M7 Safety Alert Thread

Hergest
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Re: M7 Safety Alert Thread

Postby Hergest » Wed Mar 28, 2018 10:32 am

In the past all that was ever done was a sign was put up about flooding and temporary barriers put across the path, this then gave the rider the option to use a detour or to ride through the puddle slowly. I never saw any problems with that at all and don't recall ever reading a post about someone falling off, (if someone had then I'm sure it would have made it to a thread close to here pretty quickly). The situation now is ludicrous with the path being shut when there is less water than you have already ridden through on your way to this point from puddles in general. If the water dries up and leaves no mud by Friday afternoon then the path remains closed all weekend as there are no staff to open the gates on weekends. The official marked detour is on poor roads with heavy truck movements and is not at all safe, certainly significantly more dangerous than riding through a puddle that is often not even the depth of a bicycle tyre.
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Jmuzz
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Re: M7 Safety Alert Thread

Postby Jmuzz » Wed Mar 28, 2018 11:13 am

zebee wrote:Interesting question... how do they tell when it is a dangerous flood and when is it just a puddle riders can be expected to cope with?
.
How they tell now is that if there is a single drop or rain, perhaps even if forecast, they lock the gates.

They don't open the gates again until there is under 1 foot width of puddle remaining, and not on weekends.
Not sure if they even check, or just wait a week after the raindrop.

They do not spend 4 hours blasting mud off the path, perhaps that is true after an actual flood event, but when it is just the puddle the crew get to have a half day smoko and don't even give it a stiff brooming.

If they were only locking when genuinely flooded and mud covered then there would be no issue.
It spends about a third of the time locked.

RMS don't close roads for a 2 inch deep static puddle over half the road.

I don't know the story, but my guess would be that they are using tactics to try and make RMS pickup the bill for a full bridge section over the section of swamp. Trying g to unnecessarily force riders onto the road until there is a major incident and RMS give in and finance it.

syu
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Re: M7 Safety Alert Thread

Postby syu » Wed Mar 28, 2018 12:59 pm

syu wrote:
biker jk wrote:
robbo mcs wrote:Better than posting on the website, ring the M7 control office directly and report the problem. You get to speak to a human, and you know the message has got through. Tell them how dangerous it is. They do listen and respond.

number is 98349261

keep that number on your phone. If there is ever an accident that needs emergency services etc, it is very helpful as they can coordinate and facilitate access etc
But they won't provide access keys to the local ambulance service.
That's what bolt cutters are for.

The ambos made short work of the lock on the bollard just north of Elizabeth Dr when they needed access last Saturday.
Hergest wrote:.......If the water dries up and leaves no mud by Friday afternoon then the path remains closed all weekend as there are no staff to open the gates on weekends........
Jmuzz wrote: They don't open the gates again until there is under 1 foot width of puddle remaining, and not on weekends.
There's a bit of misinformation happening here. Last time the path was closed it was reopened on a Saturday morning about 10:30ish, I saw a worker in his ute turn up to unlock it.

So I wouldn't say it's never unlocked on a weekend ;)
Last edited by syu on Wed Mar 28, 2018 1:07 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Jmuzz
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Re: M7 Safety Alert Thread

Postby Jmuzz » Wed Mar 28, 2018 1:46 pm

It's closed now, was Monday morning.
Don't know when it closed in the week (I assume wed morning, it rained Tue night, did they unlock for weekend?) because it was a damp week and I took the soft option wed, thu, fri.

Current puddle state is similar to picture back a page, clean water puddle over one lane.
B-Double coming off M7 ramp almost didn't stop for me on the Jedda Rd roundabout yesterday so I risked attack by the crocodile today.

Hergest
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Re: M7 Safety Alert Thread

Postby Hergest » Wed Mar 28, 2018 2:25 pm

syu wrote:
Hergest wrote:.......If the water dries up and leaves no mud by Friday afternoon then the path remains closed all weekend as there are no staff to open the gates on weekends........
Jmuzz wrote: They don't open the gates again until there is under 1 foot width of puddle remaining, and not on weekends.
There's a bit of misinformation happening here. Last time the path was closed it was reopened on a Saturday morning about 10:30ish, I saw a worker in his ute turn up to unlock it.

So I wouldn't say it's never unlocked on a weekend ;)
Well that's good to know. Some pages back in this thread I questioned the rep from the M7 about gates remaining closed on the weekend even if the water had cleared and she confirmed that there were no staff working weekends so the gates would remain shut. They have clearly changed their protocol for this.
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syu
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Re: M7 Safety Alert Thread

Postby syu » Wed Mar 28, 2018 6:11 pm

Jmuzz wrote:It's closed now, was Monday morning.
Last time, not currently. As in the last time it was closed for a time, which would of been the period after the 60mm of rain in one day.
Hergest wrote: Well that's good to know. Some pages back in this thread I questioned the rep from the M7 about gates remaining closed on the weekend even if the water had cleared and she confirmed that there were no staff working weekends so the gates would remain shut. They have clearly changed their protocol for this.
While a nice a surprise, I wouldn't necessarily count on it happening regularly in the future. I wouldn't want to get anyone's hopes up.

Andrew09
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Re: M7 Safety Alert Thread

Postby Andrew09 » Thu Mar 29, 2018 11:00 am

Are the gates open now? I want to go riding this long weekend.

Jmuzz
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Re: M7 Safety Alert Thread

Postby Jmuzz » Thu Mar 29, 2018 11:29 am

No still locked (for what that matters currently...)

Locked for this, if they send the long weekend families onto the streets for that its just nasty and anti-bike. Its good infrastructure being locked out for nonsense reason. Familys safe cycleway outing will be turned into a traumatic experience for them and bike adventures become less attractive.
Hopefully they unlock today.

Image
upload image on internet

Andrew09
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Re: M7 Safety Alert Thread

Postby Andrew09 » Thu Mar 29, 2018 2:02 pm

Are there still gaping holes at the side of the locked gates that I can get thru?

Jmuzz
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Re: M7 Safety Alert Thread

Postby Jmuzz » Thu Mar 29, 2018 2:24 pm

Depends on workcrew activity.
I will post tonight if it is impassable for the long weekend, otherwise assume it should at least be possible.

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biker jk
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Re: M7 Safety Alert Thread

Postby biker jk » Thu Mar 29, 2018 3:53 pm

It's open now.

syu
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Re: M7 Safety Alert Thread

Postby syu » Thu Mar 29, 2018 4:04 pm

Subscribe to the shared path email alerts

^That link should be featured at the top of every page.

Andrew09
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Re: M7 Safety Alert Thread

Postby Andrew09 » Sat Mar 31, 2018 1:18 pm

Yep , gates definitely open Friday. Good day for a ride , 90km in total. T'was very busy on the cycleway yesterday. Lots of hellos and waving!

Jmuzz
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Re: M7 Safety Alert Thread

Postby Jmuzz » Thu Apr 05, 2018 3:01 pm

There is a car bonnet on the path (out of the way, though could blow over onto fast downhill section), I imagine it is a latch unclipped ripped off and airborne at 100+ event. Could have killed someone if they were on the path at the time.

Should try and drag it away if still there tonight. Not so easy as flipping it over the fence because it's a bridge section.

Here I think, caution southbound fast downhill
https://goo.gl/maps/YB3VyxmqAnQ2

Image

Is reported.

syu wrote:Subscribe to the shared path email alerts

^That link should be featured at the top of every page.
Does it get used? I have had none from it.
Nothing about recent grass crew, sign install crew, lights out.

syu
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Re: M7 Safety Alert Thread

Postby syu » Thu Apr 05, 2018 5:24 pm

Jmuzz wrote:
Does it get used? I have had none from it.
Yes, for when the gate is closed/opened due to flooding. Usually an email is received with in a few hours but at least same day.

It saves the conjecture.

Andrew09
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Re: M7 Safety Alert Thread

Postby Andrew09 » Mon Apr 09, 2018 6:01 pm

I haven't received the email in a while. I certainly didn't get the last one.

robbo mcs
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Re: M7 Safety Alert Thread

Postby robbo mcs » Mon Apr 09, 2018 8:15 pm

Random M7 question ...

So on the weekends I often see a guy on a fatbike, ie full 4inch width, hooning along the path. The weird thing he has aero bars and is in a time trial type tuck. See him quite regularly.

Anyone know the story? Why a fatbike with aerobars? Quite odd looking :D

I would ask him, but it would appear that he may be quicker than me :oops: :P

Hergest
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Re: M7 Safety Alert Thread

Postby Hergest » Tue Apr 10, 2018 8:42 am

Now and then you might also see a Penny Farthing being ridden by a bloke wearing what looks like a WW2 era helmet so you get lots of interesting people on the M7.
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vosadrian
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Re: M7 Safety Alert Thread

Postby vosadrian » Tue Apr 10, 2018 10:03 am

I was on the path yesterday for the first time in a couple of months and I noticed they had changed the line marking at the Quakers hill parkway path entrance/exit. It used to be that the entrance gave way to both directions, but it seems they have marked it now so that if you come out of the tunnel you can turn into the exit with right of way over people who are coming the other direction staying on the path. Am I reading that right? It seems like a silly change. Not only is it confusing and inconsistent with the rest of the path where the rider staying on the path always has right of way and people entering/leaving must give way, but the amount of people actually taking that exit in that direction to have right of way is very low compared to those travelling on the path past this point that must now be cautious of someone claiming right of way 5 times a day. It seems to be an accident waiting to happen if someone claims right of way when a few riders at reasonable pace are coming down the path from the hill.

Does anyone know anything about this?

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g-boaf
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Re: M7 Safety Alert Thread

Postby g-boaf » Tue Apr 10, 2018 11:04 am

vosadrian wrote:I was on the path yesterday for the first time in a couple of months and I noticed they had changed the line marking at the Quakers hill parkway path entrance/exit. It used to be that the entrance gave way to both directions, but it seems they have marked it now so that if you come out of the tunnel you can turn into the exit with right of way over people who are coming the other direction staying on the path. Am I reading that right? It seems like a silly change. Not only is it confusing and inconsistent with the rest of the path where the rider staying on the path always has right of way and people entering/leaving must give way, but the amount of people actually taking that exit in that direction to have right of way is very low compared to those travelling on the path past this point that must now be cautious of someone claiming right of way 5 times a day. It seems to be an accident waiting to happen if someone claims right of way when a few riders at reasonable pace are coming down the path from the hill.

Does anyone know anything about this?
That's the downhill right corner I think - I don't know what the idea of it is, I've never seen any people taking that exit. I'm also wary of taking that downhill too quickly given that sometimes people going uphill run wide.

If I were entering the cycleway at that point and saw a group coming downhill quickly, I'm going to wait for them to go, irrespective of right of way.

vosadrian
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Re: M7 Safety Alert Thread

Postby vosadrian » Tue Apr 10, 2018 2:00 pm

g-boaf wrote:
That's the downhill right corner I think - I don't know what the idea of it is, I've never seen any people taking that exit. I'm also wary of taking that downhill too quickly given that sometimes people going uphill run wide.

If I were entering the cycleway at that point and saw a group coming downhill quickly, I'm going to wait for them to go, irrespective of right of way.
Not the downhill kink... the next one when you are heading South/West about 2-300m down. You kink right to go through a tunnel and then left to follow the path (then you go a few hundred metres to the creek with the longish bridge over it). On the right kink you can go straight to go up the quakers hill parkway exit. They have marked the path so there is a give way line if you are going right to continue on the path. There is a similar line for people coming down the entrance onto the path (straight in other direction). Someone coming up the path heading north/east would come under the tunnel, and if they wanted to exit the path to quakers parkway, the would have right of way over people staying on the path heading west.

thomas1987
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Re: M7 Safety Alert Thread

Postby thomas1987 » Tue Apr 10, 2018 7:12 pm

Has anyone heard news that there was a death near M7 cyclepath (at moonrise lookout) recently? Heard the accident occured when the cyclist went down the steep hill and didn't see the speed hump.

Hergest
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Re: M7 Safety Alert Thread

Postby Hergest » Tue Apr 10, 2018 8:00 pm

thomas1987 wrote:Has anyone heard news that there was a death near M7 cyclepath (at moonrise lookout) recently? Heard the accident occured when the cyclist went down the steep hill and didn't see the speed hump.
Nope, and I can't find anything online.
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g-boaf
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Re: M7 Safety Alert Thread

Postby g-boaf » Tue Apr 10, 2018 9:55 pm

thomas1987 wrote:Has anyone heard news that there was a death near M7 cyclepath (at moonrise lookout) recently? Heard the accident occured when the cyclist went down the steep hill and didn't see the speed hump.
Yes, I have heard it and I know who the rider was, but I won't say anything further to that. :( RIP to the rider, and I want to offer my sincerest wishes to his family and friends.

Incredibly sad.

JPB
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Re: M7 Safety Alert Thread

Postby JPB » Tue Apr 10, 2018 10:33 pm

vosadrian wrote:
g-boaf wrote:
That's the downhill right corner I think - I don't know what the idea of it is, I've never seen any people taking that exit. I'm also wary of taking that downhill too quickly given that sometimes people going uphill run wide.

If I were entering the cycleway at that point and saw a group coming downhill quickly, I'm going to wait for them to go, irrespective of right of way.
Not the downhill kink... the next one when you are heading South/West about 2-300m down. You kink right to go through a tunnel and then left to follow the path (then you go a few hundred metres to the creek with the longish bridge over it). On the right kink you can go straight to go up the quakers hill parkway exit. They have marked the path so there is a give way line if you are going right to continue on the path. There is a similar line for people coming down the entrance onto the path (straight in other direction). Someone coming up the path heading north/east would come under the tunnel, and if they wanted to exit the path to quakers parkway, the would have right of way over people staying on the path heading west.
Maybe trying to slow westbound traffic down so they arent cutting the corner?

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