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Mostly sunny min 6° - max 21° Cyclists push for equal rights
12 May 2008
Sunshine Coast cyclists are calling on motorists to respect their legal right to be on the road, in the wake of a shocking road rage incident in Sydney last week.
The riders say Thursday’s incident, in which 20 cyclists were injured when a driver is alleged to have deliberately stopped suddenly in front of them, would never have happened if more people were aware of their rights.
The main problem appears to be that many motorists don’t seem to know that under Queensland law, cyclists are treated like any other vehicle.
Although they are required to keep to the left, they can ride two abreast – and motorists who claim they are forced to overtake unsafely across double lines are themselves breaking the law.
“The law says we can (ride two abreast),” said Sunshine Coast Cycling Club president Dave Wighton. “We are well within our rights to do that.
“We are road users and when they go on about not paying registration, well, we have 150 members and most of them have two registered cars.
“You have chosen to overtake unsafely, you’re not forced, you chose to. That’s what the road rules say.
“You might need to slow down, but that’s all right, and cyclists are allowed to ride two abreast as well.
“In our group rides if someone does the wrong thing, as far as if they go wrong way around a roundabout, we tell them.
“If people respond to abuse by abusing back, we say ‘no, just be cool, just smile and wave’.
“Anger doesn’t help our situation.”
The conflict between motorists and cyclists appears to have intensified as the popularity of bike riding increases across the nation.
One motorist, who travels the David Low Way early every morning, said many cyclists had only themselves to blame if drivers became angry.
The stretch between Peregian and Noosa was the worst on weekend mornings, she said.
“There is always someone on a bike along that stretch trying very hard to kill themselves or someone else. They’re not large groups – just twos and threes – but for some reason they seem to think they can ride side by side and encroach on the traffic lane.
“It appears to be a social thing. They’re riding beside each other so they can have a chat.
“I’ve lost count of the number of times I have had to make a choice between wiping out a cyclist or veering over the centre line to avoid them and risk hitting a car coming the other way.
“Usually I’ve got no choice but to slam my foot on the brake.
“I’ve even had them veer in front of me as I’ve come over the crest of a hill.
“It’s not all of them, but there is always someone.”
Mr Wighton admitted there were some cyclists who broke the law, but said they were no worse than motorists.
The only thing that would resolve the ongoing battle of ownership of the road would be “respect from both points of view”.
“Bike riders sometimes do the wrong thing and cars sometimes do the wrong thing; just have respect and be wary,” he said.
“When I’m driving, I really look out for cyclists and that’s all we’re asking for.”
He said the while there was still animosity towards cyclists, safety on Sunshine Coast roads was improving.
“Some people think they are really dangerous, others think they are fine,” he said. “Because there are so many riding now the cars are getting used to it.
“Anyone who is a bike rider, or has brothers, sisters or friends who ride, is conscious of them.
“The more people who ride, the safer it gets.”
Meanwhile, a warning has spread throughout the Sunshine Coast cycling fraternity to be wary of “copycat” motorists in the wake of this week’s shocking road-rage incident in Sydney.
Cyclists fear widespread media coverage of Thursday’s incident on Southern Cross Drive, where 20 cyclists were injured after a car braked in front of them, will encourage others to replicate that behaviour.
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Recent Comments
If the cars can seat people side by side in enormous leather armchairs, making them so wide that they often have to cross the centre line, why can't the cyclists also sit side by side.
We could then also put an armrest and a couple of drink holders between the "Loungercycle" seats...and a DVD/satnav screen on the handlebars.
There would, unfortunately, be no Loungercycle models available for flying Pelotons. Unless we could come up with a 4WD seven-seater model which could accommodate an entire family or a peleton...and a dog in the back.
It may sound like a stale slogan nowadays, but we all need to use the roads responsibly...including the short fused car drivers. In the meantime, we need to come up with a better network of cycleways to reduce the interaction between cars and bikes.
What will we then do about the caravans, trucks and buses my fellow drivers? If we cannot find a way to overtake them legally, I guess we will just have to keep tailgating them, blowing our horns at them and yelling abuse until we can find a way around them on the left hand side and resume our legal right to cruise at no more than 10kph above the designated speed limit.
The argument of not paying rego, and therefore, not allowed on the roads is a mute point. Face it, a bike does no damage to the road, gives off no greenhouse gases, improves the health of the user.
Cyclists need to observe the road rules, but so do motorists. It is a 2way street.
I would appreciate it people go visit the Amy Gillett Foundation at http://www.amygillett.org.au. This foundation was set up to promote safe sharing of the roads after the tragic death of professional cyclst, Amy Gillett. Her death is a tragic reminder that the roads are there for everyone to use and enjoy and should not put the lives of others in jeopardy.
Unfortunately you can't read the Daily's web news service on the new 3G phone while you're busy playing chicken with the tradesmen's utes and, even worse, the mums on school taxi duty. I speak from personal experience.
Even though I am rarely doing under 60 I constantly have people swerving over double white lines to pass me.
It as though because I am on a moped I must be holding them up even though I am on the speed limit.
I had a truck try to run me off the road on the Buderim to Mooloolaba hill and I was doing 70 in a 60 zone because he was tail-gating me, sitting on his horn and trying to push past.
With the rising cost of fuel and increased environmental awareness more people will be turning to bicycles and mopeds so more education is needed.
trafficman, as you said you know the road rules, and they state something along the lines that you need to drive to the road conditions. Therefore if you are aware that a road has a high volume of cycle traffic, drive with that in your mind. If you are worried about a bunch of cyclists I'm concerned that you must also not be driving with concern that around the next corner you'll find a truck pulling out of a driveway.
Bottom line motorist, You are in control of the vehicle, if you find yourself in a situation, then it is not the other road users fault, it is yours. You need to drive to the road conditions which includes being aware of other road users.
All adult cyclists would be licensed vehicle drivers and tested to qualify for that license. These being the case why do some cyclists then flout the traffic regulations by cycling through red lights at intersections, and deliberately make a nuisance by their behaviour on the road.
BOTH have the RIGHT to be on the road and the RESPONSIBILITY that goes with driving a lethal weapon and cycling a bicycle with no protection amongst lethal weapons. You all need to follow the road rules, and be courteous to and patient with fellow road users.
Basic manners, and respect for the law and other human beings, one would have thought.
It was only in the 1990's that the law changed from a bicycle rider being a pedestrian to a "legal road user" and it was done to accommodate the fact that they could build bridges much cheaper without pedestrian paths but that would have meant no access to bicycles ..so simple solution throw them all on the roads ! legally.
That way the Transport department only needed to erect signs to keep people walking off the new bridges.
As far as the bicycle riders paying registration perhaps not but!! they should be enforced to pay Insurance premiums the same and at the same rate as all other road users as they cause more then their fair share of mayhem on the roads advertently or inadvertently.
Also perhaps some of the so called traffic laws may need rewriting if they are in fact inadequate such as: If a bicycle rider is adjacent to double white lines then it is single file only common sense really but far be it from me to deny anyone their "legal rights" even if it is to save their own lives
Drivers need to be a bit more patient sometimes. For the bike riders it would also be a good idea to read the Qld road laws Part 11 #125 and Part 15 #253 regarding intentionally hindering the path of other vehicles.
No one can condone the actions of the driver down south, though riders need to understand how their actions can sometimes provoke situations like this.
Remember we are all subject to the relevant road rules.
If you want to ride your bike on a busy, public road, then stay out of the car lanes, because drivers are going to get angry!
Bobbuick its true that some cyclists among us continually break the law by running red lights but on my travels I see many motorists continually breaking the law in various ways. Do I then assume that all motorists are the same?
It all comes back to common courtesy, patience and consideration of others...sadly these days a trait that many people do not have. (particularly while in control of a motor vehicle)
When was the last time you saw any signal other than the bird from any bicycle rider all done up in colors or not.
I think a lot of it has to be put down to attitude and after attending the recent triathalon and getting pushed and jostled off the walkways by warming up or down athletes... once my 48 kilo partner was knocked to the ground as the party of three just jogged on then its not hard to see how peoples Ire is raise by such arrogance and indifference to the general population that are not of their club!
For all, not just the riders but as this forum seems to be about the rights of those that are oblivious to their own human frailty .
RIGHTS COME WITH RESPONSIBILITY!
Even if the road rules are sadly out of date and not inclusive of the now road using bicycles, common sense says you don't do anything malicious from either side that could cause someone harm and the perpetrator the rest of their live to ponder their mistake
Your article should have helped the road safety of many by allowing so much steam to be vented! After releasing all this pent up anger/rage/frustration etc at the keyboard hopefully most of the contributors will be that much calmer when they hit the road today.
What people in cars fail to realise is the human life is very frail when riding a bike at speed. Someone yelling out a car window, braking, swerving, throwing things at cyclists (yes I've had that too) etc etc all because they are two minutes late for something endangers the life of a cyclist.
All you drivers out there, show a little respect for human life!
Almost everyday these "get fit" people ride like hoons and idiots. Racing each other, blocking cars from passing by riding 3-abreast or more, riding on streets which are barely wide enough for cars (around Happy Valley for example) and using no hand signals to indicate their intent to turn right or veer to the right.
These cyclists never appear to pay any heed to the cars on the road. They run RED lights and just thumb their noses at the motorist who has paid thousands of dollars to drive their car on the road e.g., purchase price, learning to drive, vehicle registration and of course Insurance while the outlay to become a bike terrorist is minimum and are subject to Legislative controls.
Yes !!! let them ride on the roads BUT lets have some strong legislation to control cyclists and have the police book them the same as they do with motorists. If legislation covering cyclists is not brought into being AND policed more and more irresponsible "get fit" fools will hit the streets.
I ride my bike to and from work each day and due to SOME drivers being so reckless I have resorted to riding on the footpath most of the way.
A little common courtesy from both sides would go a long way.
hoppy - Do you really think drivers are going to give cyclists any more respect if they pay rego? I don't. There are good and bad on both sides and I don't think paying rego will fix it.
It is illegal for bikes to ride more than two abreast at any time. I think that it is also illegal for them to ride in a normal traffic lane at any time. If it's not illegal, it is a very dangerous and stupid thing to do anyway.
If riding two abreast interferes with traffic, they should ride single file until the road conditions allow them to ride two abreast again without encroaching on a driving lane.
If the conditions mean that they have to ride in a car traffic lane for a short distance then they should be aware that this is a dangerous undertaking and do it with the utmost care. They really need to be concerned with their own safety as they are at the bottom of the food chain on the road.
Cyclists should not be riding in normal car traffic lanes at all. They should be riding in the marked cycle lanes or on cycle paths. If, as in the case of this idiot in Sydney, a car driver gets it into his/her head to harrass cyclists who are doing the right thing then I think that the cyclists have a valid complaint.
Pushbikes and cars are an incompatible mix in traffic lanes. Pushbikes and pedestrians are also an incompatible mix on footpaths. This is why the cycling lobby has been agitating for an upgrade for the Coast's bikepaths and cycle lanes.
Thats ok in Noosa where there are actually cycle lanes and bike paths. I havent noticed many of either in Maroochy Shire. Try living in Buderim.. I own a bike but I am scared to ride it around here. My moped is scary enough!
If not what would be the point of some form of I.D on the bike?
Personally I will sit out as many changes of lights that I have to,although I have seen other cyclists run them.My life is worth more then being held up for a few extra mintues at red lights. If I really am in a hurry,I get off my bike and will cross at the pedestrian crossing.
Blatantly incorrect statements about the road rules and rights of road users should be removed from these comments by the administrator as they do not help, especially when the daily then goes on to publish them in the readers comment section in the paper without a comment that the statement may not reflect the true nature of the road rules.
Bicycles, like mopeds and probably even horses and carts are legally entitled to travel on the roads, if you overtake them then you are the one performing the dangerous maneouver and as such are the one responsible for making sure no accidents happen.
As for sitting 2m behind a bicycle and pushing the horn, well Inone1 from Mooloolaba dont be surprised if you recieve the bird or even worse from the cycling fraternity.
I am now going to install a very large horn on my bike and have a lie down after my 70km ride this morning!!!
1) both "sides" have major points, but the real issue is that the infrastructure is appallingly designed, with no room for any vehicle other than cars (some roads are too narrow even for trucks and buses). Also, it is not a case of either or; both need to give a bit...
2) cyclists are forced on to roads because of inadequate cycleways, marked lanes etc; believe me, if I didn't have to, I would NEVER ride on the road (and I've got a mountain bike, so can go many places where other bikes can't). This is particularly bad in the old Maroochy Shire, where even places with many cyclists (such as around schools) have little or no safe places for them to ride. And even if there are some safe places to ride, you normally end up on the road at least part of the way, as most of the bike lanes/paths don't connect up - aka the nice new bikeway to nowhere on the Wises Road bridge to Maroochydore
3) a motorist disobeying the road rules has a potentially lethal weapon under his/her "control"; the consequences of, for example, running a red light, could be multiple injuries, even fatalities. A cyclist running a red light will likely only injure him/herself, probably rather severely. ie. if s/he gets totalled, then whose fault is it?
4) why do cyclists need to ride two abreast anyway? This p*sses off motorists more than anything; why can't cyclists give a bit on their part; and only ride two abreast when passing, and only pass when it is safe to do so (ie. there is no other traffic, including other cyclists or pedestrians)
5) in my long ago youth, we had to have bike licenses, and all bikes had to be fitted with bells and mirrors, so we could see behind us, and warn pedestrians when approaching. For example, even though I ride my bike as far to the left as possible, I've been abused many times by the huge packs of cyclists on the Nicklin Way and Karawatha Drive. Hey, I don't ride exactly to a straight line, and if I might veer a foot or so out of my usual place in the gutter, I've no way of knowing you are behind me (road bikes are fast, and pretty silent when you are riding in traffic anyway)
6) and motorists, please learn the rules on roundabouts (does ANYONE know how to indicate on a roundabout?) and please LOOK before you suddenly turn left; why on earth is it necessary to screech to a halt and sharply cut in front of me in a left exit lane when you can wait about two seconds for me to get a couple of meters further along?
Q. Why don't cyclists stay in bike lanes?
A. Because they are often full of glass, other debris and even parked cars!
Q. Why don't bikes give way to cars turning left?
A. Often because they haven't indicated as such but yes, bikes are required to give way to cars if they do so.
Perhaps some improved driver/cyclist/pedestrian education needs to occur because obviously the laws are not obvious or conveyed to all nor taught at home or school? Even the basic "keep left when walking" principle seems to have been forgotten in this day and age. Some mutual respect and basic sharing of paths and roads etiquette would go a long way to resolving such escalating conflicts.
So people, please, choose not to tailgate, choose to give up a few seconds, slow down and wait for a safe place to pass, and choose to be more considerate of *all* road users, cyclists and drivers alike.
If they want equal rights obey the road rules, they also should be made to pay some kind of registration and insurance if they want to be treated equual, then start obeying the road rules and pay for it. No they can only ride one abreast. even on 7 news there is a message form Qld Police on cyclists. If they do stupid things like they do, they also should get fines etc. They do not own the road like they think.
Another concern, if the lights are red they usually go through or they go onto the footpath and nearly wipe out poor pedestrians walking who also should get priority on footpaths. So to the cyclists out there stop your bloody whinging and start obeying the road rules and ride one abreast, you think you are above everyone but you are just idiots we do not need on our roads. When you start paying like cars have to to be on the road you may get respect.
Phil74..."clown can get on a bike and ride". The road rules still apply to all and as a cyclist and licensed driver I am exposed to all those rules and their associated penalties including the points system. As a cyclist you can lose points on your car license. Then when you don't have a car license all that's left is the bike. But don't confuse lycra cyclists with helmetless-flannel shirt-unpredictable idiots. They own a bike, that's the limit of their relationship with people serious about their cycling whether it's dedicated commuters or higher level competitors.
Borisette - well said, and thank you.
gadget... I recently became aware that interstate it is illegal to ride a bicycle on the footpath unless you are accompanying a child. Seems logical. I haven't managed to find a corresponding law in Qld but it's a good idea. It keeps the pensioners, dog walkers and pram pushers from getting hurt.
My_words..."Qld road laws... regarding intentionally hindering the path of other vehicles". If cyclists pull back to single file on narrow roads motorists are then tempted to overtake when it's not safe to do so, either crossing the centre line or squeezing too close to the cyclist. Riding 2 abreast ensures the car pays full attention to the situation.
regulatethem..."riding on streets which are barely wide enough for cars". There's the crux of the problem. Infrastructure shortfalls are the underlying cause of a lot of the angst between cyclists and vehicles as well as car-on-car road rage. That mixed with the party-boy-Corey no sense of social responsibility that is at the heart of it all.
Do you seriously believe that cyclists paying rego will give them any more respect on the road? I don't. Car drivers still will continue to feel like they own the roads.
Let's face it there are good and bad on both sides and cyclists paying rego will not change that.After all car drivers pay rego and a number of them still don't think the road rules apply to them.
Granted those cyclists you mentioned where in the wrong but please dont class all cyclists as idiots, we are out there for the betterment of our health and the more people that take up this great sport the more respect we will therefore get from other road users.
Travel to Europe or even Victoria and the respect shown to cyclists is 100% better than on the coast, if you ask me many Australians lack common courtesy and respect and this goes for all road users.
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