driving on the pavement

HellishHeat

It's obvious why someone shouldn't drive on the pavement. Yesterday, I did it. In the attached picture, the green dot is where I was parked; the red one is where I drove to; the blue one is where the Gardai were parked :eek:.

I saw the gardai as soon as I came around the corner (big paddy-wagon) and could have stopped, but I was moving 15-20 feet (tops), carefully and there wasn't a sinner on the pavement. The alternative was to come out at the busy junction.

Anyway, I am being prosecuted for this, according to the Garda. He said I should have walked it down that far.

Am I wrong for feeling hard done by? I repeat, there wasn't a sinner on the pavement, otherwise I wouldn't have done it. I was going at walking pace. Surely common sense should come into it.

I await the summons

multiscan

HellishHeat wrote: »

...... The alternative was to come out at the busy junction. .

or you could just push it around the corner .

Odysseus

Sometimes you just get anti-bike cops, I got a parking fine from a cop for parking on the pavement, I wasn't causing any type of blockage or danger, just had to pay the fine

HellishHeat

multiscan wrote: »

or you could just push it around the corner .

Yes, as I said, the Garda pointed that out to me.

cantdecide

I'm not going to give you grief but what I will say is you made some fundamental errors. I wouldn't have parked where you parked to begin with. It's a large, complex junction. You did appear to take a short-cut across the footpath (presumably for your own convenience, primarily).

Disentangling from that space correctly would require the greatest diligence- there was nothing stopping you simply getting back onto the road and doing a U-turn or re-directing at a safe spot. If I were in the squad car, I would have been thinking you were being cavalier. You could have got cleanly back in the right direction with a little extra 'work' but mooched across the footpath to save time.

Did you have both feet up? Did you indicate? Were your lights on? Define 'walking pace'. What age are you? If you're quite young, the guard might have just been trying to put the s**ts up you. Something like this happened to me when I was 18 and nothing ever came of it.

To answer your question, yes, if he makes a big deal of it, it would be pretty tough, IMO. Having said that, the lesson is that it's up to you to stay as far under the radar as possible.

Mr. Presentable

You couldn't see around the corner from your starting point or you'd have seen the Gardai - so you wouldn't have known it was clear.

The distance you've marked is more like 50 feet than 15-20.

You can't feel hard done by. I got a warning once for walking my bike on the footpath with the engine running.

You might hear nothing more, but you made your own birch tbh.

HellishHeat

I'm not getting much sympathy here so maybe it was a fair cop (no pun intended).
However, consider the various expenses involved in this conviction. I'd hardly call it a sound investment of my taxes.

CardBordWindow

The law is the law.
Just don't get caught next time!

Del2005

HellishHeat wrote: »

I saw the gardai as soon as I came around the corner (big paddy-wagon) and could have stopped, but I was moving 15-20 feet (tops), carefully and there wasn't a sinner on the pavement. The alternative was to come out at the busy junction.

From the pic you posted and the bit I've highlighted it's a fair cop. How do the Gardaí know you didn't just pop onto the footpath, cyclist style, to beat the lights? It is a bit far to be ridding on a footpath, doesn't mater if there are pedestians around.

Cuddlesworth

I've popped up on the path a few times, even in front of cops(Queen, Obama visit) but it just looks like you used the path not because of a obstruction but for your own convenience. I'm not surprised they did you for it.

Paparazzo

If you were taking it slowly and there was no one around it was harsh by the Gardai imho, but they were still within their rights to do you. A talking to is more than enough, a summons is completely taking the píss.

But Captain Hindsight here. I wouldn't have parked there if I wanted to continue in that direction, you should have picked your spot better.


Odysseus, you should have asked the garda for a suggestion on where to park. You're not allowed to take up a space that you have to pay for. I can only think of 2 places in Dublin where you can officially park your bike.

meathstevie

Is there no such thing as a fixed penalty ticket for that kind of offence ?

jameshayes

meathstevie wrote: »

Is there no such thing as a fixed penalty ticket for that kind of offence ?

yup... 1 point as far as I remember

jameshayes

jameshayes wrote: »

yup... 1 point as far as I remember

http://www.rsa.ie/Documents/Licensed%20Drivers/Penalty%20Points%20Chart.pdf wrote:

Driving on a footpath 1 point on payment 3 points in court 60 euro immediate payment 90 if goes to court

...

goldie fish

Footpaths are for pedestrians, simple as.
Roads are for vehicles.
What is difficult to understand?
children playing on footpaths do not expect to have to negotiate motorcycles.

KamiKazi

Meh, bit of common sense and most Gardai will leave you alone.

You skimped on the common sense this time :pac:

HellishHeat

goldie fish wrote: »

Footpaths are for pedestrians, simple as.
Roads are for vehicles.
What is difficult to understand?
children playing on footpaths do not expect to have to negotiate motorcycles.

Stop letting your children play on footpaths. It's dangerous and disturbs my drag racing.

MarkR

You think that's harsh, guy in work got fined (I think, maybe a point) for getting up on a curb to get past a line of traffic turning. Out near galway airport. On a car though.

Del2005

goldie fish wrote: »

Footpaths are for pedestrians, simple as.
Roads are for vehicles.
What is difficult to understand?
children playing on footpaths do not expect to have to negotiate motorcycles.

Would it not be the riders job to avoid the child?

Seems silly if we hit a pedestrian on the road we're blamed and if we hit on the footpath still blamed so what's the difference,

Paparazzo

Del2005 wrote: »

Would it not be the riders job to avoid the child?

Seems silly if we hit a pedestrian on the road we're blamed and if we hit on the footpath still blamed so what's the difference,

Keep going after you hit them and pretend it didn't happen is the best thing to do