A few weeks ago I attended a cross-party meeting on cycling. MPs from Labour, National and the Greens were all in attendance and Bike NZ gave us an excellent presentation on practical steps they thought we could take to make our roads safer for cyclists. We had quite a lot of discussion about our ‘car is king’ culture. I have to admit that despite being a frequent cyclist myself I’m probably not the most cycle-aware driver when behind the wheel of car.
I’m interested in feedback on some of the suggestions Bike NZ put forward, such as:
- Lower speed limits in urban/rural areas (eg. around schools, shops, where the road is narrow)
- More comprehensive ‘Share the Road’ and ‘1.5 metre’ campaigns (should 1.5 metres be the legal passing space?)
- More designated cycle lanes and cycle routes (and should school kids be allowed to ride on footpaths?)
- A national bike skills in schools programme
- Better integration with public transport (eg. allowing bikes on trains and buses)
- Higher penalties for distracted driving
We also talked about the fact that a lot of government agencies (including local government) are doing bits here and there on cycling but there doesn’t appear to be an over-arching strategy. That’s certainly something I’d like to see the government address.
Kiwi enthusiasm for cycling is certainly increasing. It’s better for our health, reduces traffic congestion and carbon emissions, and it’s cheaper! We’ve still got a way to go if we’re going to properly address all the issues around cycling, so it’s great to see MPs from across the spectrum coming together to talk about it and work with each other.
Jeremy yes CHCH is a fantastic city to cycle in, as is Dunedin (I have lived in both). Wellington not so. Now that I am older & a lot softer I only do recreational cycling in Wellington and when I do commute it is via the main highway. Only ever head out on good weather days & at times when there is less traffic & less cyclists -e.g. early Sunday rides are far better than Saturdays! Being a parent I am a lot more cautious.
In terms of the trucks – very aware of all things trucking as Hubby is in transport
Many of the big linehaul/tanker guys have speedlimiters and actually set their speedos to 90k. This includes a lot of the guys who have big new super powerful trucks. But then you get trucks who don’t do this as because their cargo is a lot lighter or are doing runs where they just do trailer swaps so rip along the highways and lightening speeds.
In terms of blind spot – totally agree with it as have been in a truck many a time to see this for myself and in fact if people follow too closely to things like 4wd double cab UTEs that are high and very long (close to a metre longer than most cars including wagons) you can’t can’t be seen if in a smaller vehicle and following too closely.
Point is the truck that killed the cop cyclist had to have seen him as he passed him and clearly only just since he was crushed by the back wheels. Good that he was found guilty.
As cyclist I have found most freight truckies fantastic, but the dump/tipper trucks (e.g. the ones that cart gravel and dirt around) not so.
Just driven back from the centre of Christchurch to the seaside (leaving 9:30).
Passed 3 cyclists on the way.
Only one of them had any kind of lights on, and that was on his hat. When he turned his head sideways he disappeared from view also.
Does anyone still maintain we don’t need a look-after-yourself safety campaign aimed at cyclists in addition to those aimed at motorists?
It’s all downhill from here.