Man faces £351 bill after being caught illegally riding through Bedford town centre

There's one of these proposed for coventry. Totally unsuitable city roads for cycling due to essentially being a large bus station and taxi rank. The pedestrianised areas of the city can be perfectly safely, and considerately, cycled through. The annoyance is chavs on bikes riding no handed and looking at their phones and not all people on bikes. It's been bundled in with other 'annoyances'. Why not create safe shared spaces and crack down on behaviours rather than activities? 

Man paces £351 bill after failing to pay £75 bill. That's better.

It seems he turned up at Court, though even that's unclear. And it's not clear what defence, if any, he put forward. 

Non story really. This happens to motorists every day. That others are fined less because of circumstance is galling but fixed penalty offences often lack parity with means tested ones.

Until this country starts working for the common good, cut back on all spending. It's the nearest thing to a general strike. The Tory 'economic miracle' will crumble.

I do want to ride at pedestrian areas when it is a part of my commute, but I would want a child inf front of a speeding cyclist. I believe a 10 km/h speed limit (the speed of an average runner) should be set at pedestrian areas, but there would be a problem about how to enforce it, given the lack of speedometers at bikes. If there was common sense from cyclists and police, it would work great though.

Government should get tough on those road users who kill the most and cause the most damage to society by speed, pollution, and not looking where they are going because they are on their mobile phones.

That's motorists. Go. Get. Them.

Would have been less if he'd drive a car through there 

Good. All selfish w*nkers that endanger people by breaking traffic laws should pay the price.

Generally, Bedford is fairly cycle-friendly. We have cycle lanes and a lot of shared-use paths (and a great lbs and lively cycling community!). The town centre is pedestrianised and I agree that people shouldn't be cycling through there. Buy that's an excessive punishment in relation to what bad drivers get.

About time the authorities got tough with cyclists riding where they shouldn't. Cycling is spaces reserved for pedestrians is irresponsible and dangerous.

Those cyclists who clamour for better enforcement of road traffic regulations but who at the same time criticize the introduction of cyclings bans aimed at increasing the safety of pedestrians make themselves look stupid.

When did Bedford become an outpost of the Totalitarian Cyclohateocracy of Australia?

Woow you could kill a cyclist for that much!

may be we don't have all the facts, perhaps he killed 8 pedestrians in the process, in which case the fine would be about the going rate.......if he'd been driving a car. 

https://mobile.twitter.com/beztweets/status/664786617945743360

Number of vehicle owners fined for driving on the pavement, Bedford?  Oh let me guess.  Zero.

Pathetic.

Disproportionate outcome even though the cyclist elected for court.