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news
Tower Bridge (licensed CC BY-SA 2.0 on Flickr by Davide D'Amico).jpgNasty scenes and cold takeaway food as tempers flare over Tower Bridge cycling ban
Nasty scenes have been breaking out on Tower Bridge, where officers from City of London Police have reportedly been fining cyclists riding on the walkway, where the carriageway is currently closed to allow urgent maintenance and repairs to the 122-year-old structure and its road surface to be carried out.
Cyclists are allowed to push their bikes along the bridge’s pavements while the works, which will last until the end of the year, are carried out, but they are not allowed to ride across.
Hristo Ivanov, 45, who sells caramelised peanuts on the busiest stretch of the bridge, told the Evening Standard he had seen dozens of near-misses and described the morning rush-hour as “terrifying”.
He said: “Most of them are well behaved and get off. But earlier someone was cycling so fast he smashed straight into my stand and knocked nuts everywhere.
“I shouted ‘be careful’ but he just sped off and didn’t say anything - he didn’t even look back. They really don’t care, it’s so rude.”
An UberEats cyclist, who gave his name as Stefan, said he had been stopped by police five times in a single day since the bridge was closed to vehicles on Saturday.
The 20-year-old told the Standard: “It takes nearly 15 minutes to walk across the bridge, but people expect their meals in to arrive that time.
“I get told off but then as soon as they can’t see me I have to hop back on again. It’s the only way I can do my job.
“I haven’t been fined yet by police and if I take the next bridge along I’m adding on even more time.”
Another delivery cyclist, who gave his name as Levi, 40, said: “My boss needs me to deliver on time so I will keep cycling. There should be a separate cycle lane for us and there would be no problems.”
Another man, known only as Dan, was filmed using his bike to block a fellow rider from using the bridge.
He asks the cyclist: “Are you going to walk?”
The middle-aged man in a black lycra jacket and denim shorts shouts: “It’s none of your business,” before barging past the improvised blockade and jumping back into the saddle to pedal away.
The pair exchange heated words, with the ban-flouting cyclist calling Dan a “t*****”.
As he rides off over the bridge a bystander calls out: “Get off your bike”.
Dan, from Camberwell, told the Standard: “The ones who break the rules are giving cyclists a bad name. I just hope I don’t get my block knocked off.”
Recently we reported that, following complaints that some people were riding bikes on the footway, City of London police were today issuing fixed penalty notices to cyclists who had not dismounted.
Transport for London (TfL) says it will station eight Road and Transport Enforcement Officers on the bridge – two of them at each end – while the works are ongoing, with a spokesman saying that “cyclists will not be able to get past on their bikes without being stopped.”
Motor vehicles are banned from the bridge altogether, with diversions in place for the routes that cross it, and a higher than usual volume of pedestrians is anticipated during the period of the works – although it will be closed to people on foot, too, for three weekends from 26 November to 11 December.
Unmesh Desai, Labour London Assembly Member for City and East, told the Standard: “It’s really important that TfL and the Corporation challenge the minority of cyclists who are not dismounting whilst crossing the pedestrian walkway on Tower Bridge.
“I personally witnessed several cyclists weaving in and out between vulnerable pedestrians on the bridge yesterday evening and feel that there is a high risk of a serious accident unless enforcement action is taken,” he added.
Latest Comments
- wtjs 17 min 24 sec ago
You didn't mention The Scottish Dodge, whereby if, by witchcraft, you manage to force your HD video upon the reluctant Scottish Police and they...
- mdavidford 54 min 31 sec ago
Not particularly sure that follows.
- mdavidford 1 hour 12 min ago
There's one that's always lurking outside our house at night.
- mdavidford 1 hour 30 min ago
When these were designed in to the new development near us the excuse was 'well if we didn't it would be impossible to get a rubbish truck in to...
- Rendel Harris 2 hours 28 min ago
I should get onto the Guinness Book of Records people then, as they have the world record slowest heart rate for a healthy person down as 26bpm,...
- Hirsute 4 hours 52 min ago
I made a complaint within an hour of the story being published. I have zero faith that they will amend anything....
- chrisonabike 5 hours 14 min ago
TBF I think that's before she saw the light and got on her bike. Not so great if her views have been informed by Mr. Briggs though.
- Saracen888 5 hours 53 min ago
That's a great price. Just bear in mind Import duty and handling charges will be applied pre delivery.
- Griff500 7 hours 15 min ago
Yep, I appreciate your problem. I wouldn't buy a bike without at least sitting on the same frame configuration on a trainer in the shop, something...
- Secret_squirrel 8 hours 29 min ago
One less thing to clutter up your jersey pockets no? Though difficult to retrieve in a hurry...
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41 comments
'Terrifying'. I'm sure.
Hysteria over an imaginary spilled peanut.
Could show some folk dead refugees, bombed cities, starving homeless - and they wouldn't get nearly so worked up as they would about a cyclist breaking some bylaw with no consequence other than minor annoyance.
Those caramelised nuts stalls are fucking disgusting and should be banned.
No Dan, its utter cockwombles like you who think that 'collective responsibility' applies. People who stab others with kitchens knives dont give others who own knives a bad name. Just as those who drive like complete bellends dont seem to give every other driver a 'bad name'.
The ones who ruin it are fuckwitted twats like you, with your stupid helmet on at such a daft angle that your forehead is completely exposed so as to render wearing it pointless as should you go over your handlebars you'd likely receive a frontal lobe injury.
Cycling with a backpack AND a shopping bag that could easily go into your wheels and cause you to veer unexpectedly into the path of a vehicle. You're a fucking liability.
No Dan, if its anyone, its definitely you that gives cyclists a bad name.
The point you do not seem to get is that virtually everyone either drives a car or rides in one, even more use knives. Cyclist on the other hand are a minority, therefore people will have bigioted attitudes to them as is displayed time and time again. Thus the inconsiderate actions of a few most certainly do refelect on all, so a collective responsibilty exists whether we like it or not. Take your abusive post for example, that won't exactly help the negative image of cyclists as 'lycra louts'.
No it doesn't.
I share no more collective responsibility for bad cycling than I do for the 5 people killed by drivers today. I've politely challenged someone who tried that line of argument, and they backed off very quickly when they actually thought about what they were saying, and realised it didn't actually make any sense. If cyclists keep repeating the "gives everyone a bad name" mantra, of course, it becomes an accepted fact, so why not stop doing it?
Nicely put. Although you could argue that drivers DO have a collective responsibility since they are taking advanatge of a mode with various stains on its character. And these have more serious consequences than the misbehaviours of cyclists. These have to be addressed before you address what cyclists - of whatever proportion - get up to.
Hope you don't mind me asking but would you consider re-reading what you've written there and think about the implications of what you've said ?
Drivers don't have a collective responsibility, any more than do cyclists. But all people, (especially in their capacity as voters , jurors, lawyers, cops, journalists and politicians) who actively support a car-supremacist culture do have such a responsibility. But that's far from a perfect overlap with 'drivers'. (There is an overlap, but not everyone who drives is part of that politically-defined group, and not everyone in that group even drives)
Zanf, it's people like you that get my heckles up.
if you read the reasons people give for hating cyclists, time and time again, they blame red light jumpers, pavement cyclists and the ones that don't stop after collisions. The minority of dodgy cyclists definitely do ruin it for the rest of us and give us a bad name.
Oh, and calling people cockwombles and swearing don't help get your point across, they just make you seem a fool.
I really dont give a fuck what you think but seeing as you're so intent on sharing it, let me point point out that you did exactly the same thing that Dan that retard from Camberwell did. You're a fucking idiot. There is no help for you.
The point about 'knives' was to show the absurdity of 'collective responsibility', which you completely failed to grasp. You might as well run around saying "all men are rapists and are to blame for the actions of those who do actually rape" because thats exactly what it is.
A post on an incredibly niche website about cycling read by only a small audience of cyclists?
The level of stupidity there is just astounding.
You seem like a very angry and unpleasant person.
I'd you have a point to make, do so without swearing and insulting people. Otherwise, people won't take you seriously. It makes you sound unintelligent.
And franky I don't give a F to hear what he has to say. Can we vote to ban his posts? or ban him all together especailly with offensive language and disgrace to cyclists.
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