Dear Elizabeth - a response to people who call for cyclists to be registered

When an entitled white middle-class person meets an uncouth lawbreaker, the outcome is frequently the same. Lawbreaker swears and walks away. WMCP writes a column in a newspaper calling for the restriction of liberty, so WMCP can go on feeling all smug and secure.
      Hello Elizabeth Farrelly. I understand you were abused by a person riding a bicycle illegally on the footpath. I�m sorry to hear that. But I can�t understand why this abuse leads you to suggest that we should register bicycles. Yes, if registered, you could have reported his number to the police, but I doubt that would have achieved much. Police usually need more evidence than a finger-pointing pedestrian saying, �Officer, arrest that man!� And how often have you reported red-light running cars when you�re out on your morning walk? How often have you confronted pedestrians who cross illegally?  

      When a journalist such as yourself, interested in town planning and architecture, writes an article on registering cyclists rather than creating improved transport infrastructure, we have a problem. 

      Cars kill, Elizabeth. Cars kill pedestrians, cyclists and other motorists. However, your pet hate seems to be cyclists who get in the way of you and your poodle. 

      The abuser was also wearing a beard. Now there�s something that definitely should be registered. A hipster tax!

       The unwashed gentleman on a bicycle was acting illegally. Pure and simple. We already have a law to deal with your unfortunate incident. But because one person acts illegally, you now want to impose a tax on all cyclists. You cite the recent newspaper report of a young woman who was struck by a cyclist and requires major and costly dental surgery. The argument is that registering cyclists would also require them to have third-party insurance to cover such incidents. But we can�t be insured for every incident in life, Elizabeth. What if your sweet poodle had bitten the cyclist? Should all dog-owners be insured? In truth, many cyclists are already insured through membership of State-based cycling organisations. 

     However sad and unfortunate this case is, I�m afraid it pails into insignificance with the number of cyclists killed on our roads in increasing numbers every year. In many instances, when the motorist is at fault, they're let off with a fine or suspended sentence.    
     The cyclist is dead, Elizabeth. Their families are left heartbroken and yet all the mainstream media can offer is a continual bleating call for cyclists to be registered. I guess that will allow for quicker identification when the next cyclist goes under the wheel of a truck.

     You claim to be a cyclist. And yet articles like yours feed on the small but vocal minority in our society who hate cyclists. Who write abusive comments on social media about running down cyclists for sport, who hurl abuse and objects from the windows of cars, who deliberately drive close to cyclists �to teach them a lesson.� Who have an overwhelming sense of entitlement that the car is king and everyone else must get out of their way. Who through weight of tabloid hysteria are convincing the gullible that we should have less cycle lanes not more. 

     Elizabeth, I�m sorry your quiet morning walk was rudely threatened by a bogan on a bike. But I ask you to look at the facts and figures. To continue this attack on cyclists will only lead to your beloved city being overrun by cars and trucks. One rogue cyclist should not mean that every law-abiding road-user is forced to register their bicycle - a scheme which is replicated nowhere else in the world. In civilised countries, governments are trying to get people onto bicycles and out of cars. They recognise that cycling has numerous benefits in terms of reduced health bills and a decrease in obesity rates. There are also studies that show cycling slows the rate of ageing. 

     Your article means the afternoon commute of we cyclists will be more fraught than usual. No doubt an entitled motorist, fed by your criticisms, will shout something from his car or drive that little bit closer. If you don�t believe me, wait twenty-four hours and read the comments section of your article. Feel the hatred for cyclists. And know that your column has helped feed that hatred.

     Elizabeth, I hope your daily walks improve. I hope you never have to face a law-breaker again. Bur remember, he�s just one person. He doesn�t represent all cyclists. 


I've written three travel ebooks on my cycling adventures across Europe. They sell for between $2.99 and $3.99, depending on which currency you use. You can visit my Amazon page here for the USA; here for the UK and here for Australia