{"id":428688,"date":"2026-01-23T19:50:10","date_gmt":"2026-01-23T19:50:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/428688\/"},"modified":"2026-01-23T19:50:10","modified_gmt":"2026-01-23T19:50:10","slug":"disabled-cyclists-abused-by-vigilante-residents-for-riding-in-town-centre-as-changes-made-to-controversial-cycling-trial-to-prioritise-bikes-as-mobility-a","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/428688\/","title":{"rendered":"Disabled cyclists \u201cabused by vigilante residents\u201d for riding in town centre \u2013 as changes made to controversial cycling trial to \u201cprioritise\u201d bikes as mobility aids"},"content":{"rendered":"

Disabled cyclists have \u201csuffered harassment\u201d and abuse at the hands of \u201cnon-uniformed vigilante residents\u201d for riding through a town centre market, a cycling campaigner has claimed.<\/p>\n

The claim was made as Oxfordshire County Council voted to amend a controversial cycling trial on Bicester\u2019s Sheep Street, to permit disabled people who use bikes as mobility aids to cycle on the pedestrianised street during market hours.<\/p>\n

In March 2025, an Experimental Traffic Regulation Order (ETRO) was introduced to allow cyclists to ride in both directions on Sheep Street<\/a>, a key shopping street in Bicester, as part of an 18-month trial designed to make the street \u201cmore accessible\u201d to cyclists and improving the choice of local routes for people on bikes.<\/p>\n

\"SheepSheep Street, Bicester, Oxfordshire (credit: Google Maps)<\/p>\n

As reported by road.cc, the cycling trial was the subject of a long-running saga, with some locals, politicians, and business owners claiming that \u201cevery single resident does not want this scheme\u201d, and that it will lead to \u201cjumped-up, arrogant\u201d cyclists causing \u201ccarnage\u201d and posing a risk to pedestrians<\/a>.<\/p>\n

But after months of debate \u2013 which saw initial plans for a trial put on hold and replaced with a public consultation<\/a> \u2013 the ETRO was finally approved in November 2024<\/a>, bringing an end to a 30-year ban on cycling on Sheep Street, which bizarrely still formed part of the National Cycle Network. The trial will end in September, when the council will decide whether it should be made permanent.<\/p>\n

>\u00a0\u201cWe need an outbreak of common sense\u201d: Controversial cycling trial on pedestrian shopping street approved amid claims \u201cevery single resident does not want this scheme\u201d \u2013 but disabled cyclists say trial \u201cnecessary step\u201d to make town more accessible<\/a><\/p>\n

According to the ETRO, the only time cycling on Sheep Street is not permitted during the trial is when the weekly market is taking place on Fridays between 9am and 4pm.<\/p>\n

However, this week Oxfordshire County Council approved a change to the order allowing disabled people to cycle through Sheep Street during market hours, in what was described as a \u201csmall, targeted intervention\u201d to prioritise the needs of disabled residents.<\/p>\n

\"BicycleBicycle at Sheep Street in Bicester (credit: Catherine Hickman)<\/p>\n

Speaking at Thursday\u2019s council meeting, Paul Troop, chair of the Bicester Bike Users Group and secretary of Bike Users Oxford, said the change comes after disabled locals were \u201cabused\u201d for using their bikes to get around the town\u2019s market, the Oxford Mail reports.<\/p>\n

He told the meeting that those who use cycles as mobility aids \u201chave suffered harassment by non-uniformed vigilante residents who have subjected them to unwarranted abuse\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cGiven that physically disabled residents may not be able to walk or push a bike, it is wrong to force them to choose to not access the market, or to risk harassment and abuse,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

>\u00a0Allowing \u201cspeeding\u201d cyclists to ride on \u201cstruggling\u201d high street would lead to \u201ccarnage\u201d and \u201cfrighten\u201d elderly, say traders opposed to lifting cycling ban in pedestrianised shopping area<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cFrom my experience people don\u2019t have a problem with a disabled person cycling when it\u2019s made obvious, like when I’m riding my hand-cycle,\u201d added disabled Bicester resident Kevin Hickman.<\/p>\n

During the consultation process, Hickman had previously told the council that because cycling is easier for him than walking, and less difficult than driving, the trial will make the town\u2019s shopping street much more accessible.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat would really help is a general understanding that many disabled people make the best of their constraints by using other cycles as mobility aids too, and that if someone is cycling slowly and carefully in a place where most people wouldn\u2019t, they likely have a good reason for doing so,\u201d he continued during Thursday\u2019s meeting.<\/p>\n

\u201cA person’s impairment isn\u2019t always obvious, especially when cycling. This proposal recognises that, and it\u2019s heartening to see a transport authority thinking beyond blue badge parking when it comes to disabled people’s mobility.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"HGVHGV on Sheep Street in Bicester (credit: Catherine Hickman)<\/p>\n

Andrew Gant, the local authority\u2019s cabinet member for transport management, described the change as a \u201csmall, targeted intervention which clearly supports our policy of supporting cycling and walking and prioritising the needs of disabled people\u201d.<\/p>\n

The council was told that the director of highways will be responsible for setting up a permit or exemption scheme to allow access for disabled cyclists during market hours.<\/p>\n

However, some raised concerns about how the new exemption would be enforced.<\/p>\n

\u201cLooking at the disabled persons aspect of the scheme, we support the intent, but we are concerned about the practicalities,\u201d Robin Tucker, the co-chair of Coalition for Healthy Streets and Active Travel, said.<\/p>\n

\u201cDisabled people face enough barriers without having to prove their disabilities and have an extra form of ID for a vehicle of such low impact as a cycle. Signage may be sufficient.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Disabled cyclists have \u201csuffered harassment\u201d and abuse at the hands of \u201cnon-uniformed vigilante residents\u201d for riding through a…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":428689,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[445],"tags":[49,48,635,82],"class_list":["post-428688","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-cycling","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-cycling","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/428688","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=428688"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/428688\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/428689"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=428688"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=428688"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=428688"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}