A PERTH man has been fined $400 for talking on his mobile phone while riding a bike.
The obscure case even caused the presiding magistrate to leave the courtroom to confirm that it was in fact against the law to be on the phone while cycling.
Patrick Joseph Byrne, 32, from Waikiki, failed to appear at Perth Magistrates’ Court on Friday to face charges of using a mobile phone while driving a vehicle, not wearing a bike helmet and possession of heroin.
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READ NOWPolice prosecutor Jason Liddelow said Byrne was riding his bike without a helmet when he was pulled over by police in Beckenham about 6.40pm on December 3.
“At the same time he was riding with one hand and using his mobile phone,” Sgt Liddelow said.
A search of Byrne found 0.1 gram of heroin. However, it was the issue of whether a bicycle was a vehicle under the Traffic Code that concerned Magistrate Richard Bayly.
After retiring to his chambers to consult the Code and Road Traffic Administration Act, Mr Bayly said the rule banning being on the phone while on the road applied to any powered transport with tracks wheels or pedals.
Mr Byrne was fined $50 for not wearing a bike helmet and $500 for the heroin.
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