WHEELS WITHIN WHEELS

It's obviously a sign of the times but you did not see so many youngsters riding on footpaths in Brigg 30 or 40 years ago. These days it's a common sight.
Back in the 1960s and 1970s you would expect to be stopped and dealt with by any policeman who spotted you riding along the path. More to the point, if you were 'nicked' you would certainly not get the coveted Cycling Proficiency Certificate we held in high regard.
Police used to visit Glebe Road School and supervise the tuition for this in the playground, one of the tests being a difficult obstacle course at low speed to make sure you could control the cycle properly. There were also safety checks.
Today it's a common sight to see kids cycling on the pavement, and not all of them move to one side to give pedestrians the right of way.
Is it because they do not have the confidence to ride on the road? Perhaps some have never been shown the correct way to align the cycle to make, say, a right turn, giving the correct hand-signal. This was something we had to master in the playground during Cycling Proficiency training.
On the other hand, today's youngsters might be a little confused, as North Lincolnshire Council encourages cycling on the footpaths, in a number of areas of Brigg, with its designated cycle lanes. Nothing wrong with these, many will say - and I agree, to a point.
But when the young rider comes to the end of the designated cycle lane (eg at the junction of East Parade and Wrawby Road, or at the top of Churchill Avenue) he, or she, might see it as easier, and safer, to just continue along the footpath rather than cross oncoming traffic to get back onto the left-hand side of the road and continue their journey in a legal manner.