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Cyclists at traffic lights (©Toby Jacobs)Police in London step up enforcement of Advanced Stop Lines - fines & points for drivers ignoring them
Transport for London (TfL) has announced that from this week the Metropolitan Police and City of London Police will be stepping up their enforcement of Advanced Stop Lines (ASLs), often referred to as ‘bike boxes.’ Drivers encroaching on ASLs while traffic signals are red will face a fine of £60, as well as having 3 points put on their driving licence.
Plans to get tougher on motorists who illegally cross the line marking out the ASL, using CCTV cameras, were first revealed by London’s Cycling Commissioner, Andrew Gilligan, in May. He says that police will also be targeting cyclists who ride through red lights, who will be given a £30 fixed penalty notice if they are caught.
First introduced in Oxford in 1986, ASLs are the subject of Rule 178 of the Highway Code, which states:
Advanced stop lines. Some signal-controlled junctions have advanced stop lines to allow cycles to be positioned ahead of other traffic. Motorists, including motorcyclists, MUST stop at the first white line reached if the lights are amber or red and should avoid blocking the way or encroaching on the marked area at other times, e.g. if the junction ahead is blocked. If your vehicle has proceeded over the first white line at the time that the signal goes red, you MUST stop at the second white line, even if your vehicle is in the marked area. Allow cyclists time and space to move off when the green signal shows.
In a presss release issued by TfL today, Mr Gilligan explained: "It may be that some drivers don’t realise they aren’t allowed over the Advanced Stop Lines, and when the lights are red, those areas quite often have cars and lorries all over them, completely defeating their purpose.
“Bike boxes are a really important way to keep cyclists and vehicles at a safe distance.
“They have already saved hundreds of drivers, particularly truck drivers who have blind spots in their cabs, from the anguish of unintentionally harming a cyclist, and of course saved hundreds of cyclists from serious accidents."
TfL says that the only exception to drivers being given a £60 fine and having three points put on their licence – which can lead to higher insurance premiums – is if the lights change from green to amber and they are unable to stop safely before the first line.
Turning to the issue of cyclists jumping red lights, Mr Gilligan said: “Whilst usually only endangering the rider themselves, bad cycling does annoy and frighten people, and we are going to tackle it.
“We are increasing the number of officers in our dedicated Met Police Cycle Task Force by more than a quarter.
“Riding bikes themselves, they will target particular cyclist misbehaviour hotspots.”
During the past seven weeks, both the Metropolitan Police and the City of London Police have conducted an educational campaign that includes talking to motorists and cyclists at junctions and giving out leaflets that outline the law regarding ASLs.
On its website, the Metropolitan Police also seeks to debunk some of the ‘myths’ surrounding them.
Siwan Hayward, Acting Director of Community, Safety, Enforcement and Policing, TfL commented: “Cycle safety is an important issue for us at TfL.
“Our aim is not to penalise road users but to help educate them into complying with the rules which is why we have been engaging and educating all road users at key London locations in a run up to this enforcement launch. Our message is clear; motorists leave room for cyclists in Advance Stop Line boxes and cyclists do not cross the Advance Stop Line box during a red traffic signal.”
Chief Superintendent Sultan Taylor, from the Metropolitan Police’s Safer Transport Command, added: “With a record number of Londoners taking up cycling, cycle safety and security is more important than ever.
“The Safer Transport Command is working with Transport for London and its policing partners to improve road user behaviour across London by ensuring Advance Stop Line rules are adhered to so that cyclists and drivers enjoy harmonious journeys.”
Transport for London ASL safety tips:
Motorists
Do not enter the Advanced Stop Line (ASL) box when the light is red – this space is reserved for the safety of cyclists
Crossing the first or second ASL lines when the light is red makes you liable for a £60 fixed penalty, three points on your licence, and endangers vulnerable road users
If the traffic signal changes from green to amber and you cannot safely stop before the first stop line, you may cross the line but must stop before the second stop line (Highway Code rule 178).
Cyclists
Do not cross the second stop line while the traffic signal is red. Contravening a traffic signal is against the law, and could result in a £30 fine
More information can be found on the TfL website.
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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46 comments
£60 for people in cars, £30 for people on bikes?
If I was a lazy Daily Mail editor, I'd definitely draw attention to that. (though not to the relative potential for harm with each vehicle).
Just another stick to beat "cyclists" with. Because we're all hippie tax-dodging scum, and only poor people ride bikes, right?
(disclaimer - I pay £1000s of tax, inc VED / "road tax". As do most cyclists).
The rational response would be that the motorist's offence is likely to put vulnerable road users at risk of injury (similar to speeding and using a mobile phone handset), whereas the cyclist's offence mainly only puts themselves at risk, so is a lesser crime.
Not holding my breath for the Fail & co. to engage in rational thought though...
Most are painted green here too. I think that is good that they are enforcing them, though there needs to be follow up with cyclists as to appropriate use.
You'd think it was the God given right and requirement that cyclists need to get into these boxes. Where it is safe and practical to move through traffic to get to the front there is no problem.
But what scares me about the way they are viewed is that they are 'traffic beaters', in that they are provided for the very purpose of cyclists beating traffic. I see so many cyclists trying to move
up through traffic desperate to squeeze passed lorries, buses and forcing themselves through gaps which are barely there without pause for thought as to 'what would happen if the lights changed now?' Drivers will not see you trying to undertake them, and if you're sidling up to a lorry or bus you may just have put yourself in a blind spot.
It isn't too bad if you know the phasing and saw the lights change (and so know that you have time to get to the front and position yourself) but in some cases it is unwise. You're better off sitting in traffic and taking position (basically taking the middle of the lane so no one overtakes you) until the traffic starts to outpace you. If you ride in London like I do you'll know what I mean.
One other thing, at the Prudential Ride 100 the Met had a road safety demonstration showing a lorries blind spots. You'd be surprised where they are. But one thing is key, try to get eye contact with a lorry driver. This way you know he has seen you, you know you're not in his blind spot. This may mean looking in his mirrors to see him, but don't just assume he has seen you - if you've moved in and out of a blind spot he may not realise where you are. They have a lot to worry about.
Quite. It's about the size and shape of a typical ASL with entry lane.
It also depends on the cabs. The guy in the cab explaining the blind spots had a policeman on a bike move about the lorry on his bike while I was sat in the drivers seat. He had about four or five mirrors on the offside to cover that area. But you could still drop out of sight, the scariest one was that is you moved to the pavement you were invisible, but up close you were in a mirror.
Also some cabs are situated further back which meant that cyclists just in front of the cab could not be seen. There was a lot for the driver to check. In a busy part of town, where you don't know where you are going it would be a nightmare.
ALWAYS watch to see if the driver has seen you, make eye contact. The policeman was in full agreement (as crazy legs suggests) that it is better to pull forward beyond the ASL to ensure that a driver can see you.
People on this site gets their knickers in a twist about driver aggression. These do end in cyclists being harmed, but these assaults are usually calculated to injure and not kill. The real danger is not being seen as the action will not be calculated and a driver will not realise the damage until it is too late.
You can't really do too much to stop idiots driving (or good citizens having a bad day), but you can make sure drivers are aware of you.
Btw there were only 7 cyclist deaths in London last year (zero would be a good figure), but this was much lower than pedestrians and motorcyclists. Something to be thankful of in the grand scheme of things (and hopefully a balance to some of the tirades we get on here).
Ehm, an intentional collision is an aggressive assault with a potentially lethal vehicle where the outcome cannot be foreseen. It's easy to fall off and smash your head open. Or get hit by a following vehicle, other cyclist, or motorbike.
How on Earth can you say that true accidents are a worse problem than drivers intentionally knocking off cyclists?
Sort your priorities out, mate.
Here is a youtube video demonstrating the view from the cab of a HGV
ASL are the sign of bad infrastructure design and do not feature as a primary solution in the Netherlands.. Why put cyclists back in front of all the fast moving traffic theyve just had whizz past them?
Also, I see time and time again, cyclists not using the box, just sitting in single file on the left, in the gutter, waiting for the lights to change. Just more wasted paint like the pollution collecting blue death traps.
I'm a little disappointed with the youtube video as each time the camera moves to show where the cyclist is, so they don't exact disappear in the way that you would if you were cycling past the vehicle. It sort of ruins the impact. But I can appreciate that this has been filmed by a well meaning team from the Met.
I know there are limitations to ASLs, but they are the cheapest option to our old and creaking infrastructure. I dislike comparisons to the Netherlands. I know they have a similar population density, and that they have a better bike network, but post-war they had the opportunity to change their country. I sort of see the problems here are cultural as much as infrastructure.
Perhaps I'm just being pessimistic, but I feel like we have travelled too far down the road that cars built (or the world we built around cars), and that a lot of money is needed to change both (and money is scarce).
Well, if really you feel that, lets not bother at all then and just suck it up with the shitty, death trap infrastructure that we have.
BTW, the Netherlands made the choice to move to infrastructure designed for people in the mid 70's, not "post-war" (Although technically, right now is post-war).
They are not cheap because they are a false economy. Just like the death trap blue paint and advisory white lines as 'cycle paths'.
Its all bullshit infrastructure that the more time and money we spend on putting this rubbish on our roads, the more people will be killed by it and the worse our towns and cities will become, until the point when collectively we finally admit they do not, nor ever will, work.
The only cultural difference between the Netherlands and
the UK is that the UK is too scared to face up to the fact that to have liveable cities, it needs to make the car the least convenient form of transport.
correct - "motorists would not see cyclists trying to undertake them"
For this reason the filter box should never be on the left for the ASL. sadly it is on most of them, and technically, if you enter the ASL between lanes or from the right you have broken the law! crazy!
secondly, cyclists should take responsibility for their own safety and be aware of how long the lights have been red. if the traffic has been stopped for a long time just stay where you are!!!
Why have I "technically...broken the law"?
Surely, I am allowed to use the road space available. I need to ensure that it is safe to do so, that I am not endangering anyone else.
BTW, I'm happy to be pointed to the relevant section(s) of the Highway Code.
Ta
you have to enter the box where the broken line is, 99% of the time its on the left side of the left lane (strand - waterloo bridge, has it in the centre, between lane 1 and 2 which is good)
A similar system is used in some parts of New Zealand, though the box is painted green, with an outline of a cyclist. I think the colour does differentiate it better.
Good.
What is needed now is ASL's at all junctions because there appears to be no reasoning why they are present at some junctions and not others.
I'll second that! ASL at all main junctions that have lights to control them!
proper clamp down on RLJ
proper clamp down on motorists encroaching bike box....
i hope it isnt just a one week phase, to give out a few tickets then forget about it and let everyone go back to their ways again!
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