Letter to Warringah Councillors

[Aushiker]

Aushiker: I have only written to council on improving the Roseville Bridge infrastructure. So I am not an advocate for cycling by any means.

How did it go? Get anything positive from it?

Andrew

[ft_critical]

Aushiker: I have only written to council on improving the Roseville Bridge infrastructure. So I am not an advocate for cycling by any means.

How did it go? Get anything positive from it?

Andrew

To be honest, the contact was excellent - same council Warringah. They were going to put it in the bike plan. But, then a paired back version appeared in the plan. And... with all things, I have been too busy to follow up on how implementing that and improvements to Wakehurst Parkway (sorry all local references) have gone. I might get an update I think. Thanks for the reminder.

[trailgumby]

Aushiker: I have only written to council on improving the Roseville Bridge infrastructure. So I am not an advocate for cycling by any means.

Unfortunately this travesty is not within Council's remit to fix. If it was, they would be on it, as it has been identified in their bike plan as a particular problem area (I was one of severral to raise it). Write your complaints on this one to the RTA.

When I was regularly commuting to SOP, I used to complain about twice a year about the overgrowth and missing pavement panels from the bridge (say hello Middle Harbour), highlighting the risks to them if someone was injured. It took Downer Works about 6 weeks to email me back saying it was on their program for the following week for the vegetation. Pavement panels were fixed folowing day.

So your complaints will be heard and accumulated, even if they do get filed in the "too hard" basket in the short term.

TG: fair enough, I did miss the point. I guess I think picking a more obvious travesty of cycling infrastructure was what I was trying to say, not that your doing something is bad at all.

You're dead right, there are more obvious issues. What got up my nose big time on this one was the timing: I thought they'd got the message loud and clear when seeking responses to the Bike Plan that these things we wanted no more of, it's even documented in the appendix of responses, yet shortly after the release of the Plan, here's a brand new one! Arrrgh!

And then what got up my nose even more was the Council traffic section head's response (well outside the 10-day window by the way) indicating he clearly had no idea about bikes, and suggesting that riders should somehow "anticipate" doorings. The photos are more representative of the time I was there on a Saturday morning, but I sent them becasue they capture the issue visually very well and impactfully.

I've had some support from the Greens councillor Christina Kirsch, the mayor, and Jason Fallinski, but not much traction yet. Council staff are largely a law unto themselves if they choose not to take direction from elected reps.

r2160: isn't that road rule, unless it is impractical to do so? I don’t ever ride in the door zone. I don’t even filter stopped traffic in the door zone of a bike lane. And I haven’t got any grief for not doing so.

Correct, there is a qualifier in the NSW and Australian version of the relevant rule that provides an out on the basis of practiability. I take the view that any safety hazard including risk of puncture provides an out.

[stanevelyn]

That said, it's the law and its there for a reason so just gotta deal with it.

....and there are signs

Get continually amazed/dismayed/disgusted on encountering roadworks signs and slowing to the posted speed (be it 80, 60 or even 40kmh), only to have tools on the rear bumper - flashing lights and flying by at 100 Like they can't see the sign ???

I have the same problem, but i dont care. I will drive within the speed limit and sometimes about 5kph lower. If they want to be fools then i have no sympathy for them. I have reached the point where I will only stop to help cyclists. I wont stop at a vehicle accident, nor will I assist a driver needing help unless i know them. When I ride i have been treated badly so often by drivers that I just dont care about them any more. I hope that this letter has some effect on the council.

Stan

[GraemeL]

I think the biggest problem is that these signs are left out well after the road works have been finished. People tend to ignore them because of this. I have always wondered why they are not removed once the hazard has been fixed.

I still slow to the required speed and if anyone behind starts leaning on the horn or flashing lights I slow to 10 or 20k.

Graeme