Chessbored

I know riding on the pavement has been covered in the Advocacy and Safety section but laws and societal norms differ from country to country. I'm interested in people's views on riding on the pavement.

I ride almost entirely on the country lanes, cycle network paths and cycle routes through parks and parkland. I also ride on the road at the beginning and end of rides to access my house, or on the odd trip into town for groceries, etc. There are a couple of main roads in my area which are just too risky - I wouldn't want to drive a car down them let alone put myself in the middle of the action on my 23lb folder, so I either take a side street and head in my direction of travel on a road running parallel, or nip down the pavement if it is clear. There are a couple of extremely hectic and chaotic roads where it is not unusual to see cars driving down the pavement, making illegal U-turns, double parking, ignoring bus lanes, reversing into one way streets. You name it, if it's stupid and dangerous then it's happening here. (For those in the know I'm talking about Melton Rd in Leicester - a place where red traffic lights are seen as optional or decorative). My actions are illegal but the police don't mind in the slightest - even had a conversation with one of them about my bike recently when I passed on the pavement. I never go quickly, no more than 7mph and ring my bell to alert people of my presence. Incidentally there are a great many cyclists in the area and virtually none use the road, I am unusual in mostly being law abiding. Stand outside the police station and you'll see 20 an hour ride past on the pavement.

Back to me, in total probably 5 - 10% of my cycling time is spent on the pavement but the fact is that I do it and technically I am breaking the law. Am I wrong? Is the law inflexible?

What say you?