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Triple whammy as New South Wales cyclist hit with £310 fine

No helmet, no bell and no brake - on a fixie - mean bumper fine for Sydney cyclist under new law

A cyclist in Sydney, Australia, has been fined more than £300 for not wearing a helmet, not having a bell on his bicycle, and his bike not having a brake – although he was riding a fixed gear bicycle.

Michael Grafton, who works as a robotics researcher, was stopped last month during an “education and awareness” last month in which police targeted cyclists, reports The Guardian.

He was fined a total of A$531 as a result of the three offences, with the state’s roads minister Duncan Gay earlier this year introducing what some see as Draconian fines against cyclists breaking the law.

Mr Grafton said: “The bell fine of $106 is ridiculous. I don’t ride on the footpath and a bell is useless against cars.

“It has been my experience in the past that if you ring a bell behind a person they are as likely to jump into your way as out of it.

“Pedestrians also see ringing a bell as an aggressive act. The fines are massively disproportionate.”

The cyclist is reportedly contesting the fine imposed for the lack of brake due to the fact he was riding a fixed gear bike.

Under the new law, introduced from 1 March this year, cyclists in Sydney and other parts of New South Wales can be fined A$315 for failing to wear a cycle helmet and A$425 for running a red traffic light. Moreover, from March 2017, they will be required to carry identification.

Academic Chris Rissell of the University of Sydney, who has published widely on the issue of helmet compulsion, which he opposes, said at the time that the higher fines meant New South Wales was “probably going to become the worst state in the world in terms of how we treat cyclists – if we’re not already.”

> New South Wales set to be "worst state in world" for cyclists

Bicycle NSW chief executive Ray Rice said: “There has been no evidence provided that there was any real issue in identifying riders.

“Police have existing powers to do this. It will mean that riders will need to carry a driver’s licence or photo card even when going to the local shops or down to the beach. This will be a disincentive to riding.”

While the city’s government supports cycling, its efforts are hampered by legislation at state level.

Sydney’s mayor, Clover Moore, who was elected on an independent ticket, told the Guardian: “The value of cycling in Sydney has been undermined by hysterical claims that bike riding will cripple the city’s economy, misleading stories that distort data to proclaim that less people are riding, and wilful ignorance of good practice overseas.”

But Mr Gay repeated his stance that the laws are there for bike riders’ own safety.

He said: “With cycling injuries remaining high in NSW, I had no choice but to look at tougher deterrents and increased enforcement to improve safety for cyclists and other road users like pedestrians.

“I don’t want to see another dollar in fine revenue but I do hope to see a reduction in cyclist injuries,” he added.

> Helmet 'added' to image of Amsterdam cyclist for Australian ad campaign

Simon joined road.cc as news editor in 2009 and is now the site’s community editor, acting as a link between the team producing the content and our readers. A law and languages graduate, published translator and former retail analyst, he has reported on issues as diverse as cycling-related court cases, anti-doping investigations, the latest developments in the bike industry and the sport’s biggest races. Now back in London full-time after 15 years living in Oxford and Cambridge, he loves cycling along the Thames but misses having his former riding buddy, Elodie the miniature schnauzer, in the basket in front of him.

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15 comments

Avatar
kevvjj | 8 years ago
0 likes

"Moreover, from March 2017, they will be required to carry identification."

This won't happen. It hasn't even been tabled as potential new legislation yet and will meet huge opposition. It will be years before anything gets of the ground if it passes but more than likely it will be buried and forgotten.

Avatar
ataafe | 8 years ago
0 likes

These are not new laws, they have been on the books for decades. The level of fines is what has changed, to "equalise" them with driving offences

Avatar
Yorkshire wallet | 8 years ago
2 likes

So when nobody is being fined and people are still being killed by cars then what?

My brother wants to leave NZ for Australia. God knows why.

Avatar
brooksby replied to Yorkshire wallet | 8 years ago
2 likes

Yorkshire wallet wrote:

So when nobody is being fined and people are still being killed by cars then what? My brother wants to leave NZ for Australia. God knows why.

 

Maybe he wants to move from the middle twentieth century up to the late twentieth century? yes

Avatar
Yorkshire wallet replied to brooksby | 8 years ago
2 likes

brooksby wrote:

Yorkshire wallet wrote:

So when nobody is being fined and people are still being killed by cars then what? My brother wants to leave NZ for Australia. God knows why.

 

Maybe he wants to move from the middle twentieth century up to the late twentieth century? yes

I want cheap holidays in Middle Earth!

Avatar
jon_t replied to Yorkshire wallet | 8 years ago
2 likes

Yorkshire wallet wrote:

My brother wants to leave NZ for Australia. God knows why.

Because when a Kiwi moves to Australia, the average intelligence of both countries increases.

n.b. you still have to wear a helmet in NZ

Avatar
Argos74 | 8 years ago
1 like

If I ever ride as far as New South Wales, I am so [censor]not in a good place[/censor]. No helmet, no bell. But hey I got brakes!

Avatar
handlebarcam | 8 years ago
3 likes

Quote:

The state’s roads minister Duncan Gay said “I don’t want to see another dollar in fine revenue but I do hope to see a reduction in cyclist injuries"

Did he leave a really, really, really long pause between the words "cyclist" and "injuries", while winking at the camera and making steering wheel hand movements, before stripping to reveal a T-shirt that bore the slogan "Real Aussies drive V8s"?

Still, it is good to see that Australia is trying to keep up with post-Brexit Britain in the Reactionary Olympics.

Avatar
brooksby | 8 years ago
2 likes

He may think it's stupid to have a bell because it's useless on the road and he doesn't ride on the footpath, and I agree with him and totally see his point, but it is (unfortunately) the law. He should have just bought the cheapest one he could find and put it in a pocket, to meet the letter of the law by having a bell on his bike.

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burtthebike | 8 years ago
2 likes

How many cyclists would a Sydney driver have to kill to get a fine this big?

Avatar
StraelGuy replied to burtthebike | 8 years ago
1 like

burtthebike wrote:

"A cyclist in Sydney, Australia, has been fined more than £300 for not wearing a helmet, not having a bell on his bicycle, and his bike not having a brake....."

How many cyclists would a Sydney driver have to kill to get a fine this big?

 

About 3.53 according to my calculations.

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PaulBox | 8 years ago
1 like

What a load of shit... The lack of common sense blows my mind and makes me want to cry.

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kitkat | 8 years ago
1 like

Mr Gay wrote:

I don’t want to see another dollar in fine revenue but I do hope to see a reduction in cyclist injuries

yes, overlaid with a graph of number of cyclists out on the road

Avatar
Leviathan replied to kitkat | 8 years ago
4 likes

kitkat wrote:

Mr Gay wrote:

I don’t want to see another dollar in fine revenue but I do hope to see a reduction in cyclist injuries

yes, overlaid with a graph of number of cyclists out on the road

Overlaid with a graph of Australian Olympic medals.

Avatar
tritecommentbot | 8 years ago
1 like

Saw this in the press this morning. NSW must be utopia if they have the resources spare to chase up this nonsense.

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