was just in the city and noticed some banners hanging in george street talking about some world class cycle ways being built soon?
anyone know what the go with that is?
The cycleways currently put in place all over the city are bloody dangerous! Exactly the width of the doors of the cars parked next to it.
I’d rather use the road than being doored on my next ride…
err cycle ways not keen one those rather the buss lane
I wouldnt use the word World Class at this stage, but surely they could have put the money they used to advertise on said banners into the actual bike lanes. grumble.
I just want to unleash my inner Dutchman. Bring on the world-class.
i assume you’ve seen the shitty cycle way they have at the top of bourke st near taylor square?
I think the way they’ve designed the lanes is totally rubbish - the width is totally stupid…it’s a decent initiative but as far as i see at the moment it’s being implemented in the dumbest way possible
I asume you’ve communicated your ideas and criticism to the council and other parties involved in develloping the bike lanes throughout Sydney?
Its all well and good ranting on here, but nothings going to change unless more people get involved with the devellopment of a safer cycling culture in Sydney. Be it advertising campaigns for road safety, cycleway planning and implimentation, awareness campaigns etc.
I guss I’d like to see lanes with less intersections and driveways across them. No one will use the cycle lanes if you have to stop every 50 meters to let a car or padestrian cross your path.
I’m too lazy to campaign for it though, so I’ll just use what I’m given. :rolleyes:
In a letter I got from Clover Moore recently:
[LEFT][FONT=Arial][SIZE=2]I encourage you to also contact your local MP and the Minister for Roads, The Hon. David
Borger MP, to let them know about the need for safe and connected cycling
infrastructure. You can write to the Minister at Level 37 Governor Macquarie Tower, 1 Farrer
Place, Sydney NSW 2000 or at minister@borger.minister.nsw.gov.au, and you can find your[/LEFT]
local MP at Parliament of NSW.
[/SIZE][/FONT]
I was out riding towards Rodd Pt last Saturday afternoon (i had no idea where i was going) and I found some more cycleways, but the first part (before the UTS Rowing Club) was right next to all the parked cars, so you have to hope and pray that no one opens their door as you’re cruising down the hill at 50km/h. Then, once you get onto the cycle path, you get the filthiest looks from people walking on the path as well, even if you crawl past them and their 4 dogs. It was either that, or City West Link - and I’m not sure people would even see you when they’re zipping along.
The biggest problem I’ve had has been pedestrians and people walking their dogs. There is really no way to tell them they’re in the wrong without coming off like a dick.
I get that all the time on wilson st, mostly because the footpath is shit and the cyclepath minutely better. Thats what bells are for I guess. or we could just hit them, seemed to work in making people not walk on the road when cars are driving. but common sense doesnt seem to be a strong point in alot of people these days. if they learn the hard way they might smarten up?
That… Is a very appropriate comment after seeing the shit go down yesterday on Bondi Road! One of the worst days I’ve spent on the bike ever…
What happened?
Yeah - I’m intrigued too.
My take on the cycleways fwiw… Overall a good idea, not so great execution.
- Stupid dog-legs around bus shelters stop you riding at a decent pace;
- Driveways and crossroads make it dangerous in peak hour, and drivers are hardly cyclist friendly in Sydney at the best of times;
- Brighton le Sands path is really a ‘yellow(red) brick road’ (pave anyone?), and goes through way too many carparks along the beach and passes many dog-walkers;
- Without all the roads being linked up with the paths you can’t determine if it’s any good;
- As well as 4, if the ‘network’ isn’t efficient then we’ll use the roads instead (this will probably happen anyway) and drivers will just get even more agressive about bikes not being on cycle paths.
- Where there is a path and we don’t use it, we can be breaking the law.
I think the more feedback we actually direct at the council the more it can be improved, I highly doubt anyone who has any say in the council directions will be on here reading us whinge about it. We have gotten to a stage to have the bike lanes, we need to just get them sorted out and user friendly for everyone.
Aside from most of the bunch having zero road sense? The sunday kids (some, not all) were all over the road, running red lights into oncoming traffic and trying to cut through padestrians who were crossing and had right of way. Hoppy even got hit when one of the sunday hipsters tried to cut inbetween us and blow through the red which we were stopped at, infront of a cop car!
I lost count of how many horns were blown or padestrians yelled at us. And that was only on the ride out there. Was worse in the hillclimb race up Bondi Rd in peak hour Sunday afternoon traffic. TBH, I was quite embarrassed to be apart of it all, even though I was riding sensibily.
Then to top it off, a padestrian got absolutelly destroyed by a car opposite the park where the race finished. Was a combination of him stepping onto the road without looking, and a car trying to scoot around a few others down the left hand lane at an intersection.
Was at least 40mins before the ambulance got him stabalized and took him to hospital.
Untill kids start getting a bit of common sence and patience on the road, and start doing the right thing, we’re never ever going to get other road user’s respect and courtesy in return.
In short, it really really pissed me off seeing some of riding on display yesterday. You cant expect motorists (or padestrians) to give us a bit of courtesy on the roads when people are riding like that!
im sorry if i was one of those kids doing stupid shit 
yeah it comes down to some of the idiots on bikes with probs no helmets, brakes,bells, not following the rules and setting poor examples that all drivers/pedestrians think we are all like that. it only takes one idiot to ruin it for everyone else and it makes everyone else have to work twice as hard to get respect, like myself who actually rides to work on my bike yet feel way too intimidated to ride on the road most times. I am constantly getting yelled at, honked at, even thrown stuff at on a couple occasions.
I rode with the Sunday crew once. I haven’t since.