Brisbane Bikeways

It really cheezes me off that they want to promote cycling as a way of
reducing congestion on our roads, and at the same time keeping us fit, well
you cannot just enjoy a ride around Brisbane bikeways anymore, it seems that
they are forever doing work and closing bikeways.
I went on a ride yesterday, and around the Riverside Bikeway in the city it
has sections that say "Cyclists must dismount", why, why can't we just take
care on these sections.
I was abused yeterday by some walker saying hey mate can't you read the
signs??

I refuse to ride on the road as its way to dangerous, too many idiots on the
roads that just hate cyclists guts, and are out there to hit you.

I have been all over the world, and its a shame that Austraians can't
respect cyclists like other countries do.

Now with this Northbank project ( at North Quay ) they are talking about, 10
years of construction, its going to close one of Brisbanes busiest, and
favourite bikeway loops.

Its a shame our cycling authorities arn't doing enough for us, they are
pretty slack, I have complained many times, and it seems it they don't
really care about us.

"Terry" wrote in message
...
I went on a ride yesterday, and around the Riverside Bikeway in the city
it has sections that say "Cyclists must dismount", why, why can't we just
take care on these sections.

Rules is rules.

I was abused yeterday by some walker saying hey mate can't you read the
signs??


Wear an iPod so you don't hear them and/or develop a thicker skin.
"Hey mate can't you read the signs"
"Hey mate. Read this one." Flip bird.

A better way is to greet people as you approach. Get in with a smile and a
"gidday howyagoin" at the exact moment they see you and they won't be able
to grumble at you even if you are doing the wrong thing (or they perceive
that you are). Making a conscious effort to be pleasant rubs off on everyone
around you and you'll finish your ride in a better mood.

I refuse to ride on the road as its way to dangerous, too many idiots on
the roads that just hate cyclists guts, and are out there to hit you.


I haven't found that at all. I have far fewer incidents on my bike than I do
in my car. Ride defensively and courteously (obey the road rules as if you
were a car and avoid busy roads with no shoulders where possible) and then
there's just the occasional ****** to deal with from time to time. For them
see iPod and thicker skin above. However, the "being pleasant" approach
works on cagers too. When someone does something stupid they usually know
it. If you give them a wave or pretend to tip your helmet or something like
that to let them know there's no hard feelings everyone leaves smiling. If
you react angrily they get defensive which leads to road rage and stress for
both parties.

--
www.ozcableguy.com
www.oztechnologies.com

Hmm
That's what I've been saying all along! There are virtually no bikepaths in
Aus.
They are all shared pathways and in places, dangerous for both walkers and
riders.
This is how it is and don't expect dedicated paths for cyclists only. It
won't happen.

Cyclists & pedestrians have to co exist like motorists and cyclists. Sounds
simple but often the simple things are the hardest to achieve.

JoeDe

"Terry" wrote in message
...
It really cheezes me off that they want to promote cycling as a way of
reducing congestion on our roads, and at the same time keeping us fit,
well you cannot just enjoy a ride around Brisbane bikeways anymore, it
seems that they are forever doing work and closing bikeways.
I went on a ride yesterday, and around the Riverside Bikeway in the city
it has sections that say "Cyclists must dismount", why, why can't we just
take care on these sections.
I was abused yeterday by some walker saying hey mate can't you read the
signs??

I refuse to ride on the road as its way to dangerous, too many idiots on
the roads that just hate cyclists guts, and are out there to hit you.

I have been all over the world, and its a shame that Austraians can't
respect cyclists like other countries do.

Now with this Northbank project ( at North Quay ) they are talking about,
10 years of construction, its going to close one of Brisbanes busiest, and
favourite bikeway loops.

Its a shame our cycling authorities arn't doing enough for us, they are
pretty slack, I have complained many times, and it seems it they don't
really care about us.

Hi

well, Brisbane is perhaps better off than other places, such as the Gold Coast
for example. Try riding across the "Sundale Bridge" using the cycle lane
painted onto the road ... if your brave.

But yes, I agree with you. I'm in Finland at the moment, and they have more
than 8000 Km of cycle paths here. Despite the foul weather, slippery
conditions and outright cold people here ride bicycles.

Not only do the Australian authorities not care about bicycle riders, but they
care nothing for the people who administer it. I seem to recall that the
officer in charge of bicycle paths (opposed to the use of shared road / cycle
ways as I understood) was killed riding his bicycle to work some years ago.

Consistently our government is failing to meet targets on sustainable
transport.

Its all rather a joke really ...

I wonder how much influence the introduction of helmet laws (another can of
worms) effected the participation rates of bicycling in Oz?



See Ya
(when bandwidth gets better ;-)

Chris Eastwood
Photographer, Programmer
Motorcyclist and dingbat

please remove undies for reply

Hi

In article , "JoeDe"
wrote:

Cyclists & pedestrians have to co exist like motorists and cyclists. Sounds
simple but often the simple things are the hardest to achieve.

I lived in Japan for some years, and there it all seems to work OK. They have
a view in the law that:

-you do not have a *right* to own and drive a car
-there is public transport available
-if you hit a cyclist or pedestrian then its your fault

you will loose your licence if you are not careful there. If you happen to be
a professional driver and thus loose your job, well that's tough luck. You
should have been more professional.

I personally feel that its all down to issues like:

- we don't have decent public transport and the government wishes to not make
the investments
- we have allowed urban development to sprawl enough forcing us to use
mechanised transport
- the government make more revenues from car transport than bicycle
- there is a developed attitude to car's own the road (I also ride a
motorcycle and used to drive a delivery truck for a living)

but we don't put pressure on our "members" and the vast voting public would
rather have cheap fuel and drive their cars 1.5km to the shops to get a packet
of cigaretts and pick up some beers on the way home.


See Ya
(when bandwidth gets better ;-)

Chris Eastwood
Photographer, Programmer
Motorcyclist and dingbat

please remove undies for reply

On Dec 8, 11:21 am, "OzCableguy" wrote:
"Terry" wrote in message

...

I went on a ride yesterday, and around the Riverside Bikeway in the city
it has sections that say "Cyclists must dismount", why, why can't we just
take care on these sections.

Rules is rules.

I was abused yeterday by some walker saying hey mate can't you read the
signs??

Wear an iPod so you don't hear them and/or develop a thicker skin.
"Hey mate can't you read the signs"
"Hey mate. Read this one." Flip bird.

A better way is to greet people as you approach. Get in with a smile and a
"gidday howyagoin" at the exact moment they see you and they won't be able
to grumble at you even if you are doing the wrong thing (or they perceive
that you are). Making a conscious effort to be pleasant rubs off on everyone
around you and you'll finish your ride in a better mood.

I refuse to ride on the road as its way to dangerous, too many idiots on
the roads that just hate cyclists guts, and are out there to hit you.

I haven't found that at all. I have far fewer incidents on my bike than I do
in my car. Ride defensively and courteously (obey the road rules as if you
were a car and avoid busy roads with no shoulders where possible) and then
there's just the occasional ****** to deal with from time to time. For them
see iPod and thicker skin above. However, the "being pleasant" approach
works on cagers too. When someone does something stupid they usually know
it. If you give them a wave or pretend to tip your helmet or something like
that to let them know there's no hard feelings everyone leaves smiling. If
you react angrily they get defensive which leads to road rage and stress for
both parties.

--www.ozcableguy.comwww.oztechnologies.com

Sorry Ozzie but if you say "rules is rules" to "cyclists must
dismount", then with the greatest respect, I say "get the extinguisher
for your arse". The signs are generally ignorant of rules and reality
and are put up by ****s who haven't bothered to consult ... which is
why they are ignored and why they result in conflict between cyclists
and peds. Refer to extensive archives on bikeqld with respect to Coro
Drive. In that case and in others, we forced BCC into removing/
changing the signs, eventally.

Donga

"Donga" wrote in message
...


Sorry Ozzie but if you say "rules is rules" to "cyclists must
dismount", then with the greatest respect, I say "get the extinguisher
for your arse". The signs are generally ignorant of rules and reality
and are put up by ****s who haven't bothered to consult ... which is
why they are ignored and why they result in conflict between cyclists
and peds. Refer to extensive archives on bikeqld with respect to Coro
Drive. In that case and in others, we forced BCC into removing/
changing the signs, eventally.



I didn't say I agreed with them or liked them, and I can tell you one person
right now who would almost certainly ignore them... ;-)

--
www.ozcableguy.com
www.oztechnologies.com

On Dec 11, 3:19 pm, "OzCableguy" wrote:
"Donga" wrote in message

...



Sorry Ozzie but if you say "rules is rules" to "cyclists must
dismount", then with the greatest respect, I say "get the extinguisher
for your arse". The signs are generally ignorant of rules and reality
and are put up by ****s who haven't bothered to consult ... which is
why they are ignored and why they result in conflict between cyclists
and peds. Refer to extensive archives on bikeqld with respect to Coro
Drive. In that case and in others, we forced BCC into removing/
changing the signs, eventally.

I didn't say I agreed with them or liked them, and I can tell you one person
right now who would almost certainly ignore them... ;-)

--www.ozcableguy.comwww.oztechnologies.com

Ah good to hear! We can crash them together.

Further to this, I just spent a few days in Perth and walked and ran
around a fair bit, being wheel-less. The bike paths there are amazing.
First up, they are well made and go for miles uninterrupted. Second,
they take up space that could easily be turned into another car lane,
as would happen in Brisbane. Brisbane has crappy, meandering, broken
up, poorly maintained bikeways except for a couple of examples. There
does not seem to be a rule, compared to Perth, whereby cycle ways as a
matter of policy are put in next to rail lines, highways etc. It all
left me thinking there are a few individuals/groups in Brisbane who,
compared to Perth, are to quote Bart Simpson, underachieving and proud
of it.