The Highway Code and amber pedal reflectors

[chris ankcorn]

I bought a copy of the highway code today for my son who is going to be 17 soon and read the section relating to Cyclists.

Did you know that if your bile was manufactured after 01/10/85 then you Must ride with amber pedal reflectors at night?

I don't think I've seen reflectors fitted to cleats and I don't know how I'm going to comply with this requirement?

[Philmondo]

Chris, I hope my bile was manufactured after 1985 otherwise I've probably got some pretty serious liver problems

[RichK]

Other than flats this is a problem to which most (not on a BSO) won't/don't comply with. Though the DfT have previously hinted that prosecution is unlikely provided an 'alternative' (ankle wraps?) are used.

An option is Shimano M324(?) (or possibly the Wellgo/Decathlon equivalent) which are flat on one side & SPD on the other.

I've used two types of spd with cllip on reflectors but they're both from the MCD & dropped/snapped off after about 10 minutes usage.


http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov. ... 127?page=2

[Philip Whiteman]

As Richard mentions you can use ankle wraps. I use the following which are relatively cheap:

http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stor ... yId_228860

[George]

I'm a little out of touch now, but when I was working in this field 20 years ago, the situation was that custom-made racing/sports bicycles were exempt from the rules on reflectors and such like.

[GrahamGamblin]

Prosecution on this is highly unlikely so long as you are making yourself visible with lights, clothing etc. However it could be used against you by an insurance company to claim "contributory negligence" if you were involved in an accident after dark.
I've copied this from the CTC website:
Shimano offer add-on reflectors for almost all of their pedals (except the most expensive) and Madison import them – although many shops don’t even try to sell them. Reflectors for double-sided (mountain-bike) SPDs come as part of a plastic platform that clips into one binding, providing instead a tread surface for normal shoes. Similar reflector platforms are available for some other brands of mountain-bike pedal (VP for example) and this is the one kind of clipless reflector accessory you will find in bike shops. Unfortunately they make the pedals single-sided and do not sufficiently counterweight them to keep the vacant binding on top. And as pedalling surfaces, these platforms leave much to be desired. To attach and detach them without burring the plastic it’s best to slacken off the binding tension, but then it must be cranked up to maximum to stop the insert squirming around. A better idea, if you’re keen to be legal and often ride at night, or in normal shoes, is to fit a dual-purpose pedal such as the Shimano PD-M324, which is made with a binding on one side and a normal quill on the other, to which ordinary pedal reflectors can be bolted.

Or consider the type of pedal that has “pop-up bindings” inside a large alloy or plastic cage: PD-M646, M545 or M424 in Shimano’s current range. These are double-sided for either cleated or normal shoes and can be fitted with reflectors that do not impede either use. These pedals are a bit heavy and chunky, but seem to combine all functions without compromising performance. Also the surrounding cage provides the lateral support that is missing from compact clipless pedals, but may be needed by big-footed riders and users of lighter-soled touring shoes. Surprisingly the finest of Shimano’s pop-ups, although billed as an off-road racing/BMX pedal, provides the simplest and neatest legal solution, as it comes complete with reflectors that can be bolted directly to its replaceable end-plates. The two cheaper models require additional outer reflector cages (SM-PD40), which are neither included nor elegant, but apparently work.

[John Sanderson]

However it could be used against you by an insurance company to claim "contributory negligence" if you were involved in an accident after dark.

That is correct, however i'd think you'd have a very strong case to argue against this if you had taken other reasonable steps to make yourself visible - e.g. high vis clothing, lights, etc. I was involved in an RTC where the 'contributory negligence' approach was initially taken by the insurers - albeit with factually incorrect statements - i.e. "you had no lights on your bike and we wearing dark clothing" - my response "yes I did and all my clothes were white", etc. As it happened I didn't have reflectors on my pedals - but they quickly dropped that approach in any event!

Fortunately in my case the police had attended and had recovered my bicycle [ they were unwilling to put it in the ambulance with me ] so there was a good source of evidence to back up my position!