BICYCLES LEFT ON FOOTPATHS

Southland Times, Issue 24862, 30 September 1942, Page 4

BICYCLES LEFT ON FOOTPATHS

Warning Stickers A point of law was raised at the meeting of the City Council last night by Cr G. J. Reed. The councillors were shown a sticker which it is proposed to place on the seats of bicycles worded as follows:—“l.C.C. Warning Notice. Bicycles left standing on the footpaths or against buildings are liable to be taken away by an officer of the traffic department and the owners run the risk of prosecution. Signed E. Stopford, city traffic inspector.” Cr Reed maintained that the notice apparently gave the inspector power to remove a bicycle leaning against a building even if the bicycle were not on the footpath. Cr R. T. Parsons maintained that Cr Reed was only splitting straws. Cr W. Aitchison said that the notice was only a warning. Mr Stopford said that the stickers would not be placed on bicycles unless they were placed against buildings on a public footpath. It was suggested that the words “or against buildings” should be deleted from the .notice, but on a motion being put to the council only Cr Reed voted against the adoption of the sticker as it was worded. Cr Parsons said that _ many bicycle stands had been erected in the city, but people would not use them. It was common to see bicycles propped against posts or buildings with a cycle stand alongside. There was no excuse for this. When the fact that a number of prosecutions were pending against cyclists for breaches of the by-laws was reported to the council, Cr Parsons said that a common offence in the city was riding without having the hands on the handlebars. “The traffic inspector has been asked to report upon the question of cycle stands generally,” stated the Works Committee in a report to the council.