Don’t drink and pedal

Since most of the foreigners I know in Japan use bicycles as their primary form of transport, I thought I’d post Mainichi Shinbun article:

A police crackdown on drunken cycling is prompting an increasing number of cyclists to use taxis that have special equipment to carry their bicycles, industry sources said.

[...]

Under the Road Traffic Law, a bicycle is a light vehicle, and if people are caught cycling while drunk they can be handed a red ticket, which is reserved for serious offences. In 2005, apprehensions for light vehicle violations were made in 326 cases, with bicycles accounting for most of the cases. This figure was 3.8 times more than the 85 cases recorded in 2004.

In May this year, a nationwide police crackdown on cyclists led to four apprehensions for drunken riding. The apprehensions came after the National Police Agency sent out a notice to prefectural police in April ordering officers to actively apprehend cyclists for serious traffic violations such as riding while drunk.

As of the end of August this year, Fujitaxi’s bicycle transportation service had been used 5,460 times during the year, up 354 from the previous year’s figure. Some 60 percent of users are those who have been drinking. In giving a reason for using the service, many say they are afraid of being apprehended for riding while drunk. Most of them use the service between 11 p.m. and 1 a.m.

Fines for riding your bike while drunk can be pretty hefty in Japan. A few months ago I recieved a flier in the mail warning of 80,000 yen fines for a first offense (about 671 US dollars). While the chance of being caught is very small, it’s probably a good idea to take a taxi home after drinking, just in case.