Appeal to police to pull over bad cyclists
Councillors say penalty push needed
Some Stirling councillors are calling for discourteous cyclists to be penalised in the same way as inconsiderate drivers.
The plea follows an update on Operation Close Pass - an initiative run by Police Scotland and Cycling Scotland encouraging drivers to give cyclists a car’s width when overtaking them.
Police Scotland has said they often stop as many errant cyclists as drivers but councillors are calling for this to be better publicised.
Police mounted Operation Close Pass in Fallin on June 15 and five warnings and two fixed penalty notices for bad driving behaviour in relation to cyclists.
At last week’s meeting of Stirling Council’s public safety committee, SNP councillor for Trossachs and Teith Evelyn Tweed applauded the work done to encourage drivers to be more respectful of cyclists and was of the view “cyclists need to use the road responsibly and be aware of their own safety”.
She told the meeting how, during a “horrible drive” to Killin in heavy rain, she encountered a group of cyclists riding in formations of two or three abreast.
“As the road was busy with traffic, this made it extremely difficult to pass cyclists and led to some unsafe driving as drivers tried to pass and get on with their journey,” she added.
“Drivers undoubtedly have to consider cyclists and their safety but cyclists also have to consider how they are using the roads. In these circumstances, I think they should go single file.”
Stirling area commander Chief Inspector Gill Marshall said they issued as many warnings to cyclists as drivers.
Green councillor for Dunblane and Bridge of Allan Alasdair Tollemache suggested the police liaise with the area’s cycling groups in an attempt to underline the road safety message.
Forth Valley divisional commander, Chief superintendent Thom McLoughlin, said: “Police aim to give advice to cyclists where possible and our key priority is always the safety of road users. We will,