Researchers say overwhelming majority of unlawful bicyclists are behaving rationally and not recklessly.A Dublin City Council councillor has commended council officials for a video highlighting cyclists breaking red lights, and that it was a lovely way to do it as an online campaign. Despite red light running by people cycling being one of the most common complaints, regularly repeated in the media and raised on social media regardless of what unrelated cycling issue is being discussed, the councillor claimed that red light running by cyclists was otherwise not being documented.Red light camera data from Blackhall Place in Dublin found that a larger volume of motorists run red lights than cyclists. The trial red light camera, which has not been operating for years, was put on the street because motorists kept running red lights and driving into trams, causing injuries, delays and millions of euros worth of damage. Cllr Noelle Brown (Social Democrats) raised the issue as an aside when councillors were discussing the barriers on Capel Street and Parrennell Street yesterday at the local South East Area committee meeting. Cllr Brown said: I just want to commend Dublin City Council. I noticed on Facebook today that they had footage of cyclists behaviour, and Im a cyclist myself, but we do break red lights all the time.But it was a really interesting piece of footage very, very strong showing exactly what is going on with cyclists and the level of lights that are being broken, and it was a lovely way to do it as an online campaign, she said. Cllr Brown said: I would encourage more of that as I think its not being documented enough for people to realise, unless youre out there on a bike or driving, you really see the level of [how cyclists] just dont pay attention to red lights; they just go through them.She added: It was a really lovely thing to see, thank you.IrishCycle.com could not find any recent video which corresponded to this description posted by the council on Facebook or Instagram. But a year ago, a video on red light running was released as part of a series of behaviour videos. Facebook can sometimes show users older video reels without showing any clear date. The video, while including mainly footage of cyclists, mentions all road users.When IrishCycle.com recently reported on the recorded Garda fines for cyclists, including red lights as the main infraction, some readers commented that it lacked context. One pointed to a 2017 paper published in The Journal of Transport and Land Use, where researchers from the University of Colorado Denver and the University of NebraskaLincoln point out that the overwhelming majority of unlawful bicyclists are behaving rationally and not recklessly.In their paper which is free to access the researchers said: Nearly everyone has jaywalked, rolled through a stop sign, or driven a few miles per hour over the speed limit, but most such offences face no legal consequences. Society also tends to see these relatively minor infractions that almost all people make though they are unmistakably illegal as normal and even rational.This has since been coined as motonormativity, an unconscious cognitive bias developed because motoring is the norm. It includes people often being more forgiving of motorist infractions and less forgiving of jaywalking-like infractions by people cycling. In their conclusions, the US researchers wrote: When it comes to rule-breaking bicyclists, one popular opinion is that if bicyclists want to be taken seriously as road users, they need to obey the rules of the road like everyone else. Our survey results and the literature review both suggest that drivers break the rules of the road just as much, if not more, than bicyclists.The other common argument is that cities need to step up bicycle law enforcement to improve safety. While bicyclists are certainly not immune from causing harm, the literature suggests lower societal costs and safety risks associated with lawbreaking bicycling as compared to lawbreaking driving. Drivers speed, roll through stop signs, park in bike lanes, and run lights that have just turned red while still considering themselves to be law-abiding citizens, the researchers said. The researchers Wesley E. Marshall, Daniel Piatkowski, and Aaron Johnson said: Despite research showing a causal link between such driving behaviours and increased crash rates, injuries, and fatalities, society continues to see these behaviours as rational decisions within our transportation system, other than in the relative minority of places that take Vision Zero as more than a buzzword.They added: Our results suggest that bicyclists seem to be making the same rational choices. Curbing patently reckless bicycling behaviour in our transportation system would certainly be a good thing; however, our results suggest that the overwhelming majority of unlawful bicyclists are behaving rationally and not recklessly.The text posted with the councils video said: Driving, Cycling or Walking around Dublin? Dont forget to Be Sound! Cycle Lane Diaries Chapter 3: The Light Breaker. Red light? They barely blink. But what they dont see: the person crossing, the child on a bike, the damage that cant be undone. Signals exist for a reason. Lets not treat them like suggestions. Obey the lights. Be smart. Be sound.The council also re-posted another video in the series recently, but that was about lane hogging, including people walking and driving in cycle lanes.ALSO READ:Red light cameras left idle for a decade, draft plan left unfinished for 8 months but Govt says reducing road deaths absolute priority73% jump in on-the-spot fines for people cycling in 2025; running red lights remains main offenceWhy cyclists should stop at red lights