Summary of Australian Road Rules for Cyclists

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Re: Summary of Australian Road Rules for Cyclists

Postby fat and old » Fri Jul 08, 2016 8:35 am

il padrone wrote: like this notorious one on Southbank, Melbourne.

Image

All right, I built that!!! 8) :lol:

The problem with that crossing is twofold

1. The natural flow of the Southbank path actually puts you on the cycle crossing section.

2. The painted section cries out "correct place to cross".

I've been lobbying COM to have the ped section painted or at least criscrossed with hatching to highlite it's existence for years now. :?

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Re: Summary of Australian Road Rules for Cyclists

Postby ianganderton » Fri Jul 08, 2016 10:05 am

I have a question about using and not using bike lanes in the Sydney CBD

I'm an occasional rider in the CBD coming in from the eastern suburbs. It often happens that I find myself suddenly on the left hand lane of a road I've turned into and realise there is a bike lane over on the right across a lane of on coming traffic.

Some times the entry to bike lanes don't appear to be accessible when turning right as they are across the flow of traffic.

What is the sketch both legally and practically plus does anyone have any experience with police enforcement since the fines increased and police went all revenue generating :/
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find_bruce
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Re: Summary of Australian Road Rules for Cyclists

Postby find_bruce » Fri Jul 08, 2016 11:04 am

What makes you think it is a bike lane ? A bicycle lane is defined in NSW Road Rule 153 as beginning at a bicycle lane sign applying to the lane, or a road marking comprising both a white bicycle symbol and the word lane painted in white. This is the bicycle lane sign
Image

As far as I am aware, none of the "cycleways" in the Sydney CBD are bicycle lanes in that they do not have signs or markings with the bicycle symbol & the word "lane". To the extent that they have signs and /or road markings, they have the bicycle symbol and the word only - this makes them a bicycle path as defined in NSW Road Rule 239.

The offence under NSW Road Rule 247 is
The rider of a bicycle riding on a length of road with a bicycle lane designed for bicycles travelling in the same direction as the rider must ride in the bicycle lane unless it is impracticable to do so.

Note. Rule 153 defines a bicycle lane and deals with the use of bicycle lanes by other vehicles.
Two things (1) it must be a lane as defined in rule 153, which a path as defined in rule 247 is not. (2) it would appear to me that you are obliged to keep to the left of the centre line unless there is a place in which it is both safe and legal for a cyclist to cross.

The distinction between a bicycle lane and a bicycle path is one of importance, not just for use by bicycles, but by motor vehicles. A motor vehicle can drive in a bicycle lane for up to 50m & can stop or park in the bicycle lane if otherwise permitted. It is not permitted to drive on or park on a bicycle path.

Usual disclaimer applies: If you want legal advice, go to a lawyer. Don't rely on advice from some semi-anonymous poster on the interwebs.

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Re: Summary of Australian Road Rules for Cyclists

Postby il padrone » Fri Jul 08, 2016 11:47 am

Yeah, signage determines whether it is a legal bike lane, not general appearance, nor the opinion of some motorist (even be he a NSW Police officer).

Also practicability is important. It is a key part of the road law. You had already turned onto the road to travel along it, and discovered a bike lane on the other side of the (busy) road. By any reasonable interpretation, this may make its use impracticable for you.
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Re: Summary of Australian Road Rules for Cyclists

Postby All Buns Glazing » Thu May 25, 2017 1:05 am

Update on WA's cycling laws, permitting bicycles to travel on all footpaths. I looked over the thread, don't think it's here yet.

Shared paths and footpaths
There are some special rules for the use of shared paths and footpaths in WA.
Shared paths and footpaths are paths that are designated for shared use by cyclists and pedestrians.

These rules include:
* All cyclists, regardless of their age, may ride on any footpath unless a ‘no bicycles sign’ has been erected.
* Riders must keep left on shared paths and footpaths unless overtaking.
* Riders must give way to pedestrians at all times (pedestrians include people walking, using motorised and nonmotorised wheelchairs, and people on rollerblades and skates).
* At shared path intersections, you must signal your intention to turn and give way to motor vehicles entering or exiting an intersecting road.
* Riders must travel in single file on all paths, though they can travel two abreast on a road.
* Riders must not ride carelessly or recklessly. Riding recklessly includes riding at a speed that places other riders and pedestrians at risk.
* Animals must not be tied to a moving bike.
* Riders 16 years of age and over are permitted to ride a compliant powerassisted pedal cycle (PAPC) on shared paths with the power engaged

Cite: http://www.transport.wa.gov.au/mediaFil ... ooklet.pdf

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Re: Summary of Australian Road Rules for Cyclists

Postby zebee » Thu May 25, 2017 8:06 pm

Something I have wondered.

What exactly does "give way to pedestrians" mean?

Wait for them to get out of the way? Is ringing a bell to get them to move against this law?

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Re: Summary of Australian Road Rules for Cyclists

Postby find_bruce » Thu May 25, 2017 8:21 pm

Give way = slow down & if necessary stop to avoid a collision. Road rule 224 prohibits using a bell unless it is necessary "to warn other road users or animals of the approach or position of the vehicle"

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Re: Summary of Australian Road Rules for Cyclists

Postby ironhanglider » Thu May 25, 2017 10:20 pm

Has anyone noticed that right hand (usually front) brakes are virtually unusable in WA? The 'stopping' signal is required to be used when braking. I have no doubt that this rule is universally ignored by WA cyclists, particularly when a car fails to give way.

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Re: Summary of Australian Road Rules for Cyclists

Postby AdelaidePeter » Thu Jun 08, 2017 3:21 pm

Hi all. My first post, and I thought I'd dive in:
find_bruce wrote:Give way = slow down & if necessary stop to avoid a collision. Road rule 224 prohibits using a bell unless it is necessary "to warn other road users or animals of the approach or position of the vehicle"
I don't think it prohibits ringing to let pedestrians know you're coming. Furthermore, the WA Safety Commission explicitly encourages it: https://www.rsc.wa.gov.au/Education-Pro ... s/Cyclists "Cyclists should use their bell to alert pedestrians/mobility scooter operators/motorised wheelchair users that a bicycle is approaching".

So in answer to the question above that, it's not against the law to ring to request them to get out of the way. But they're not obliged to get out of the way, so if they don't, the onus is on the cyclist to give way. (But 99% of pedestrians will happily move over).

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Re: Summary of Australian Road Rules for Cyclists

Postby flywheels » Sat Nov 18, 2017 9:10 am

Thank you for this excellent thread. Can there be an updated version please? The 1st post, for example has SA rules before 2015 –when bikes became allowed on footpaths (Yayyyy....)

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Re: Summary of Australian Road Rules for Cyclists

Postby find_bruce » Thu Nov 23, 2017 2:37 pm

I have updated the links & changed to reflect WA & SA allow riding on footpaths. Any I have missed, just let me know

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Re: Summary of Australian Road Rules for Cyclists

Postby Scott_C » Thu Nov 23, 2017 3:55 pm

find_bruce wrote:Can I pass cars on their left?
Yes, as long as you do not do so when a vehicle is turning left and indicating left. (rule 141(2) WA reg 122(4)).
A very slight correction is that in WA this rule is effectively worded "turning left OR indicating left" rather than AND, which implies that it is illegal for cyclists in WA to ride past or overtake to the left of any car indicating left even if it is stationary in traffic. It should be noted that this makes filter lanes that lead to bicycle storage boxes largely illegal to use as intended in WA if any of the vehicles are turning left.

The OR also makes it a requirement that WA cyclists do not overtake or pass to the left of vehicles turning left even if they aren't indicating. Yay for a legal requirement to be psychic.

http://www.austlii.edu.au/cgi-bin/viewd ... /s122.html

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Re: Summary of Australian Road Rules for Cyclists

Postby Cyclophiliac » Thu Nov 23, 2017 5:38 pm

Scott_C wrote:
find_bruce wrote:Can I pass cars on their left?
Yes, as long as you do not do so when a vehicle is turning left and indicating left. (rule 141(2) WA reg 122(4)).
A very slight correction is that in WA this rule is effectively worded "turning left OR indicating left" rather than AND, which implies that it is illegal for cyclists in WA to ride past or overtake to the left of any car indicating left even if it is stationary in traffic. It should be noted that this makes filter lanes that lead to bicycle storage boxes largely illegal to use as intended in WA if any of the vehicles are turning left.

The OR also makes it a requirement that WA cyclists do not overtake or pass to the left of vehicles turning left even if they aren't indicating. Yay for a legal requirement to be psychic.

http://www.austlii.edu.au/cgi-bin/viewd ... /s122.html
In Victoria that rule is basically the same, but with 'and' instead of 'or', another reason I'm glad I moved to (Sydney and then) Melbourne after spending my first 30 years in WA (the other reason was the better weather in Melbourne).
Amazing how much difference 1 word can make to a road rule.

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Re: Summary of Australian Road Rules for Cyclists

Postby fishwop » Tue Nov 28, 2017 10:24 am

find_bruce wrote: You must sit astride the seat facing forwards (rule 245 WA reg 211)
Does this mean your bum must remain in the saddle at all times? (ie You must sit...) The reason I ask is that my son is a (NSW) police officer who just completed the training course for police cyclists, and they certainly had him up out of the saddle very frequently.

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Re: Summary of Australian Road Rules for Cyclists

Postby find_bruce » Tue Nov 28, 2017 12:54 pm

fishwop wrote:
find_bruce wrote: You must sit astride the seat facing forwards (rule 245 WA reg 211)
Does this mean your bum must remain in the saddle at all times? (ie You must sit...) The reason I ask is that my son is a (NSW) police officer who just completed the training course for police cyclists, and they certainly had him up out of the saddle very frequently.
So far as I am aware, no person in the history of this road rule has ever been charged for riding out of the saddle. In my view it would be a perverse interpretation of a road rule intended to cover the variations on dinking - ie where the passenger sits on the saddle while the rider stands on the pedals. In any event the remote possibility was eliminated in 2016 by amending the road rule to say that the person mus "be astride the rider’s seat facing forwards"

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Re: Summary of Australian Road Rules for Cyclists

Postby zebee » Thu Nov 30, 2017 8:16 am

find_bruce wrote: In any event the remote possibility was eliminated in 2016 by amending the road rule to say that the person mus "be astride the rider’s seat facing forwards"
Damn! I can't pedal my recumbent while sitting astride. I can bestride it, but only temporarily while getting settled to ride it aforward. (And slightly a-upward, the bottom bracket being a fraction above the seat)

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Re: Summary of Australian Road Rules for Cyclists

Postby find_bruce » Thu Nov 30, 2017 9:35 am

zebee wrote:Damn! I can't pedal my recumbent while sitting astride. I can bestride it, but only temporarily while getting settled to ride it aforward. (And slightly a-upward, the bottom bracket being a fraction above the seat)
Can you ride it standing on the pedals, with one hand on the handlebars, facing forward? If so please post the video :D

Forgive my laziness in not setting out the full rule 245 as in force in NSW (I haven't checked if other states have followed this change)
The rider of a bicycle must:
(a) be astride the rider’s seat facing forwards (except if the bicycle is not built to be ridden astride), and
(b) ride with at least 1 hand on the handlebars, and
(c) if the bicycle is equipped with a seat—not ride the bicycle seated in any other position on the bicycle.
It seems to me that recumbents are not built to be ridden astride

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Re: Summary of Australian Road Rules for Cyclists

Postby Cheesewheel » Tue Jan 09, 2018 9:19 pm

http://www.goldcoastbulletin.com.au/new ... 99dc4527c6

Local rag published this overview of qld bicycle law .... pretty sure more than one MM reader would have been vigorously swiping their device to find the comments section ...

Edit ... original story doesn't have comments disabled :roll:
http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/quee ... 99dc4527c6
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Re: Summary of Australian Road Rules for Cyclists

Postby AUbicycles » Wed Feb 28, 2018 9:14 am

Admin note - a Post was removed as it was the wrong section and I have asked the poster to consider the best approach for asking his question if he would like a fair reponse. Thank you for the report.
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W.A. - Riding over pedestrian crossings

Postby commute » Fri Apr 06, 2018 2:59 pm

Just wanted to check that I am interpreting the wording correctly regarding pedestrian crossings.
The rider of a bicycle shall not ride across a carriageway, or part of a carriageway, on a children’s crossing, marked foot crossing or pedestrian crossing, unless that crossing displays a bicycle crossing lights and those lights are green. $50 infringement.
https://www.rsc.wa.gov.au/Rules-Penalti ... e/Cyclists

see also r 214 in this
https://www.slp.wa.gov.au/statutes/regs ... e+2000.pdf

My understanding is that if I am riding along on a footpath that crosses a road with a marked pedestrian crossing, that I have to dismount to cross the road?

Image below shows an example of what I am referring to. Coloured lines represent the cyclists route.
Orange is a signed PSP, with an End of path sign where the orange ends.
Blue is a traffic light controlled pedestrian crossing (has no bike crossing symbol, just the pedestrian symbol)
Red is the cross walk with no bike related sign posts on the cross walk.
Green is unsigned so I assume just a footpath rather than a PSP.

Do I legally have to dismount for the blue and red sections?

Image

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Re: W.A. - Riding over pedestrian crossings

Postby Scott_C » Fri Apr 06, 2018 3:16 pm

commute wrote:Just wanted to check that I am interpreting the wording correctly regarding pedestrian crossings.
Do I legally have to dismount for the blue and red sections?
Yes, in WA legally you need to dismount for the pedestrian crossing (zebra crossing) and for the across road section between the 2 dashed lines at the traffic lights (a marked foot crossing).

You could ride the bike for the blue section within the traffic island.

The rules in other states vary.

Edit: As the zebra crossing is across a slip lane with a give way line vehicles on the slip lane already have to give way to pedestrians crossing at this point even if the zebra crossing wasn't here (WA Road Rule 52(3)). The only thing the zebra crossing changes is it makes it illegal for cyclists to ride across. The Government spent money painting lines that only have the effect of inconveniencing cyclists and are only provided because drivers can't be counted on to give way as required by law.

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Re: W.A. - Riding over pedestrian crossings

Postby commute » Fri Apr 06, 2018 4:20 pm

Scott_C wrote: The Government spent money painting lines that only have the effect of inconveniencing cyclists and are only provided because drivers can't be counted on to give way as required by law.
I thought as much. :cry:

I watched with dismay as they "upgraded" the intersections in to the Burswood money extraction facility Crown Casino. Each of the three circled areas were made worse for cyclists with this upgrade. 2 x cross walks which are designed such that drivers are only ever looking west for oncoming cars, plus 1 more intersection where there used to be a raised pavement to slow cars down and is now a sharp corner with slippery giveway paint on the PSP.
I have had so many near misses with cars when I am crossing from east to west on those cross walks. Whoever designed them must have got their engineering degree from a weetbix box!

I wonder what happens if I forget to dismount and then get hit by a car. Am I in the wrong still?

Guess I better get in the habbit of jumping off. :cry:

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Re: W.A. - Riding over pedestrian crossings

Postby Scott_C » Fri Apr 06, 2018 6:19 pm

commute wrote: I watched with dismay as they "upgraded" the intersections in to the Burswood money extraction facility Crown Casino. Each of the three circled areas were made worse for cyclists with this upgrade. 2 x cross walks which are designed such that drivers are only ever looking west for oncoming cars, plus 1 more intersection where there used to be a raised pavement to slow cars down and is now a sharp corner with slippery giveway paint on the PSP.
I have had so many near misses with cars when I am crossing from east to west on those cross walks. Whoever designed them must have got their engineering degree from a weetbix box!

I wonder what happens if I forget to dismount and then get hit by a car. Am I in the wrong still?
You are still in the wrong but the driver would also be in the wrong if there is a collision as it is evident that they broke WA Road Rule 62(1) which requires drivers to approach pedestrian crossings at a speed that allows them to stop safely before the crossing.

The upgrade works through this area were done by MainRoads as part of the Perth Stadium transport infrastructure work. The MainRoads policy on providing pedestrian crossing markings on slip-lanes can be found online here (pdf) and includes a feedback sheet that can be faxed back to MainRoads with comments on the policy (the policy hasn't been updated in 16 years, hence the use of faxes). As the policy stands it makes no differentiation between shared paths and footpaths and doesn't consider the impact on cyclists at all.

I encourage you to provide feedback about how the implementation of the policy has affected you and decreased the utility and safety of your riding and that the policy should have exceptions for shared paths with high cyclist usage. If you don't have access to a fax (and I have no idea if the numbers they provide are still good) you can send the feedback in via their website or call centre.

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Re: W.A. - Riding over pedestrian crossings

Postby commute » Sun Apr 08, 2018 4:08 pm

Given that being allowed to legally ride on footpaths is a recent change to the law in W.A. I suspect that there has not been much consideration for what happens at pedestrian crossings.

I don't know if the law should be changed to allow cyclists to ride across pedestrian crossings or not. I can see allowing it causing issues with drivers not being able to see a fast moving cyclist in time to give way.

I think a better solution would be to design the intersection such that the PSP is continuous.

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Re: W.A. - Riding over pedestrian crossings

Postby AdelaidePeter » Sun Apr 08, 2018 10:34 pm

commute wrote:Given that being allowed to legally ride on footpaths is a recent change to the law in W.A. I suspect that there has not been much consideration for what happens at pedestrian crossings.

I don't know if the law should be changed to allow cyclists to ride across pedestrian crossings or not.
SA allowed riding on crossings about 18 months after we allowed footpath cycling, and I think it is a good thing. In retrospect, it was quite inconsistent to allow cycling on footpaths but not crossings. So hopefully WA will bring it in soon.
commute wrote: I can see allowing it causing issues with drivers not being able to see a fast moving cyclist in time to give way.
I don't think that's much different from the fact that bikes on footpaths might be an issue for cars coming out of driveways. In both cases, the cyclist should go at a slow speed (and I wouldn't really object if some sort of speed limit was introduced).

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