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Japan gets tough over safety of cyclists

Multi-tasking cyclists beware. Japan is planning new measures to discourage some of the more outlandish but popular saddle habits, including “triple riding” (balancing children on the frame), listening to portable music players or using an umbrella while on the move.

In the first changes to cycling rules in almost 30 years, warnings will be issued to cyclists who listen to music players or chat on mobile phones. Offenders face a fine of ¥20,000 from this spring if they are caught triple riding — a balancing act usually involving an adult and two small children spaced out along the length of the bicycle. The constant ringing of bicycle bells on footpaths will be discouraged, as will the most disturbing trend among teen cyclists: texting while pedalling.

The new measures, recommended by a police advisory panel, are designed to halt the rise in accidents involving bicycles. The national police agency reported 4,020 such mishaps last year, a seven-fold increase over the past decade.

The number of bicycle accidents involving pedestrians has risen almost fivefold since 1996 to 2,767 incidents last year, the agency added. But the regulations could prove difficult to enforce. Most Japanese own a bicycle of some description, from high-speed road bikes to the more functional charinko — usually a rusting contraption with one gear, balding tyres and a bell.

Japan’s millions of cyclists routinely ignore parking bans outside shops and railway stations, and few believe they will heed orders to don waterproof clothes rather than unfurl a brolly, particularly during the summer rainy season. — © Guardian Newspapers Limited, 2008

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