I was on the radio last night

[SeditionTrial]

Yes, so there was this invited guest on 612 ABC local radio in Brisbane last night, he called himself the president of the Pedestrian Council of Australia, I think, and he was banging on about how Qld should ban cyclists from footpaths, and how ringing your bell behind a pedestrian is equivalent to assault, and many other stupidities, and it made my blood boil, so I caved in and called the station.

On air I basically said that I thought cyclists should be allowed on the footpath, given that little kids aren't safe on the roads, and on many Qld roads, no cyclist is safe (due to narrow shoulders). I know most people on this board are of a similar mindset, so I am preaching to the converted, but it really annoys me that these cranks are given airplay.

[hiflange]

That'd be Harold Scruby. I've never heard the man speak or see anything that he's written but it should be pointed out that he's as unpopular on 4WD and bogan performance vehicle forums as he is here.

Google search returns an interesting result

[rkelsen]

at Google results!

[dfc.]

http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/queensl ... 1bpej.html

I don't agree with banning cyclists from footpaths,as I use them a lot, and it will just cause more accidents, but at least they were catching the idiots that don't use, or don't have a bell

[foo on patrol]

To put it politely, Scruby is a stupid blithering old fool, that is given too much air time, for his one sided ramblings and views of what should be, rather than how, too make safe conditions for both pedestrians and cyclists. (twit)

[marinmomma]

Re bells on bikes....what is the point when most ped's have their ears plugged up with music blasting from an IPod....you can ring all you like but they don't hear you!

And ped's walking on a dedicated cycle path or peds/joggers running two abreast and hogging up the path and getting ticked off if you want to pass them

I'd rather take my chances on the roads!

[dfc.]

Re bells on bikes....what is the point when most ped's have their ears plugged up with music blasting from an IPod....you can ring all you like but they don't hear you!

And ped's walking on a dedicated cycle path or peds/joggers running two abreast and hogging up the path and getting ticked off if you want to pass them

I'd rather take my chances on the roads!

Yes I hat that aswell, I had a lof of that this moring, but I was meaning fellow cyclists who don't give you any warning when passing, and push you off the path!

[Mulger bill]

And ped's walking on a dedicated cycle path

Fear not, evolution will have those paths downgraded to shared use soon. A few pen strokes is easier and cheaper than enforcement.

[marinmomma]

And ped's walking on a dedicated cycle path

Fear not, evolution will have those paths downgraded to shared use soon. A few pen strokes is easier and cheaper than enforcement.

It'd be a shame to lose them though, especially in higher traffic areas.

[lethoso]

Yes I hat that aswell, I had a lof of that this moring, but I was meaning fellow cyclists who don't give you any warning when passing, and push you off the path!

ride in a straight line, problem solved.

[elantra]

Yes I hat that aswell, I had a lof of that this moring, but I was meaning fellow cyclists who don't give you any warning when passing, and push you off the path!

ride in a straight line, problem solved.

But what about corners, potholes, encroaching vegetation and parked cars ?

[waynohh]

Channel 7 are running a Cyclist Vs Motorist piece on the news on Monday night. I am hoping the edit will be good as the editor is a friend and cyclist I know. So hopefully if it is a little more positive and it will balance out the dumb karma of Scruby.

They used a lot of my videos, unfortunately they used ones I didn't give them permission to, and then cut them down so they're out of context. But, they also used some scary ones too.

[herzog]

peds/joggers running two abreast and hogging up the path

Bit of a double standard don't you think? We are allowed to ride 2 abreast, so why get pissy if people want to walk 2 abreast?

No better than the car drivers that honk at cyclists simply going about their business.

[lethoso]

Bit of a double standard don't you think? We are allowed to ride 2 abreast, so why get pissy if people want to walk 2 abreast?

shared paths are considerably narrower than the road though, I can't think of any in brisbane which would comfortably fit two pairs of riders side by side going in opposite directions. Still, joggers are usually ok, it's when you get two prams next to each other that it's a bit ridiculous

Yes I hat that aswell, I had a lof of that this moring, but I was meaning fellow cyclists who don't give you any warning when passing, and push you off the path!

ride in a straight line, problem solved.

But what about corners, potholes, encroaching vegetation and parked cars ?

close your eyes and pray

[waynohh]

They emailed me and asked me to upload some using their useless uploader which wouldn't accept any encoding i tried, so I gave them a list of videos they could use instead, which they basically ignored. Do people still watch tv anyway? I don't.

[laager]

.

[marinmomma]

peds/joggers running two abreast and hogging up the path

Bit of a double standard don't you think? We are allowed to ride 2 abreast, so why get pissy if people want to walk 2 abreast?

No better than the car drivers that honk at cyclists simply going about their business.

Most shared paths aren't wide enough for two cyclists to ride 2 abreast, but my point was that joggers/peds do run two abreast and then get sh*tty with a cyclist who wants to get around them.

Some common sense from ALL path users is required.

[SeditionTrial]

Yes, consideration and safety are the key issues. Being a pompous wind-bag, or aggro car/ bike psycho the main problem.

[marinmomma]

Yes, consideration and safety are the key issues. Being a pompous wind-bag, or aggro car/ bike psycho the main problem.

+1...it's always the small percentage of people who do the wrong thing that ruin it for the majority that are doing the right thing!

[Gabe]

+1...it's always the small percentage of people who do the wrong thing that ruin it for the majority that are doing the right thing!

I'm gonna be a sad sack of crap and say that in australia this is not the case. The amount of incredibly inconsiderate behaviour I see every single day in all forms of traffic is just plain ridiculous, most times they are things you could not get away with in europe without getting rightfully harrassed by others or even pulled up by the police. The problem is that we follow US culture more than any other, and it basically just promotes self-righteousness and self-centered thinking, and combine that with abysmal driver training and people never learn how to negotiate traffic effectively, be it on the footpath or the road.
I think the only way things can change for the better is to really promote awareness of your surroundings and thinking about things from the perspective of others, so watching for traffic moving faster or slower than yourself and ensuring that the flow is not interrupted and safety margins are kept at a maximum. A proper standardised driver training course like they have in many european countries would be fantastic start

[elantra]

+1...it's always the small percentage of people who do the wrong thing that ruin it for the majority that are doing the right thing!

I'm gonna be a sad sack of crap and say that in australia this is not the case. The amount of incredibly inconsiderate behaviour I see every single day in all forms of traffic is just plain ridiculous, most times they are things you could not get away with in europe without getting rightfully harrassed by others or even pulled up by the police. The problem is that we follow US culture more than any other, and it basically just promotes self-righteousness and self-centered thinking, and combine that with abysmal driver training and people never learn how to negotiate traffic effectively, be it on the footpath or the road.
I think the only way things can change for the better is to really promote awareness of your surroundings and thinking about things from the perspective of others, so watching for traffic moving faster or slower than yourself and ensuring that the flow is not interrupted and safety margins are kept at a maximum. A proper standardised driver training course like they have in many european countries would be fantastic start

I agree with you.
The standard of road behaviour is declining IMO
There are lots of sociopaths in charge of motor vehicles, they are the ones who go out of their way to give you a "close shave"
They are taking out all of their life's frustrations on you, the (mostly) innocent "bystander"
Then there are various other categories of poor driving, have you noticed how many motorist fail to use their indicators. etc.
Driver training must be a joke, have you noticed how the P Platers speed and weave all over the road, sometimes in convoy.

Even on the bikepaths thare are problems, some cyclists ride like there is no tomorrow.
Must be time to go and have a chat with the local MP, and ask him where all the cops are hiding.

[waynohh]

Today I was passed by 2 cars on my right inside the bike lane, then 1 on the left, then a bus cut in front of me which I couldn't brake hard enough to avoid, then they drove off of course without any concern. I'm either going to snap and rip someone's head off one day or give up, that's if I'm not killed.