Footpath cycling

Under the road rules, people aged under 12 years of age are permitted to ride their bicycles on the footpath, unless specifically prohibited.

People aged 12 years of age or older are not permitted to ride their bicycles on the footpath, unless they:

• are aged over 18 years of age and are accompanying a child who is under 12 years of age and the child is under the rider's supervision

• have a medical or an intellectual disability and have a certificate signed by a medical practitioner that states that it is undesirable, impractical or inexpedient for them to ride on the road

• are engaged in the delivery of postal articles for or on behalf of Australia Post.

Please note that the rules do not make it legal to ride on the footpath with a child in a seat or trailer.

The road rules for Victoria are in line with other states such as NSW. It means that adults can accompany on the footpath children who may not have the skills to ride on the road. See the VicRoads website for more detail.

Risks

Many crashes involving children on the road involve the child entering or exiting the roadway via a driveway or crossing. If you are riding on the footpath (or shared path) with your child take special care when approaching roadways.

Keep your child under constant supervision. The child must have the skills to control their bike and stop without falling over before you take them near the roads. Teach them the required skills on pathways away from the roads.

There are traffic schools and education programs that can help them acquire the skills they need.

The rule should not be used as an excuse by councils and state government not to upgrade footpaths to full shared path standard when they are on the bicycle network.