Jughead wrote:Just after nine so had a front light, rear light and flashing lights on my rucksack. They told me that with oncoming traffic headlights I was a danger. They asked why I wasn't wearing a hi-viz vest and a helmet. Told them I have cycled for some 40+ years without either and wasnt going to start now. They told me to get off the road and cycle on the pavement as I was a danger to other road users.
I did as they instructed. Just as well as they had pulled into a side street a couple of hundred yards ahead to spy on me. Must have been a slow night for them. So helmets and hi-viz are not legal requirements. Can the police force you wear them if they deem you are a danger.
OK a few notes from my viewpoint, from a driving and cycling viewpoint.
I also used to cycle 40-odd years ago, the roads were far less crowded, and helmets and hi-viz just weren't around. But they are now, and the roads are more crowded, and being seen, more importantly
being seen for what you are is probably more important now than it has ever been as a result.
Helmet - I "re-started" cycling at the age of 40-ish - about 25 years ago, and from the word go I used a helmet. Partly it has to be said as an example to my then 5-year old son, but also I figured I only had one head, and brain, and I needed them both for work. I've so far only used it twice in anger, once when I was walloped by a low overhanging branch on a local lane, and once when I sat up at traffic lights and bumped my head on the door mirror of a truck that had just pulled up beside me! Oh, plus the time I cycled having (I thought) recovered from an ear infection, and found my balance wasn't working after all!
Hi Viz jackets - A cycling friend of mine simply doesn't like hard-hats, but always keeps his hi-viz to hand. He covers a many miles a year on his bike as I do in the car!
Being seen for what you are - On dark local lanes I've found that flashing lights with no steady light on the rear of a bicycle looks uncannily like distant roadworks with flashing beacons rather than a much closer bicycle. A line of cyclists gives this impression even more strongly. I first noticed this effect when following a line of cyclists on a club ride back from the pub one summers evening - I was one of the group, acting as the sweeper at the time! However a steady light or two at each end of the bike, plus maybe the odd hi-viz band, and heel/pedal reflectors/bright clothing are very effective and almost shout "Hey, I'm on a bike"!
Flashing front lights - even worse than rear ones! Often angled badly so shine directly into my eyes when approaching from the other direction (or into my rear-view mirror if I've just overtaken such a bike while in the car) This does not improve anyone's road safety. If I'm on a bike it's not so bad, but in the car I sit lower so the effect is more pronounced. IMHO flashing front lights should be diffused, not a tight beam, and should be used in conjunction with a front light angled for the cyclist to see the road surface ahead.
But a pair of very bright headlamps? -- could it look like a distant car?
All effects mentioned above are really, really exacerbated if there is an oncoming vehicle with full headlights on or has just dipped them. Dimly flashing lights just disappear in the resulting blackness.
On one bike (which I no longer have) I used to have some white, self-adhesive reflectors attached to the wheel rims - unobtrusive by day but my goodness did they reflect car headlights at night! Made by Madison I think, haven't seen them around lately.
I guess what I'm trying to say is - especially with our more crowded roads, on dark nights in badly lit places you really need all the help you can get to be seen for what you are, but beware of camouflaging yourself as something else.
Brompton, Condor Heritage, creaky joints and thinning white (formerly grey) hair
""You know you're getting old when it's easier to ride a bike than to get on and off it" - quote from observant jogger !
Utterly ridiculous They mean that though they seemed to see him ok and stop him and found he wasn't breaking any laws they had to concoct some BS to cover the fact they can't be arris'd to police the roads and ensure that drivers what can't be bothered to look more than a few feet ahead and drive taking due care of other road users are stopped and pulled over..bunch of lazy, biased no-nowt idiots 
