Police target reckless cyclists with safety campaign

Police in Bavaria are using safety campaigns and conversations to address dangerous behaviour by fast cyclists, BR reported. The measures come as authorities say they have limited options for enforcing speed rules on cycle routes.

In the Perlacher Forst forest south of Munich, the Linienstraße paved road between Munich and the municipality of Oberhaching has become a popular starting point for road cyclists. The route is officially limited to 30 kilometres per hour, but many cyclists either do not know the limit or travel significantly faster.

Tim Wiedecke of the responsible police station, who organised a road-safety campaign day there, said many cyclists also ignored the “right before left” rule. Although the straight, paved road appeared to have priority, drivers and cyclists emerging from a small road on the right had right of way.

The resulting dangerous situations have prompted complaints from residents who struggle to leave their driveways, as well as from pedestrians and slower cyclists. An 84-year-old woman said some road cyclists were so inconsiderate that she no longer felt safe entering the forest on many days. A young rollerblader also described some of them as increasingly aggressive “real road bullies”.

Residents have called for a speed camera for bicycles, but Wiedecke said this was not yet possible because neither approved measuring equipment nor the necessary technical assessments were available. The police therefore focused on discussions and persuasion during the campaign day.

Police have reported similar risks on popular routes including the Lake Constance cycle path and the Forggensee cycle path in the Ostallgäu region. Munich police also pointed to the route along the Isar, where road cyclists meet recreational cyclists and families.

On the popular Danube cycle path, a cyclist caused a collision near Weichering, close to Ingolstadt, on Sunday. An older woman riding a pedelec fell in the crash, while the cyclist who caused it left the scene.

Not all police regions have recorded a concentration of accidents involving fast cyclists. The police headquarters in northern Swabia, based in Augsburg, said speed had been recorded as the cause in only a small number of accidents. Police in southern Upper Bavaria also said they knew of no hotspots like the Perlacher Forst.

However, cycling tours in the mountains have become one source of accidents. In these cases, road cyclists are usually the victims of excessive speed themselves.

The number of bicycle accidents in Bavaria remained broadly stable in 2025. There were 19,800 accidents, compared with 19,264 in 2024. The number of cyclists killed fell to 82 from 94 the previous year. In the first half of 2026, authorities recorded 9,493 bicycle accidents and 40 cyclist deaths, according to the Interior Ministry, roughly the same level as the previous year.

According to the Federal Statistical Office, older cyclists are particularly at risk. Last year, 61.5 percent of cyclists killed in road traffic were aged 65 or older.