Bicyclists Could Soon be Forced to Need Registration, License Plates, Face Speed Limits When Riding

A recent story out of the UK is starting to demonstrate that maybe we have truly run out of important issues to worry and complain about. However, as it makes its way through the government, bicycle riders in the UK might just have a new set of challenges to face when it comes to hopping on their bike and riding to work.

Apparently, UK ministers are considering the likes of speed limits, registration, and license plates for bicycle riders in the name of preventing reckless bicycle riding.

In the news report from Daily Mail that we thought might’ve been a satirical article from The Onion but is in fact real, the idea is to potentially implement 20 mph speed limits in UK residential areas. The reasoning behind this is that victims of reckless cycling can’t make claims as there is typically no insurer like there would be in an automobile accident.

The review is also going to consider fines for breaking other normal traffic laws that bicyclists have to abide by such as red light laws.

Lastly, one of the other noteworthy topics of review will be mandatory insurance for bicycle riders.

The original story cites a report from 2019 that showed 470 incidents where a pedestrian had been killed. Five collisions were the fault of cyclists. Meanwhile, it says that seven road deaths that year were attributed to cyclists as compared with 721 people killed by car drivers.

Perhaps, at the end of the day, there might be an occasional injury from a reckless bicycle rider. How far should the government go, though, in trying to restrict the way that people ride bicycles? Would a new set of laws mean that children would no longer be allowed to ride bicycles and that they would also have to get insurance once they meet a certain age?