POLICE began a crackdown on cyclists breaking the rules of the road on a busy York thoroughfare last night.

Officers were out in force in Hull Road yesterday to clampdown on cyclists using footpaths, those without proper lighting and those without fully functioning brakes.

In the space of several hours, they issued up to 30 fixed penalty notices, leading to a £30 fine or Vehicle Defect Registration Scheme (VDRS) warnings – which require a cyclist to sort out a problem with their bike within 14 days or face a court summons.

And one of the cyclists stopped by the team of officers for riding along a footpath also found himself under arrest yesterday after it was discovered he was breaching his police bail conditions.

Operation Raccoon, which is a cycle-safe campaign to enforce legislation on dangerous cycling, will continue for the next three months.

Adrian Allison, a police community support officer (PCSO) in the Hull Road ward, said a team of eight spent the afternoon and evening walking the beat in the area, looking out for dangerous cyclists, both young and old, and warning cyclists about their mistakes.

And as well as putting the brakes on problem cycling, he said the police and City of York Council’s cycling co-ordinator, Shaun Wilson, would be running an educational campaign in the five primary schools and one secondary school in the area.

PCSO Allison said there would be evening classes on how to stay safe and be seen at night for youths caught breaking the cycling rules.

“They are too young to be issued fixed penalty notice tickets, so we have to give them a court summons,” said PCSO Allison.

“They then have the option of coming to the evening class instead of going to court. It’s about giving them a bit of an education on how their behaviour affects the public.”

The clampdown on inconsiderate cyclists has been mounted after consultation with residents around Hull Road, through the police’s joint action group meetings and door-to-door inquires.

“This is what the public have said they want, it’s one of their top priorities,” said PCSO Allison, who added that most of the cyclists who were stopped during the operation were adults.

“It’s just Hull Road for now, but we are working with officers in Fishergate and Fulford Road. This has definitely been a worthwhile exercise which we will be repeating until the nights start getting lighter.”