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| How to move safely and not to counteract legal regulations by riding a bicycle?It is necessary to emphasize the basic principle, which encourages a cyclist to ride in such a way as not to threaten his health and the health of other road users. This principle despite its generality can be without any exaggeration marked as a resource of legal regulations for riding a bicycle. For riding a bicycle it is not necessary to pass an exam nor to have a driving licence, so most of regulations regulating riding a bicycle is generally known, especially thanks to advice of older people. Despite that it doesn't do any harm to recall some of them in more details and in wider connections.
Legal regulations of riding a bicycle is included especially in § 56 of the law number 315/1996 from the Collection of laws about the traffic on ground roads, as amended by later regulations.
For riding a bicycle are used especially paths for cyclists. On the path for cyclists it is necessary to ride right. Where is not the path for cyclists or is not usable, the left edge of the road is used. If pedestrians are not endangered, it is allowed to ride right of the road. Other road users than cyclists mustn't use the path for cyclists. It doesn't apply to people who push the bicycle or if it is necessary for branching out.
Further for cyclists applies that they mustn't ride bicycle without bicycle lighting at reduced visibility. Just neglect of this duty causes many traffic accidents, often with tragic ending for an unlighted cyclist. Here is necessary to mention also suitable clothes of a cyclist, who rides bicycle at reduced visibility. It is suitable to have clothes and shoes with various sewn in reflecting glasses.
The risk, which motorists realize and especially when passing, are cyclists going side by side.. Of course this way of ride is dangerous first of all for a cyclist himself but the risk of inconveniences of a different kind is high also for motorists. That's why Road Traffic Regulations dictates that cyclists are allowed to ride only individually one after another. Necessity of following this rule increases directly proportionaly with the width of the road.
Road Traffic Regulations forbid to ride a bicycle without holding handlebars, to hold another vehicle, to pull the second bike, a handcart, a dog or other animals during ride or to carry objects which could make riding a bicycle more difficult or might endanger other road users. During ride a cyclist is obliged to have his feet on pedals. The law also forbids to carry other people on the bicycle's frame.
As to cyclist's competence, a person younger than 10 years can ride a bycicle on the road except cart-roads, forest roads and residential zones only accompanied by the person older than 15 years who is capable enough to look after him.
If you want to pull a handcart behind your bicycle you have to know that it is not alloved to attach a handcart wider than 800 mm. It has to have two red reflecting glasses of non-riangular shape placed as near as possible to side contours of a handcart and it is attached to a bicycle with fixed joining equipment. If a handcart or its load hide a back fender red light of a bicycle at reduced visibility, a handcart has to be equipped with a red light on the left side at the back.
JUDr. Vladimír Gáborík journal Cyclist, August - 2/2001, page 19 - abridged |
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