Cycle lanes - law

Also meant to say that it is pretty ironic that the council's are not interested in issuing FPN's for this abuse of cycle lanes. I mean, it is a cash cow for them as so many people flout the parking restrictions that come with them. There's one road here in Paisley that daily has at least half a dozen vehicles parked in the cycle lane at any given time.

Thx Jonusher that was going to be my spiel. Personally I do not go near them as I don't want my tyres cut up.

I'm a bit surprised by the lack of knowledge... after all how can we moan about car drivers when we don't know the laws ourselves?

A mandatory lane is marked with a solid white line, this means motorised vehicles must not cross the line within the hours of operation of the lane - they are marked on a vertical sign at the beginning of the lane (although the majority are 24 hour). There is no need for double yellow lines within a mandatory lane (although most authorities mark them anyway). Any driver crossing the white line is guilty of a traffic offence which the police should enforce. One exception to this is vehicles loading to shops or businesses, unless a separate loading ban is also in force.

An advisory cycle lane is marked with a dashed white line. It is not illegal to cross into one of these lanes as a driver. They are there simply to indicate to motorists the likely presence of cyclists on the carriageway - and a cyclist doesn't have to position themselves in the lane.

Parking in an advisory lane depends on the parking restrictions in force. Only parking wardens are able to enforce a parking offence - this isn't something the police can deal with, unless the vehicle is causing an obstruction.

And breathe... but we seriously ought to be clued up about these things...

rbx! You are as cynical as me!

I've not crossed paths with the police very often but I'd have thought if you made a complaint they cannot just ignore you.

Whatever, photographic evidence is doubtless important. I commute in central London and have now got a camera on my helmet, just in case....

I've only used the camera in anger once, I wanted to highlight the poor state of one of my local roads so filmed while riding along a stretch. Then put the film on YouTube and contacted my MP. I'm sure that they always planned to repair the road a month later anyway, but you never know.... (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BQ28fZSjsfM&feature=channel_video_title)

I know this isn't directly related to parking in cycle lanes but maybe there's room for some unorthodoxy in making your point.

No idea about the law but don't think anything's gonna get done about it.

Bike lane invasion is so common here in LDN I don't bother getting worked up about it anymore. I was just hoping that they'll spare the new 'Cycle Superhighways'. Doesn't look like anyone bothers - seen all kinds of vehicles parked in those lanes too, including police cars, cabs and those lovely big white vans.

It may be illegal to park in a cycle lane but round here even the police do it. They don't seem to care. I would not bother reporting anything to the police; experience tells me it is a waste of time!

afaik it depends on whether the bike lane has a solid white line, which cars are not meant to cross or a dashed line, which they can. Not sure about the legality of parking, but there are certainly cycle lanes in London with a single yellow painted on the kerbside , I think that a red painted lane is no parking.

Yep, illegal to park in a bike lane, they should be regarded as double yellows IIRC. Pulling across from oncoming to park in a cycle lane with a cyclist in it is well out of order, they only do it because they'll get away with it. There's a parcel delivery van who parks in the same bike lane in Lancaster at about 3pm every day, and what makes it worse is that there's off-street parking 10 yards up the road, behind the place he's delivering to (Waterstones). I should start taking pictures and sending them to the police...