"cfsmtb" wrote in message
...

Huzzah! Huzzah!

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Minister lifts bicycle ban on peak-hour trains
http://tinyurl.com/2bq2yh

PUBLIC Transport Minister Lynne Kosky will today bow to
anger from cyclists and reverse a controversial plan to ban bikes on
trains during rush hours.


Bicycles will once again be allowed on all Connex and V/Line
trains at all times - but only in the final carriage of Connex
services, and only in set storage areas on V/Line trains.


The backpedal comes just six weeks after the rush-hour ban
was revealed.


The ban was not formally announced; instead, it was found in
the fine print of the Government's annual Fares and Ticketing Manual.



Ms Kosky, who was on holiday when the ban was revealed,
distanced herself from the decision to ban bikes, and immediately
ordered a review of the decision upon returning to work last month.



The move to ban bikes on Connex and V/Line services sparked
heated debate, with many questioning the Government's commitment to
more Victorians using sustainable forms of transport.


The ban was also bad news for cycle lobby group Bicycle
Victoria, which was forced to issue a public apology to its members for
not fighting the Government over the issue.


Bicycle Victoria's general manager, Harry Barber, said last
night that he was relieved the ban had been reversed. \"All the people
who use a train-and-bike combination to get to work will be vastly
relieved by this,\" Mr Barber said. \"We can now get on with hooking
the bicycle network up with the train network.\"


Ms Kosky will today meet bicycle and transport groups to
advise them that she will reverse the policy.


In a sop to bike riders, Ms Kosky will also implement a new
policy allowing folding bikes - little used in Australia but popular in
European and American cities - on all trams and buses. Bikes will need
to be folded before getting on to a service.


Chris Star, who helped form lobby group Bin the Bike Ban last
month, said she was relieved the ban had been dropped.


\"It created a lot of anger because we saw it as a denial of
service. And it was done at such short notice and without
consultation,\" she said.

Go you! Incidentally, do you know whether the bikes on the last carriage on
Connex services caveat is only during peak hours or all day?