ZEROSBATTI. IS MY BIKE APPROVED? BRAKES, LIGHTS AND BELL...

TEAMS | 24/01/2025 | 08:18
di Federico Balconi, avvocato
Can road bikes "circulate" on the same roads as cars? Or must they exclusively use "velodromes" or be approved? Well, yes, this is one of many false myths, proving the great confusion that dominates the topic of cyclists. We begin by answering that all bicycles, including pedal-assist bikes, can freely circulate on vehicular roads and are not subject to any approval, registration, or homologation, with the only exception of bicycles used for transporting other people. This does not mean that bicycles, like all other vehicles, are not subject to rules, but only regarding dimensions, mandatory equipment (lights, brakes, and bell) and rules of conduct.
Our Highway Code (art. 50), regarding bicycle characteristics, indicates exclusively:
1) maximum dimensions (1.30 m width, 3 m length, 2.20 m height)
2) minimum braking system characteristics, which must be functional and consist of two independent braking devices (two levers, two brakes, front and rear).

The rest of the imposed equipment is found in art. 68 of the highway code, which requires lights, bell, and reflectors. This new regulation determines a step forward for safety, as it was modified in the new highway code, effective from December 14, 2024, imposing that lights must always be present and functioning on the bicycle. A regulation that for us, who daily read incident reports, we can only support.
Motorists, in fact, immediately after an accident, after possibly having run over a cyclist, mostly claim "I didn't see him", and this is often reported in authorities' reports: "I didn't see him"!
Welcome to a regulation that imposes front and rear lights, always present, now even during the day, and not, as in the old code, only half an hour after sunset until dawn or in tunnels. The simplified regulation allows no exceptions: lights must always be present on the bike, along with the bell, pedal reflectors, and side reflectors.
Regarding the usefulness of the bell, it should be clarified that it certainly makes more sense in the city, on bike paths, on cycle-pedestrian paths, where signaling could prevent collisions, while on road bikes, during training, often on high-traffic roads, it is less effective in avoiding being run over or missed right-of-way at intersections.
Reflectors deserve consideration, mandatory both on pedals and on the lateral part (wheels), with an implementation regulation that also provides technical characteristics, materials, colors, nullifying the regularity of reflective materials that with the same effect might be more appealing to more demanding cyclists. It could be an opportunity for manufacturers or bicycle, pedal, or wheel producers to create these accessories to be appreciable even on high-end road bikes. Certainly, a reflector won't save cyclists' lives, but it remains an additional safety, one less possibility of saying "I didn't see him"! Obviously, all this equipment is not mandatory during sports competitions, because in that case, sports regulations established by UCI apply. Our athletes, professional riders have, however, wanted to tell us how important it is for our safety to make ourselves as visible as possible.

Pedal-assist Bicycles
For pedal-assist bikes, all regulations and obligations of other bikes apply, but no homologation, permits, license plate, or insurance are required. This is valid as long as they are pedal-assist bikes, meaning they always require leg action, assisted by the electric motor. These are bicycles similar to others but equipped with an electric motor that must not exceed 0.25 KW in power and a maximum speed of 25 km/h. The electric motor helps up to a certain speed, making movement less tiring, but the motor must never function without pedaling nor can it have a nominal power higher than allowed.
If electric bicycles could also function without pedal (leg) action, they would need to be registered as motorcycles, with everything that entails (license plate, insurance, tax). Attention also to power, which must not exceed 0.25 kw.

To summarize, to cycle:
No particular age requirements are necessary
No enabling titles or fitness certificates are required; even a minor can therefore use a bicycle on the road
No homologation, registration, or special bicycle permits are needed Wearing a helmet is not mandatory by law
No insurance or registration tax is required

Legal obligations concern:
Constructive characteristics (dimensions)
Lights and bell Tires Separate brakes

The cyclist must then follow road code conduct, primarily prudence, therefore it is forbidden to ride while drunk or under drug influence, subject to the same sanctions as other vehicle drivers, except for license suspension which cannot be implemented since no license is required for bicycle riding.
A due reflection, quite alarming when reading our case statistics, is that the highest percentage of accidents occurs due to missed right-of-way, risky and close overtaking, unreported turns, mobile phone use, but above all with a cause that prevails over all: speed, which proportionally increases the severity of consequences. Lights impact less, considering that almost all accidents involving cyclists occur during the day, in daytime training hours, therefore in good lighting conditions.
Alcohol and drugs:
statistics reveal that almost all road victims are caused by people fully in possession of their mental faculties, more commonly distracted or ill-mannered while driving.
The road to cultural change is long and will require a few generations. Meanwhile, we can find refuge on cycle paths, finding suitable ones, and this is an invitation to invest in infrastructure to promote cycling, whose constant use seems to reduce the probability of falling ill by an extremely high percentage (up to 50%), with enormous savings for healthcare.
Avv. Federico Balconi Founder of APS ZEROSBATTI - zerosbatti.com