Category: high visibility vest

Loss of points, defective brakes, visibility vest, what do you risk in the event of a bicycle traffic violation?

With the explosion of bicycle trips from confinement, it may be good to know that cyclists are also subject to the highway code … and that they can therefore be fined class 1 to 4 depending on the offense committed. Bicycles, cars without a license, or agricultural tractors are also subject to the same regime.

For the moment, scooters do not fall within this framework, but that could change. The only difference with a motorist is the withdrawal of point… There are however certain serious infractions which can result in a ban on driving all motor vehicles!

If you do not risk being withdrawn on a bicycle, a judge may however prevent you from operating a motor vehicle depending on the seriousness of the offense. Indeed, if you are tested while drunk on the handlebars or if you put the lives of others in danger, then you will no longer be allowed to drive for a maximum of 5 years.

Fines 1 st class:

This fine can be imposed on you if you drive your bike while on the phone. It is forbidden and it is punishable by a fine of 11 € (then 33 € increased)

2nd class fines :

Night traffic without a high visibility vest or phosphorescent yellow vest will cost you € 22 on-site, then € 35 or € 75 if you do not pay on time.

A fine of 3 rd class:

Is your braking system incorrect or defective? You will have to pay 45 € and up to 180 € if you pay after the deadline.

And 4 fines the class?

They are the most severely punished but are consequently mistakes committed! Driving while on the phone, denying priority to a car or a pedestrian, and this may be 90 € in a row or 375 € if you are deadbeat.

What about parking?

In Paris, bicycles are thrown on the sidewalks and become a rather unpleasant urban landscape. Be aware that in some large cities, putting your bike against a wall or along a sidewalk can be very expensive. The price of these fines is set by the municipalities and there is no maximum threshold!

 

Do police need to wear high visibility reflective vests when on duty?

Everybody has heard the urban myth about the driver who escaped a speeding fine because the police officer that issued his ticket wasn’t wearing a high visibility vest for Occupational Health and Safety (OH&S). So, with CarAdvice reader Trent e-mailing us with that exact question this week, we set off to investigate.

 

Q: Hi guys. I love the site! Keep up the great work. I’m from Victoria and a friend told me recently that police can’t issue you with traffic infringements if they are not wearing high visibility reflective vests for safety. Is this right?

A: Good question, Trent. It’s one that has been doing the rounds for some time — where the individual fought a speeding fine because the police officer wasn’t wearing a high visibility reflective vest.

 

To get a definitive answer, we touched base with the Victoria Police to see what the ruling is in your state.

 

Victoria Police senior media officer, Ben Radisich, told CarAdvice:

 

“Members must wear a high visibility vest when performing a role where the primary function is road policing duties or when on roads near moving vehicles. Members will not be required to wear a high visibility vest:

 

Wherein the assessment of the member, wearing the vest represents a serious risk to health and safety (such as responding to an armed offender or siege situation); or

 

If authorized by a supervisor on a specific occasion, for specific duties or planned operations.

 

If members assess that wearing the high visibility vest on roads represents a serious risk to health and safety they must be able to justify such a decision if required to do so.”

 

So there you have it, Trent. Generally speaking, police officers must wear high visibility reflective vests when performing duties outside of their vehicles.

 

But, that doesn’t mean it’s okay to break the law and use technicalities to get around infringement notices.

 

Road safety warning issued ahead of strong winds, snow and ice

The Road Safety Authority (RSA) has issued a warning to road users ahead of difficult driving conditions over the next few days.

 

The advice comes on foot of three weather warnings issued by Met Éireann earlier today, Wednesday, March 11.

 

The warnings will effect 11 counties altogether: a Status Orange wind warning for Co. Donegal; a Status Yellow snow/ice warning for Co. Donegal; and a Status Yellow wind warning for counties Cavan, Monaghan, Dublin, Louth, Meath, Galway, Leitrim, Mayo, Sligo, and Clare.

 

The latter of these warnings will also apply to Co. Donegal when the Status Orange warning is not in effect.

 

Motorists traveling in these counties at the affected times are being advised to check the local traffic and weather conditions in the area before setting out on a journey.

 

For motorists driving in wet or windy conditions, the RSA gives the following advice:

 

Control of a vehicle may be affected by crosswinds, particularly high-sided vehicles and motorcycles;

Beware of objects blown onto the road, and expect road conditions to change quickly;

Watch out for fallen or falling debris, and vehicles veering across the road;

Drivers should allow extra space between themselves and vulnerable road users, such as cyclists and motorcyclists, as they may be blown off-course;

Drivers need to slow-down in wet weather conditions, especially on high-speed roads such as dual carriageways and motorways, where there is an increased danger of aquaplaning;

Choose another route if the road ahead is flooded – do not drive through a flood. Floods could be deeper than they appear, and trees and branches in the water may not be visible;

Drivers should always follow recommended routes and obey signs closing roads to traffic;

After going through water, drive slowly with your foot on the brake pedal for a short distance, which helps to dry the brakes;

Drive with dipped headlights at all times.

The RSA has also outlined advice for cyclists, motorcyclists, and pedestrians.

 

This includes: wearing bright clothing with reflective armbands or a belt, as visibility for drivers will be reduced; taking special care when crossing the road or cycling in high winds; walking on footpaths where possible; and keeping an eye out for falling debris, especially in urban areas.

 

In terms of dealing with snow and ice, drivers are advised to:

 

Clear windows and mirrors with a screen scraper and de-icer – not hot water as this can crack the glass;

Remove snow from your vehicle, as it can slide onto the windows during braking and restrict your view;

Slow down; use all controls delicately, and leave extra distance between yourself and the vehicle in front. Avoid oversteering, harsh braking and harsh acceleration. Use the highest gear possible. Select a low gear when traveling downhill;

Do not use the tail lights of the car in front as a guide. In heavy snow, use your fog lights, turn down the radio and let down the window slightly, so traffic can be heard;

Use dipped headlights at all times, and fog lights in heavy snow;

Watch out for vulnerable road users and allow extra space to pedestrians, cyclists and motorcyclists.

Pedestrians are advised to: wear bright clothing, or ideally a high-visibility jacket or reflective armbands and belt; wear appropriate footwear; and not underestimate the danger of ice, using extreme caution when walking in icy areas.

 

Finally, the advice to motorcyclists for taking to the road in snowy and icy conditions is to not compromise their safety by going on a journey when they could cancel it or use alternative transport.

 

Motorcyclists should also: wear a high-visibility vest; ensure lights are working properly, and avoid wearing a dark visor in bad light conditions.

 

Also, other road users may not expect motorcyclists, which could compromise safety.

How to behave if Vehicle failure

How to behave in the event of a vehicle was breakdown on the road? If possible, push the car onto the roadside or sidewalk. Car breakdown – put on a safety vest. First, we must take care of our safety. After immobilizing the vehicle, we should turn on emergency lights. The next step should be to put on a reflective vest – every driver, although there is no legal obligation in Poland, should have it in the car.

 

Ideally, there would be vests for all passengers in the car. Remember to keep the vest in the cabin, not in the hard-to-reach trunk. The cost of buying a vest is small and its impact on safety is huge. After sunset, the lack of reflections means that we are visible to the driver of the oncoming vehicle only when there are 20 meters ahead – reflections increase this distance to 130 meters. This huge difference gives the driver time for the right response. In addition, please note that reflective vests in most European countries are already mandatory vehicle equipment.

 

Wearing a high visibility vest, driver, and passengers should safely leave the vehicle. Being in a vehicle exposes us to additional risk. Many people die in vehicles that are inactivated by a breakdown. Speed, wrong marking of a broken vehicle, difficult road conditions means that drivers enter a broken car.

 

“When leaving the vehicle, pay special attention to children. Let us get them out of the right side and hide immediately on the roadside behind safety barriers or in a zone where there is no risk of driving another vehicle, “instructor Auto School. The vehicle in addition to the hazard lights should be marked with a warning triangle. Every car must be equipped with it. His lack is not only a sign of carelessness for his safety, but also the risk of receiving a fine of 50 to 200 PLN.

 

By marking the vehicle with a triangle, we should have in our head the provisions of the road code. If you are on a highway or expressway, the triangle should be set 100 meters from the vehicle. The triangle should be on the roadway or shoulder. Outside the built-up area, the triangle is set at a distance of 30-50 meters from the vehicle, and in the built-up area – just behind the vehicle or on the vehicle at a height not higher than one meter.

 

Our life and health do not have a price. The car’s equipment with reflective vests, learning the rules of conduct in the event of a failure is a small effort if we put our safety at the stake.

Children and adults shone with reflective vest

“Reflective be it safe to live” – such was the slogan of the celebration of the Primary School. Marcie in Grab, taking part in the competition “Reflective School”.

 

The students and their teachers promoted the wearing of high visibility vest wandering through the village, among others to the House of Culture, where the main part of the celebration took place.

 

During the meeting, the art contest “Reflective Owl” was summarized. The students took part in a game about the rules of road safety; there were also thematic artistic presentations.

 

There was also a ceremonial fit for the pupils of the youngest children, who on this occasion received not only school ID cards and commemorative diplomas, but also reflective vests.

Nearly half of those killed on the roads are pedestrians

A woman and a man without high visibility vest, in the avenue of Festers, were the last passers-by to be run over on the Costa. It happened on February 6. However, so far in 2018 the outrages accounted for seven. There were two victims. On January 11, Martinez, 53 years old was run in Cures. In Cabrillo there are four people who have been run over, two of them a couple, on January 30 in the avenue of Festers.

 

Victims of abuse, far from being reduced, remain dangerous in time, to such an extent that they represent almost half of those killed in the roads in the area. In 2016, four of the nine victims were registered. In Traffic of the Civil Guard, they have a well-defined profile of the deceased and wounded: person of about 70-80 years, who circulated without reflective garments and did it outside the enabled steps. In some cases, they traveled in the middle of the night on roads that are forbidden for passers-by, such as the Braganza highway and on the Costa Mote highway. The latter registered its first and only deceased since its implementation at the end of July 2016. It happened on October 11, 2017 when José, 76 years old and resident, lost his life. He walked through the middle of the two lanes, felt Festers and without any reflective clothing.

 

Before this rebound of the accident rate, with pedestrians involved, the Provincial Traffic Headquarters in collaboration with the Subsector of Traffic of the Civil Guard of A Corunna, yesterday began a prevention campaign in the DP-1914, between Adana and Enteric. The objective is to raise awareness among residents of the problems that exist on the Costa and the risk of violating the instructions on road safety. This campaign included the delivery of reflective vests, donated by the Junta Galicia, among neighbors in the area.

He had killed a 17-year-old cyclist with no reflective vest

The motorist who mowed Adrian, 17, March 27 in Riches, was sentenced Tuesday to three years in prison, two suspended and put to the test. He committed the irreparable. Killed a 17 year old kid who was riding a bike without reflective vest. The high school student who should have passed his baccalaureate has died as a result of his injuries.

 

Adrian was coming home from a party with two friends. Yes, they had drunk alcohol, a dozen glasses. Yes, Adrian had no reflective safety vest or lighting on his bike. But no, he did not commit any fault on the road to Orchids, at the exit of Felines. The faults are Sebastian Quieting who committed them. He also came back from a party, had 0.96 g of alcohol in his blood, and was driving too fast.

 

The driver did not stop after the collision. Although he had twice been to the scene of the accident, he did not go to the police until he had told his roommate that he was back home. “Almost immediately,” says Quentin Lobes, his lawyer. “I hit Adrian but I did not see him coming,” said the defendant. In addition, after that, it was total panic for me. ”

 

“He did not see him, he killed him and he left,” says Azania prosecutor Julian-Rama. In deciding to drive, he decided to put someone in danger. It was Adrian. The motorist crashed after making a mistake on the highway. “It was raining,” he explains. “But why do we leave the wheel to a person who does not take the right road to get back?” He did not even have the courage to stop when he went back and forth on the scene! His cowardice is to have refused to face reality. ”

 

He had just recovered his license

The motorist without high visibility vest had already been warned: between 2003 and 2016, he committed at least ten speeding, refused a priority, a Stop, already driven under the influence of alcohol … He had just recovered his license when the accident took place and that, it deserves three years of prison with mandate of deposit for the parquet floor. A punishment required under the blow of “emotion,” for Me Lobes: “He took a life without wanting it. If he had wanted to flee his responsibilities, he would have surrendered the next day, on an empty stomach. However, no, he goes right away, alcoholic. “It’s extremely hard for me,” the defendant says head down. I live a hell, certainly not at the same level as the family, but I would have liked so much that it does not happen … “He has been in detention since yesterday.

 

The safety vest often in the trunk of the car

Several times a year police officers investigate tragic accidents in which not only the pedestrians, but also the drivers who are now outside the vehicle, will come to life. Often they have a common denominator – they were not seen in time, because they were not wearing a reflective vest.

 

Whether the situation has changed, dozens of young police officers in the Central Bohemian region have been investigating the field. “Drivers are almost always in the car with one vest, which is part of the mandatory equipment. Not everyone knows where to put the high visibility vest. About half of the checked drivers had her in the trunk. That’s bad, “explained Lucie, a spokesman for the Malta police.

 

She warned that it was necessary to have a reflective vest available in the cabin of the vehicle, in case of an emergency stop and a show on the unlit traffic. “It’s important to realize that if they hit another vehicle in the trunk of their vehicle, they would not have to get out of the safety vest because it could block the door,” the police spokesperson added.

 

The security action was also focused on the technical condition of vehicles, document check, and whether drivers are not driving under the influence of alcohol. He is also a frequent culprit of traffic accidents. Last year, for example, he signed for nineteen car ambles, while pedestrians were, according to current police statistics, responsible for six accidents.

The world of fashion promote vests and safety

Fashion designers are convincing that it saves lives, and our reporter checks it in practice. The reflective vest is the heroine of the clip made by road builders. The action “A2 that it is safe to bet on reflections!” is to convince young people that although the vests are not too stylish, it is worth to wear them, because they improve safety. The TVN24 reporter checked how much night wear this piece of clothing. A pedestrian with a reflection is visible from almost 100 meters, while a man in a black jacket appears in front of the mask unexpectedly, several meters in front of the vehicle. In this situation, there is no time to react.

 

How important is visibility on the road, also convinces Josef, head of the Road Traffic Department of the Municipal Police in Poznan. – Appropriate visibility is above all a guarantee of safety. Then when we are visible with reflective clothing, the driver can react and avoid an accident. Safe distance is a standard range of traffic lights, or 150 m. This distance is enough to control the vehicle, but only if we are visible.

 

The vest has the same cut for years, but it is still attractive because it has saved people’s lives for years. This is what we intend to promote – says spokesperson Sofia. Fashion people – designer Rowena, the founder of the Risk brand, will help in this. The result of cooperation is a short film with vests in the main role. – We want to persuade most people to have such vests – says Opals in the clip. For the promotion of high visibility vests, the well-known fashion designer Karl Lagerfeld was once invited. “It’s yellow, it’s ugly, and it does not suit anything, but it saves lives,” he argued in the campaign. So you can say that road builders … follow fashion.

 

 

Awarded for antismog bikes with safety vest

At the end of the project, with the contribution of the Region and the support of the Municipality, 175 students of 12 classes of the Comprehensive Institute Puccini were awarded with safety vest in the afternoon of today. At the end of the school year, they took part in the project aimed at promoting the use of alternative means to the car to go to school, in particular the bike, or the possibility of going there on foot.

 

The project involved 7 schools in the city, equal to 60 classes for 1,500 students. All the people who participated were given a high visibility jacket to wear in the evening and at night when riding a bike. Two super prizes went to each class for the boy and girl who used the bike or walked to school for the number of days since the start of the project. In addition to each class was given the volume “Bicycles” published by Mop, an interesting photographic journey that immortalizes the use of the bike in Parma over time.

 

At each school that participated, then, two racks were given away. Paola from Parma took part in the award ceremony, as was Mobility Councilor Gabriele. “The goal – said Paola – is to have a city with fewer cars and more bikes, which means greater respect for the environment and us. The project has a transversal formative value and also involves issues related to road education, environmental education and the growth of students’ autonomy.”

 

“Thanks to your contribution – concluded the environment councilor Gabriele – it was possible to improve the air quality. The use of alternative means to private cars is an important tool for combating air pollution. I therefore thank the participants, the teachers, the school and Fib for promoting this worthy project to keep the road safety and children’s safety”.