An 82-year-old man says he would rather go to jail than pay the £100 fine he has been issued for cycling through a town centre. Barrie Enderby, from Grimsby, who regularly bikes around Grimsby town centre, says he told a council officer 'stick it up your a**e' when he was slapped with the fine earlier this month.
The pensioner said he was stopped by an officer as he left a bank on Victoria Street South and told he was not allowed to ride his bike in the street. He told Grimsby Live he has been riding his bike in the town for 40 years and has never been fined before.
Barrie was issued a £100 fine under a Public Spaces Protection Order, which was introduced back in the town centre in 2019 to deal with nuisance behaviour, such as cycling in the pedestrianised zone and drinking in the street. Barrie has refused to pay the fine and says he would rather be locked up than hand the money over.
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The cyclist explained: "I was biking through town last Thursday, October 6, locked my bike up and went into a bank on Victoria Street. As I came out, one of the council officers stopped me and said I'd be fined £100 for riding it in the street. I've been riding my bike around here for 40 years and have never once been fined. When he gave it to me I told him, 'stick it up your a**e'. I'm more annoyed about it because my biking is what keeps me going."
Barrie said he was "quite frustrated" at being asked to pay the £100 fine. "I've seen all sorts going on around town in the past and they chose to give me a ticket," he said.
He said there was also a lack of signage around the restrictions. "I asked where the sign was to say you couldn't bike here and he pointed at the concrete," Barrie said. "I couldn't believe it, you wouldn't be looking there for the rules would you, that annoyed me even more."
He said that if had been politely asked to stop riding his bike, he would have "out of respect", but claims he was not offered the chance. Barrie said he does not have "£100 spare to give them" and suggested council officers would be better off punishing "people speeding about on scooters".
"I don't see why I should get penalised, but all these people speeding about on scooters seem to get no punishment," he explained. "In my opinion, they're much worse than a cyclist. If I'm honest, I feel hard done to and I now worry about where I can and can't go on my bike."
Barrie said he will no longer be going into town on his bike. "This has left me wondering whether it's safe to go out on my bike at all," he admitted. "I won't be paying it," Barrie said of the fine. "I'd rather go to prison then give them £100."
Cllr Ron Shepherd, portfolio holder for Safer and Stronger Communities at North East Lincolnshire Council, told Grimsby Live: "If someone feels they have been wrongly given a fixed penalty notice (FPN) they can challenge it, the details are on the ticket. Shoppers, businesses and people working in the town centre often complain about nuisance cycling in the pedestrian zone.
“The Grimsby Telegraph has published several stories in recent years where people have raised concerns about the problem. We recently consulted on renewing the Public Space Protection Order, which among other things prohibits cycling in the pedestrian area, and responders supported it.
“There’s no need to cycle in the pedestrian area – Bethlehem Street and Osborne Street are literally a few metres away and run parallel to it. Enforcement officers routinely patrol the town centre and there are signs to make it clear that cycling is banned. Those who choose not to pay the £100 fixed penalty notice, find themselves facing a larger bill in court.”
Around 1,000 fines have been handed out under the Public Spaces Protection Order in Grimsby and the scheme has now been extended until 2025.
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