IT'S 10am, and although there are only a few shoppers browsing through Old Christchurch Road, the pedestrian precinct is already littered with bicycles, chained to gates, bins and trees as their owners shop or work.

As the street starts to get busy, a cyclist whizzes down the centre of the precinct from the direction of Horseshoe Common, with shoppers and children crossing the paved area in his path.

When challenged about whether he knows what he's doing is illegal, he yells, "Sorry, I haven't got time," and speeds past the "no Cycling" signs towards the Square.

Cycling through a pedestrian area may not seem like the most heinous crime, but earlier this week, an 85-year-old woman was knocked over by a cyclist and suffered a cut to her head in the pedestrian area of Old Christchurch Road.

A day later, news of the incident has already reached Roger Kaye, who works on Old Christchurch Road.

"It's dangerous cycling on the pavement, because something can happen like what happened yesterday," he says. "At night, cyclists sometimes zoom around without lights on. That's even more dangerous, because the cyclists themselves can get killed.

"The police don't seem to be interested any more, they're more interested in giving speeding tickets."

According to a police spokesman, police community support officers have an ongoing duty to stop people cycling in a pedestrian area, or without their lights on at night, and they can issue a £60 on-the-spot fine.

"If someone says sorry, gets off the bike and says they won't do it again, there probably won't be any further action," he says.

"If they're riding particularly dangerously or they are abusive, or if the officers are aware they have been warned before and haven't heeded the advice, they have the discretion to fine them instantly."

But there aren't any PCSOs on Old Christchurch Road as a second cyclist speeds through, fifteen minutes after the first.

He, too, declines to comment as he rushes past.

Five cyclists have been more considerate in that time, however, and have dismounted to walk through the pedestrian zone.

Frederick Gregory, 49, from Boscombe, walking with his bike, says he goes along with the cycling restriction when the area is busy, although he does occasionally ride through at night if the streets are empty.

"I agree with the ban on cycling here, because obviously people get injured," he says.

"It's just some people go past too fast."

And South Korean student Hee Geok Jeong, 25, says he always walks through the pedestrian areas. "Most Koreans ride bicycles," he says. "Everybody knows about the law."

Parkstone mum Ros Cox is on foot with her daughter Jemma, 4. She says her attitude has changed with having a child.

"I used to cycle a lot, and I suppose sometimes you think it's easier to keep going rather than get off your bike," she says.

"But it's a pedestrian area, and people shouldn't be doing it."

Her friend Janet Mason, who is visiting the area, certainly knows the dangers if cyclists aren't careful. "A friend of mine was knocked over by a cyclist," she says.

"She couldn't see him coming and he knocked her over and she landed on her head. She lost her sense of taste and smell."