All you ever wanted to know about cycling in the ACT

isaidno said :

I don’t understand why anyone would ride on the road in Canberra. I have been able to ride anywhere I want in Canberra using the bike paths and I don’t have to worry about dangerous driving.

When I’m commuting it is much slower to use the bike paths / foot paths because:
1. having to stop at driveways
2. tighter corners / less visibility
3. giving way and slowing down for slower riders and pedestrians
4. rough and uneven surfaces
5. sometimes not direct.

Haven’t timed it but estimate at least 50% longer.
Life is full of risks 🙂

I don’t understand why anyone would ride on the road in Canberra. I have been able to ride anywhere I want in Canberra using the bike paths and I don’t have to worry about dangerous driving.

Jim Jones said :

Davo111 said :

Wallly1972 said :

Which ones?

A friend of mine got T-boned on his bike when crossing a road at traffic lights last year. Unfortunately there were no witnesses and he cant remember the accident so they didnt/couldnt charge the person with going through the red light. 6 months later still recovering from the accident. Apparently he was hit by the car at 60km/hr and is lucky to be alive.

so yeah, accidents do happen.

A car going through a red light and hitting a cyclist and driving away isn’t really an ‘accident’.

Scary the amount of cars that go through red lights these days. I swear I see at least one a day – not just going through the tail-end of an amber light, but full on chugging through a red light, with other cars having to wait during a green light.

I’m not sure if it’s become more prevalent or not, but I really notice it a hell of a lot more.

Jim Jones said :

Davo111 said :

Wallly1972 said :

Which ones?

A friend of mine got T-boned on his bike when crossing a road at traffic lights last year. Unfortunately there were no witnesses and he cant remember the accident so they didnt/couldnt charge the person with going through the red light. 6 months later still recovering from the accident. Apparently he was hit by the car at 60km/hr and is lucky to be alive.

so yeah, accidents do happen.

A car going through a red light and hitting a cyclist and driving away isn’t really an ‘accident’.

Scary the amount of cars that go through red lights these days. I swear I see at least one a day – not just going through the tail-end of an amber light, but full on chugging through a red light, with other cars having to wait during a green light.

I’m not sure if it’s become more prevalent or not, but I really notice it a hell of a lot more.

Where did Davo say the car drove away?

Or was that just your “cyclists can do no wrong” attitude kicking in?

From my humble observations; a cyclist is far more likely to run a red signal than a car, including me.

Jim Jones said :

I’m not sure if it’s become more prevalent or not, but I really notice it a hell of a lot more.

for sure! stand on an intersection of northborne (and alinga, eloura etc) looking south – for 10-15 minutes and i can guarantee someone would break the lights. People are “a good few seconds” from the lights, they see it go yellow and they throttle it through the red.

Davo111 said :

Wallly1972 said :

Which ones?

A friend of mine got T-boned on his bike when crossing a road at traffic lights last year. Unfortunately there were no witnesses and he cant remember the accident so they didnt/couldnt charge the person with going through the red light. 6 months later still recovering from the accident. Apparently he was hit by the car at 60km/hr and is lucky to be alive.

so yeah, accidents do happen.

A car going through a red light and hitting a cyclist and driving away isn’t really an ‘accident’.

Scary the amount of cars that go through red lights these days. I swear I see at least one a day – not just going through the tail-end of an amber light, but full on chugging through a red light, with other cars having to wait during a green light.

I’m not sure if it’s become more prevalent or not, but I really notice it a hell of a lot more.

wildturkeycanoe said :

Stahmo, You’ve just won the argument for all those in favour of bicycle registration.

I would use this form, but will be missing the vital detail – vehicle registration number – without which no action can possibly be taken.

Having a registration number is of no consequence because a member of the public filling in a form (or making a phonecall) isn’t sufficient proof for the police to fine/charge a road user, regardless of the vehicle. Please come back when you’ve got a plan that hasn’t been debunked in each of the previous cycling threads here.

smiling politely said :

astrojax said :

all i ever wanted to know about cycling in the act i learned on the riotact…

Must admit a lot of the things I read hereabouts put me off the idea of riding to and from work.

well, with an astromonkey in tow, i am also more leery of riding to work (having been hit from behind in the first fifty metres of any road riding after 10ks on a path on my way home a couple years ago) – so i see your point when ferrying children.

Wallly1972 said :

Which ones?

A friend of mine got T-boned on his bike when crossing a road at traffic lights last year. Unfortunately there were no witnesses and he cant remember the accident so they didnt/couldnt charge the person with going through the red light. 6 months later still recovering from the accident. Apparently he was hit by the car at 60km/hr and is lucky to be alive.

so yeah, accidents do happen.

smiling politely said :

astrojax said :

all i ever wanted to know about cycling in the act i learned on the riotact…

Must admit a lot of the things I read hereabouts put me off the idea of riding to and from work.

If you allow ranting internet forums to shape your opinion of something without trying for yourself, then that’s your considerable loss.

It takes me 9-15 minutes to cycle into work if I take the most direct route on the road. I choose extensive detours around the lake not only to avoid the worst of the roads, but to improve the view, prolong the journey, and provide an hour of exercise before I get to work.

If you don’t mind detours, there’s always a way to bypass stress points on a route.

smiling politely said :

Must admit a lot of the things I read hereabouts put me off the idea of riding to and from work.

Which ones?

I regularly ride 12k on the road to work and have never had an accident.
The roads are good – there is only one stretch (Eastern Valley Way) that is fast and narrow – the rest I think is safe – so long as you are visible and sensible.

On my trip there is one roundabout where I go in the middle of the lane – I’m going fast so not too much inconvenience; and I do the same for a right turn. The motorists all seem to be pretty happy about it.

IMHO accidents usually occur when cyclists do something that the motorists are not expecting – either because the motorist is not paying attention / not cyclist aware AND/OR the cyclist does somthing sudden / unusual / dangerous / illegal.

I’ve never experienced road rage and only a couple of times have motorists been rude – I agree, not the picture you’d get from reading RA!

smiling politely said :

Must admit a lot of the things I read hereabouts put me off the idea of riding to and from work.

Well, you’re missing out! The weather of late has been bloody fantastic for riding – I had an absolute blast this morning. Ignore the hyperbole and get out and see for yourself.

stahmo said :

I used the online ACT police form, but they seem to ignore those reports.

I’d love to hear about ANY success with such reports. Seems pretty unlikely they could ping someone based on a single unsupported accusation.

smiling politely said :

astrojax said :

all i ever wanted to know about cycling in the act i learned on the riotact…

Must admit a lot of the things I read hereabouts put me off the idea of riding to and from work.

Why?

You dont have to ride on major roads all the time to get to work. I ride 30km each way to work & only use 4km of roads, 2 of those are Commonwealth Ave but I dont have to if i dont want to, there is a cycle path right into the city.

astrojax said :

all i ever wanted to know about cycling in the act i learned on the riotact…

Must admit a lot of the things I read hereabouts put me off the idea of riding to and from work.

all i ever wanted to know about cycling in the act i learned on the riotact…

Stahmo, You’ve just won the argument for all those in favour of bicycle registration.

” I’ve reported incidences to the police, providing date, time, location, and vehicle registration number. I used the online ACT police form, but they seem to ignore those reports. I never received any correspondences.”

I would use this form, but will be missing the vital detail – vehicle registration number – without which no action can possibly be taken. This is exactly why cyclists need an identifier on the bike, so that motorists can submit the same feedback about the suicidal tendencies of our green-path obstacles.

stahmo said :

Why is it that police prioritise catching cyclists without a bell over catching irresponsible car drivers who are careless, or worse, who taunt and abuse cyclists on our roads? I’ve reported incidences to the police, providing date, time, location, and vehicle registration number. I used the online ACT police form, but they seem to ignore those reports. I never received any correspondences.

What is going on here?

email that you have used the form to the minister, and cc the AFP ?

niftydog said :

… Word on the street is that ACT Police will be targeting cyclists this month. … Make sure you have a bell, horn or “similar warning device” (does my cake-hole suffice?) and if riding at night (or wishing to avoid a semantic argument with Mr Plod) a red reflector AND a light on the rear, and a white light on the front.

Why is it that police prioritise catching cyclists without a bell over catching irresponsible car drivers who are careless, or worse, who taunt and abuse cyclists on our roads? I’ve reported incidences to the police, providing date, time, location, and vehicle registration number. I used the online ACT police form, but they seem to ignore those reports. I never received any correspondences.

What is going on here?

Finally, something that mentions
– overtaking on the left, but why do they have to add the not-in-the-road-rules stopped at traffic lights? Note, this is when in the same lane, a bicycle lane is a different lane.
– signalling left being optional, but buried at the end for a skimmer to miss.
– riding 2 abreast and even more when overtaking, WOW!

Hook turns are allowed nationally for bikes at any intersection – not just in Canberra.

There’s a few morons who get cranky when you do it in front of them (and it wouldn’t hurt if the bike hook turn storage area could be repainted at the lights on the corner of Macarthur and Northbourne Ave..)

Interesting to read from the brochure:

Slip streaming or pacing behind a moving vehicle is very dangerous, as the vehicle in front of you could suddenly stop.

… and reading between the lines: It’s not illegal (if you don’t sit closer than 2m to the vehicle for more than 200m at a time.)

niftydog said :

That’s been around for a while – hasn’t cleared up any misconceptions going by what I read around here.

Word on the street is that ACT Police will be targeting cyclists this month. I’d just about wager my pay check they’ll spend a few mornings at the infamous pedestrian crossing on David St Turner.

Make sure you have a bell, horn or “similar warning device” (does my cake-hole suffice?) and if riding at night (or wishing to avoid a semantic argument with Mr Plod) a red reflector AND a light on the rear, and a white light on the front.

Yeh, go after the hoods of O’Connor, and when I get locked up, there’ll be still penty of hammer in the Hume Hilton. FFS!?! Don’t they have anything better to do?

Hook turns are necessary given how the cycle lanes work at intersections with lights if you want to turn right you would have to get in the right car lane (and the green arrow won’t detect a bike) whereas the cycle lanes are on the left having to wait for two sets of traffic is a bit annoying.

I like the bit about being allowed to turn right from either lane of a multi-lane roundabout, but having to give way to traffic that may be going straight. Did I read that correctly or is it really just a recipe for pant stains all round?

Can we please have another brochure on “Easy steps to taking out a cyclist on the ACT roads” for the drivers?

For example:
– DO NOT look out for cyclists among other motor traffic on the roads. They are not meant to be seen but heard (usually screaming) when you take them out
– DO NOT look over your shoulders or next to your vehicle when crossing the cycle lane to turn left, and at no time indicate that your are turning left.

Hook turns, cool. I think I’ve seen cyclists do them, but more are just “brave” enough to head into the right lane and risk life and limb.

niftydog said :

That’s been around for a while – hasn’t cleared up any misconceptions going by what I read around here.

Well it certainly got new prominence on the TAMS site.

Guilty of not always dismounting at zebras and pedestrian crossings—I do sometimes, which probably makes me a schmuck.

That’s been around for a while – hasn’t cleared up any misconceptions going by what I read around here.

Word on the street is that ACT Police will be targeting cyclists this month. I’d just about wager my pay check they’ll spend a few mornings at the infamous pedestrian crossing on David St Turner.

Make sure you have a bell, horn or “similar warning device” (does my cake-hole suffice?) and if riding at night (or wishing to avoid a semantic argument with Mr Plod) a red reflector AND a light on the rear, and a white light on the front.

The brochure seem useful. However, curiously, the file name includes “May 2009”.