sitting on the brakes all the way down or better still walking.

By the way my children went to that school only a few years ago and very few cross Scarborough beach road but I would not like to see anyone hurt but the topography of that road makes it a ridiculous fine for a cyclist.
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Re: Cyclist nabbed for speeding in school zone

Postby waramatt » Tue Feb 28, 2012 11:52 pm

rambler1au wrote:if its fair that a cyclist gets pinged for doing 55k in a 40 my question is how would he know? In order to break a law you need to know what the speed is

Its not law that a cyclist has a speedo on his bike so how can he be held liable for a speed he may not have known he was doing , even if he did have a speedo we all know that bike speedos are notoriously inaccurate so it wont count if this matter was disputed , and anyway what about others who have no speedo ? . So whats the next step in this nanny state fined for not having a speedo on your bike once its illegal to ride a bike with no speedo. I mean gt real St Johns is off Scaborogh beach road so I assume thats wee he was doing 56k and its notoriously downhill so cars have a hell of a time keeping to 40 a bike has no chance unless you are sitting on the brakes all the way down or better still walking.
Rambler - I wonder if your take on this would be different if it was a loved one of yours struck down by a cyclist going 16 km/h over the limit near a school? In a way a cyclist at speed is more dangerous than a car because it is almost silent on approach.

Do you really think it is nanny state to expect a cyclist to adhere to the speed limit? :?

I disagree that bike computer speedos are notoriously inaccurate. In my experience they are as or more accurate (if set up using a correct wheel measurement) than many car speedos.
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Re: Cyclist nabbed for speeding in school zone

Postby velocopedant » Tue Feb 28, 2012 11:59 pm

I wonder if the guy was "very annoyed" with the cops for doing their job or just with himself for being an idiot.

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Re: Cyclist nabbed for speeding in school zone

Postby Red Rider » Wed Feb 29, 2012 12:10 am

ColinOldnCranky wrote:
Oxford wrote:I don't have a problem with the cyclist being fined, but is he really a professional cyclist? I assumed you highlighted the text. also if speeding on a bike is so dangerous and a threat to society and yet so few if any people are killed by "out of control cyclists", how do they feel about the road trauma caused by motor vehicles and motorists. I know the subject is serious, but its hard not to laugh at the gaping double standards.
Fining the rider does nothing to indicate that they do not view other matters seriously.

The lack of many fatal incidents from out of control cyclists does not mean that the speed is not dangerous - more that the speeds are seldom achieved. 10 thousand million auto km over 50kph per annum versus what? 100,000 on bikes on public roads? Half a million? And even less in suburban streets. Whatever it is, it will be three or four or more orders of magnitude lower than for cars.

I know what vehicle is more likely to regain control at 56kph if it hits a bad spot on the road, a bit of grease or a bit of pea gravel, has to do a vicious turn. 56kph is, in one way, worse when on a cycle than in a car.

A fair cop. I hope the cyclist learns a lesson.

I note however that we only have the word of the officer that the cyclist reacted as described. I believe that cops have agendas and can spin a story just like we so often do ourselves. (And Warney for that matter - :roll: )
Wise words Colin. This made the news because it is news-worthy (I know right!).

Although he broke the law and such actions should be condemned, I think this is good for cycling in general as it brings it into the mainstream. Yes, we are road-users and we too are beholden to the laws of the road.

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Re: Cyclist nabbed for speeding in school zone

Postby hanzao » Wed Feb 29, 2012 12:16 am

That is a good point...

Officer: do you know what speed you were doing?
Cyclist: Nope, don't have a speedo
Officer: Well you were doing 57 in a 40

Err how does a cyclist know what his speed limit he is doing if he doesn't have a speedo. If he was over taking drivers doing 40 maybe but apart that hmmm.. Never thought of this.

So if you are hammering it down a hill doing 80 in a 60.. OMGosh I'm breaking the law!!
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Re: Cyclist nabbed for speeding in school zone

Postby citywomble » Wed Feb 29, 2012 12:28 am

rambler1au said:
if its fair that a cyclist gets pinged for doing 55k in a 40 my question is how would he know? In order to break a law you need to know what the speed is so when are speedos mandatory on all bicycles?

Its not law that a cyclist has a speedo on his bike, so how can he be held liable for a speed he may not have known he was doing , even if he did have a speedo we all know that bike speedos are notoriously inaccurate so they wont count if this matter was disputed , and anyway what about others who have no speedo ? . So whats the next step in this nanny state fined for not having a speedo on your bike once its illegal to ride a bike with no speedo. I mean gt real St Johns is off Scarborogh beach road so I assume that's were he was doing 56k and its notoriously downhill so cars have a hell of a time keeping to 40 a bike has no chance unless you are sitting on the brakes all the way down or better still walking.

By the way my children went to that school only a few years ago and very few cross Scarborough beach road but I would not like to see anyone hurt but the topography of that road makes it a ridiculous fine for a cyclist.
It is true that a bicycle does not have to have a speedo and it is also true that a cyclist must not speed. These are not mutually incompatible.

The law requires that the 'driver' of a 'vehicle' does not speed and, when the vehicle is a bicycle the driver is the rider. If that class of vehicle does not require a speedo then the rider is still obliged to not exceed the speed, how this is done is then up to the cyclist and its not difficult.

Keep your speed substantially lower than the speed limit and you will not be wrong. The closer you wish to cycle to the speed limit the more accurate your method needs to be. Speed can be measured by estimate, other vehicles, cadence, sound, speedo, GPS - the choice is yours, so is the obligation.

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a bike has no chance unless you are sitting on the brakes all the way down
Thats precisely what brakes are for!

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