You are so right! OMG I'll never forget the day I had half my leg ripped open by a pair of Nikes that took off from their owner and ran down the street uncontrollably. It was awful! You wouldn't believe the "tongue" lashing I took from those freakin shoes when they opened their laces and said I was in the wrong.
Hey, if you think that, you should see me freerun when I'm in a hurry. I may not be nearly as inconsiderate as some bikers, but I think if I ran into you, you'd need some help up.
Anyways, why don't we license Skateboards, or Scooters, or Roller Blades, or Heelys? There comes a point when it stops making sense. In this case (biking) it's the point that the good of not licensing vastly outweighs the bad (most of which can be negated by enforcement of bad bikers.)
They were when I was a kid and they can be now. Use the road....pay for the road.
When my grandfather was a kid, first nations children were sent to schools where they were assimilated into Western culture. Live in Canada, act like other Canadians.
They were when I was a kid and they can be now. Use the road....pay for the road. Simple as that. Licensing isn't just about being accountable for what you do wrong. Everything is pay as you use. Cyclists should contribute.
As should walkers contribute to their use of the sidewalk. Seriously, how much wear do you think gets put on our sidewalks by pedestrians? How much do you think it costs to replace and build new sidewalks? That's a lot of money!
And do you honestly think that licensing pays for a significant portion of our roads? I'm thinking that it just pays for the amount of money needed to provide the licensing service, which is there because
it's really needed.
Could you imagine Ontario where a 10 year old could hop into a car and drive it around? Now what about bikes?
Six year olds are
encouraged to learn how to ride a bike, and many people are at least adequate at doing so by the age of 10. Obviously, they're much easier to use and much safer than a car.
As I said, these deaths are tragic, but are completely random and isolated incidents, and happen just as often as a person falling down the stairs. They
are preventable, but licensing won't do anywhere near as much as something as simple as cracking down on bad cyclists. And once you crack down on bad cyclists, the gain from licensing will be almost unnoticeable.
And licensing will be a massive determent for people who might take up cycling in any way (whether it be recreational, commuting, or as a true transportation purpose.) It'll also put an immense amount of pressure and inconvenience to people who currently use bikes as their only option.
It should be obvious that the cons far, far, far outweigh the benefits. And considering the benefits can easily be replicated by cracking down on those bad cyclists with no cons and a hugely increased revenue, I wonder why people are even putting it up as an option.
