Conference hears plan to crack down on speeding cyclists

[skull]

I average 12kph on paths. And I ride a samll ungeared unicycle!

Talking about unicycles, there was a unicycle team at the mont 24hr

[TTar]

That conference took place almost a month ago -- the reporter's story must have been delivered by snail mail.

I mean, literally by a snail.

[g-boaf]

Man, I don't want to live in this country anymore.

Scruby and his rag-tag bunch of pedestrian cohorts and their friends who also seem to troll here just make me feel ashamed to live in this country. This may well be an April fools prank, but already, pedestrians do believe that they can meander about all over the place and deliberately block the paths of others, and they have the right to do it.

Tried staying under 10 myself the other day, almost fell off trying to stay upright and kept getting overtaken by joggers.

Well, now is the time to fire up your fax machine, get your self a name "Concerned Cyclists Council of Australia" and start spamming the halls of power. And start pushing for pedestrians to have a 5km speed limit applied to them.

Tried staying under 10 myself the other day, almost fell off trying to stay upright and kept getting overtaken by joggers.

I bet a pedestrian troll will suggest that you should learn to ride better...

[jasonc]

That conference took place almost a month ago -- the reporter's story must have been delivered by snail mail.

I mean, literally by a snail.

nah - just by a cyclist doing the "speed limit"

[zero]

Hah, they waited a month to publish the screwby article on April fools day.

[Ross]

Think about it...how would the cops with speed cameras identify any cyclists, not like we have rego plates. It's just a wind-up, an April Fools joke.

[il padrone]

Shared trail riding in South Korea. I wonder how Scruby would cope with this??

[birdbrain]

CYCLISTS would be fined for exceeding 10km/h speed limits on shared pathways under a plan to crack down on unsafe riding practices.

It's not a shared pathway, in fact there is no cycling lane per se but Southbank has a 10k speed limit for cyclists. I don't have a problem with that even though I know I exceed it sometimes by a few k's. I have seen some riders flying along Southbank at 25k's + with no regard for the peds so if they get a fine so be it.

As for shared pathways in general 10k's is ridiculous. I'd like to see a plan to crack down on dogs not on leads, dogs on extendable leads and peds walking 2 or 3 abreast or listening to iPods preventing you from passing.

[william]

say for a second it is a real article. police are only authorised to use radar guns on roads. not shared paths.

In the South Bank shopping area along the Yarra there have been instances where police have used radar to stop speeding cyclists. It is signed with 10KPH limits but the lunchtime joggers that clog the shared paths run at 15-18KPH without conviction.
Seems fair?

[il padrone]

I rode along Southbank at about 5pm on Saturday. It was fairly clogged with pedestrians so we rode slowly along at 10-12kmh. At other times when there are fewer pedestrians (like when we rode it at 10am) a speed of 15-20kmh is much more reasonable and quite safe.

Road speed limits are never set at the bottom-end of what might be reasonable (like a busy road during a hail-storm), so I would say a 20kmh speed would be about right for any limit, if it could ever be enforceable. A 10kmh 'speed limit' is quite frankly loopy

About time the authorites gave us some credit for being able to judge safe cycling behaviour.

About time some cyclists showed some understanding of safe, considerate cycling behaviour.

[TTar]

In the South Bank shopping area along the Yarra there have been instances where police have used radar to stop speeding cyclists. It is signed with 10KPH limits but the lunchtime joggers that clog the shared paths run at 15-18KPH without conviction.

If you want to make the cops' heads explode, jump off your bike and carry it CX style while jogging above 10kph.

It'd make a great Strava event.

[misterhorsey]

Not being a local but been in Sydney last week and walked over the the bridge every day during the week. Yes, I did see rangers on the bridge, but not once did I see them try to slow down any cyclist. Also saw police on bicycle's riding across the bridge turning around at the city end and heading back the other way. They took no notice of any of the cyclist who over took them at a speed that had to be more then the 10 kph. The question i would ask is why they do not mark lanes on the bridge, one going each way for cyclist, yes they would have to enforce it to start with so people learn what to do. At the moment it is like dodgen cars at a show with walkers and cyclist all mixed together going every which way.

Actually have this low level of chaos, with walkers and cyclists going every which way can be the best outcome for the peds. Cyclists are forced to go slower than they would if they had 'dedicated' painted bike lane (which peds inevitably walk all over anyway).

Southbank is a good example. The area near South wharf with painted bike lanes tend to more of a hazard for peds with cyclists going along quite quickly. However, the section east of Crown, where its every which way, everything grinds to a painful paralysis and I think the peds are better off with no markings.

Here's some interesting related theory:

http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/12.12/traffic.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Here's every which way (but loose): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hFFr91atHqE" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[il padrone]

Chaos theory in action

[London Boy]

CYCLISTS would be fined for exceeding 10km/h speed limits on shared pathways under a plan to crack down on unsafe riding practices.

It's not a shared pathway, in fact there is no cycling lane per se but Southbank has a 10k speed limit for cyclists. I don't have a problem with that even though I know I exceed it sometimes by a few k's. I have seen some riders flying along Southbank at 25k's + with no regard for the peds so if they get a fine so be it.

As for shared pathways in general 10k's is ridiculous. I'd like to see a plan to crack down on dogs not on leads, dogs on extendable leads and peds walking 2 or 3 abreast or listening to iPods preventing you from passing.

Look, there's even a 10 kmh limit on the Gateway Bridge. Just look for the signs, they're up on little plates. Have you ever tried to ride at 10 kmh going down? Not sure how long your brakes would last, but possibly not all the way to the end...

What I do see, on most divided shared paths, is pedestrians who insist on walking on the dedicated cycle lanes. And we, cyclists, still have to give way. Ho hum.

[misterhorsey]

Chaos theory in action

Ha. I see your Arc il padrone, and raise you a Hanoi:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NnUijTgk9rE" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

It' noisy, its chaotic. It does function however.

[il padrone]

Haha! Love how those pedestrians just walk calmly and sedately across the road as the motos ride between them - right across the middle of the intersection

I'm sure someone just sat down to have a fag in the middle of that

I'll have to post it up for you - luv it. The classic case of critical mass, just needs lots more pushbikes and less motos.

[scotto]

10km/h ? I run faster then that.

Sent from my HTC Desire using Tapatalk 2

I average 12kph on paths. And I ride a samll ungeared unicycle!

But don't take Harald Scruby seriously. Few other people do.

i googled "harold scruby wiki" to see more about this nutjob. as a 4x4 bullbar owner ive come across him before

hilarious what comes up

[misterhorsey]

Haha! Love how those pedestrians just walk calmly and sedately across the road as the motos ride between them - right across the middle of the intersection

I'm sure someone just sat down to have a fag in the middle of that

I'll have to post it up for you - luv it. The classic case of critical mass, just needs lots more pushbikes and less motos.

Thanks for that. I confused this forum with facebook, which automatically uploads the preview of the youtube vid.

On my brief visit to vietnam, you soon follow the locals and realise the only way to safely cross these kinds of intersections is to walk slowly and constantly through the traffic and allow all the scooters and cars to weave around you. Its an amazing experience and it does actually work. Although I'm sure accidents happen and a few people get squashed every now and then. But whether its less or more (on a per capita basis) than here with our buttons that we need to press to cross, and motorists who drive on local streets like its the freeway. Well, we'd probably have to go to Mr Scruby to get the stats........

[zero]

On my brief visit to vietnam, you soon follow the locals and realise the only way to safely cross these kinds of intersections is to walk slowly and constantly through the traffic and allow all the scooters and cars to weave around you. Its an amazing experience and it does actually work. Although I'm sure accidents happen and a few people get squashed every now and then. But whether its less or more (on a per capita basis) than here with our buttons that we need to press to cross, and motorists who drive on local streets like its the freeway. Well, we'd probably have to go to Mr Scruby to get the stats........

The fatality rate in vietnam is at least 3x ours. However that intersection is probably not a contributor. You can have really messy intersections, so long as the overall treatment is such that it prevents motorists from approaching at speed. Almost the entire danger in an intersection is due to motorists momentum. The rate of people crossing that intersection is also considerably greater than Australian authorities can manage. Motorcycles are a great improver in people/hr in intersections - most road traffic authorities in australia don't even count or care about anything other than vehicle movements per hour, and they see them entirely in terms of 3.5m lane occupation.

[misterhorsey]

On my brief visit to vietnam, you soon follow the locals and realise the only way to safely cross these kinds of intersections is to walk slowly and constantly through the traffic and allow all the scooters and cars to weave around you. Its an amazing experience and it does actually work. Although I'm sure accidents happen and a few people get squashed every now and then. But whether its less or more (on a per capita basis) than here with our buttons that we need to press to cross, and motorists who drive on local streets like its the freeway. Well, we'd probably have to go to Mr Scruby to get the stats........

The fatality rate in vietnam is at least 3x ours. However that intersection is probably not a contributor. You can have really messy intersections, so long as the overall treatment is such that it prevents motorists from approaching at speed. Almost the entire danger in an intersection is due to motorists momentum. The rate of people crossing that intersection is also considerably greater than Australian authorities can manage. Motorcycles are a great improver in people/hr in intersections - most road traffic authorities in australia don't even count or care about anything other than vehicle movements per hour, and they see them entirely in terms of 3.5m lane occupation.

Yeah, i wouldn't propose winding back laws on seat belts, alcohol limits etc etc so that Australia could 'enjoy' Vietnam's fatality rates. I agree with you that modern traffic engineering seems obsessed with Vehicle movements per hour, to the detriment of other road users and the community frankly.

I recently read this book:
http://www.bookdepository.co.uk/Traffic ... 0141027395" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
here's his blog:
http://www.howwedrive.com/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

which deconstructs traffic/motoring from a sociological, economic and traffic engineering perspective. Interesting reading.