Rules of the road: Bikes

Both motorbikes and bicycles are dangerous in France, mostly because they play by their own rules, which makes them more dangerous than cars, especially because they are small enough to go on the pavements. The general rule chez les français is if it is possible to do something then it’s allowed. It is possible to drive a bicycle or motorbike on the pavement, so most people do.

Motorbikes on the road are just as scary on the road as on the pavement though, and in the same thought as ‘if you can then go ahead’, they will overtake you on the road no matter what speed you are going, just because they can.

Bicycles are in a category all of their own, as well as going on the pavement in heavily pedestrianised areas (even if there is a cycle lane on the road), they have their own set of rules that no-one else follows. They don’t follow any road rules as far as I can tell. They follow even less rules than cars! They don’t stop at red lights or follow one-way-traffic laws. If there is a pedestrian in their way they expect them to ‘sense’ there is a bike hurtling towards them and get out the way, because the cyclist will not shout, ring a bell or do anything to let you know they are about to hit you. They won’t even swerve. Why should they get out of your way, if you won’t get out of theirs? This means that if you have been in France for any amount of time it is likely you will have been almost run over by an equal amount of bikes as cars.