Police dish out fines to cyclists under tough new laws

The first cyclists in Manly have been fined by police under the State Government’s tough new cycling laws.

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The first cyclists in Manly have been fined by police under the State Government’s tough new cycling laws.

Police fined two people on Wednesday for not wearing a helmet.

A 41-year-old man was caught riding without a helmet on the Corso at 8:45am on Wednesday morning and fined $319.

A short time later, a 29-year-old man riding his bicycle along Pine Street in Manly at 9:55am was caught by police and handed the same fine.

Both men were issued with infringement notices for the offence of “Rider not wear approved bicycle helmet fitted / fastened”.

These are the first reported incidents of police issuing fines since the crackdown. Under the new laws — which came into affect March 1 — the fine for not wearing a helmet increased from $71 to $319. Cyclists without a working warning device will also be fined $106 and running a red light will cost a cyclist $425, the same penalty as a motorist.

The Manly Daily conducted an hour-long survey two weeks ago to see how many locals were abiding by the new laws. Two thirds of cyclists were recorded with a helmet and a third went without.