Nuxx:E6e9bbc2-2c57-4a16-9068-3e08b24993b8@h11g2000yqb.googlegroups.com

Path: num2.nntp.dca.giganews.com!num1.nntp.dca.giganews.com!number.nntp.dca.giganews.com!border1.nntp.dca.giganews.com!nntp.giganews.com!postnews.google.com!h11g2000yqb.googlegroups.com!not-for-mail Message-ID:  From: Nuxx Bar  Newsgroups: uk.legal,uk.rec.cycling Subject: Re: Critical Mass - Procession? Date: Wed, 22 Jul 2009 11:27:18 -0700 (PDT) References:   Lines: 39 Organization: http://groups.google.com NNTP-Posting-Host: 86.145.66.52 Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable X-Trace: posting.google.com 1248287238 28221 127.0.0.1 (22 Jul 2009 18:27:18 GMT) X-Complaints-To: groups-abuse@google.com NNTP-Posting-Date: Wed, 22 Jul 2009 18:27:18 +0000 (UTC) Complaints-To: groups-abuse@google.com Injection-Info: h11g2000yqb.googlegroups.com; posting-host=86.145.66.52; posting-account=7_6kYAkAAABD6HrjM0VxehwvZOKMxm4g User-Agent: G2/1.0 X-HTTP-UserAgent: Mozilla/5.0 (Windows; U; Windows NT 5.1; en-GB; rv:1.9.0.11) Gecko/2009060215 Firefox/3.0.11 (.NET CLR 3.5.30729),gzip(gfe),gzip(gfe) Bytes: 3080 Xref: perfectly-safe.chapmancentral.co.uk uk.rec.cycling:719332

On Jul 22, 7:19=A0pm, "Simon Mason"  wrote: > "Judith M Smith"  wrote in messagenews:opfe65912= 4je9nae9984b39khdi3nnk4m6@4ax.com... > > > > > There has been some debate in uk.rec.cycling regarding: > >http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2008/nov/26/critical-mass-london-police > > > Some people are saying that because "Lord Phillips ruled today that > > the ride was a "customary procession" " - this means that it does not > > have to obey certain traffic regulations. =A0eg it can proceed through > > traffic lights at red etc. people must wait at zebra crossings for the > > "procession" to pass - the cyclists need not stop. > > > Surely this is just =A0rubbish? > > My workmate organised a large charity motorbike ride through the centre o= f > the city last year involving 100's of bikers. With police permission, the= y > were allowed to pass through the city en mass and onwards to the Humber > Bridge passing through red lights where the motorcycle group members acte= d > as marshals to stop other traffic.

But at least it was arranged in advance, so it was avoidable by those who didn't wish to be held up for ages.

Still, if Doug is right and it is indeed OK to have a procession which goes through red lights etc even if the route hasn't been pre- arranged, perhaps motorists could have "processions" each weekday morning and evening along primary routes, and then they wouldn't have to obey lights etc either. Presumably Doug would have no objection to that? (Especially since he often says that such "processions" already occur when defending CM; if he's right, all we have to do is make them "official" and the motorists concerned no longer have to stop anywhere...sounds like a great way to get traffic moving!)