Cycling UK laments missed opportunity to close cycle lane parking loophole in Scotland

Cycling UK has said it is “disappointed” that a chance to close a legal loophole in Scotland was missed after MSPs at Holyrood voted against fixing a law which allowed parking in a cycle lane.

The charity discovered the law had been changed in Westminster three years ago which effectively removed the offence of parking in a mandatory cycle lane and put it “out of step” with the Highway Code.

The changes were made without debate or consultation and Cycling UK has argued this “undermined” the safety of cyclists using cycle lanes.

On 9th October, the Scottish Parliament voted against amending the law in Scotland after a campaign by the charity which saw 5,500 emails sent to MSPs by members of the public asking for the law to be changed.

Jim Densham, Cycling UK’s campaigns and policy manager for Scotland, said: “This is a disappointing missed opportunity to finally close a legal loophole so it would once again become an offence to park, as well as drive or ride in a mandatory cycle lane, that is one marked by a solid white line.

“We want everyone to understand that parking in a cycle lane risks the safety of people riding bikes because a vehicle parked in a cycle lane forces them to move or swerve out into traffic, putting them in danger.

“And although the law has not been updated, we would urge all drivers to be considerate and not park in any cycle lane, either mandatory lanes, or advisory lanes which are marked with a white dashed line.”

The amendment to the Transport (Scotland) Bill was submitted by Colin Smyth MSP (Labour).