Don’t Forget Your ID! A Guide To The New NSW Cycling Laws

As of the beginning of March 2016 (that’s now!), there are a bunch of new road rules you’ll have to follow while riding your bicycle on NSW roads or you’ll face some substantial fines.

Image: Shutterstock

If you’re over 18, you’ll need to carry photo ID from now — but the fine of $106 won’t come into effect until 2017 while everyone gets used to the new rules.

Make sure you have your helmet on and definitely don’t hold on to any moving vehicles while you ride — or you’ll be parting with $319 for each offence (that’s up from $71!).

If you are planning on riding after dark, not having lights will see you risking a fine of $106 — up from $71.

Running though a red light, failing to stop at a pedestrian crossing and “riding dangerously” will also attract fines of $425. Business Insider reports that’s a jump of 500% on the previous fines.

There’s also an across the board one metre rule now in place, with a fine of $319 and two demerit points for non-compliance. Cyclists need to stay one metre away from pedestrians on shared paths (where possible), and motorists need to stay one metre away from cyclists. This distance increases to 1.5 metres when the car is travelling at over 60km/h.

This video explains the rules for motorists:

More than 450 infringement notices were handed out to Sydney cyclists just last week. This included 210 for not wearing helmets, 103 for disobeying traffic lights, and 80 for riding on the footpath. A further 64 cautions and warnings were issued.

[Business insider]


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