Cyclists face fines for not using bike lanes – National

National proposes a new law to ensure cyclists, including e-bike riders, use separated cycleways.

“Motorists get frustrated when cyclists continue to use roads and motorways in places where a dedicated, separated cycle path runs parallel to the road,” National transport spokesperson Chris Bishop says.

“There are now hundreds of kilometres of protected cycle paths across New Zealand. Many of these are high-quality, safe and designed to be used by cyclists.

“National proposes that in areas where separated cycleways exist, cyclists must use them or else they will receive a fine.”

Bishop says similar rules exist in the cycle-friendly Netherlands, where using a physically separated bike path (fietspad) is compulsory in most cases.

“By making sure cyclists stay in their lane it will keep them safe and go a long way towards improving the public acceptance of cycling by reducing conflict with motorists,” he says.

Bishop adds that a National Government will invest in cycling infrastructure across New Zealand to encourage its uptake and says the party has already contributed to cycling infrastructure including a $100 million urban cycleways fund.

“Cycling is becoming more popular as it becomes easier and people look for a healthy way to get from A to B,” he says.

Bishop adds that National will release a more comprehensive discussion document on transport, including public transport, on December 16.