Cycling in Melbourne Australia
On the other hand...this angry lycra lad doesn't do the public perception of cyclists any favours
Via today's Herald Sun, here's a report of cycling road rage up in Sincity (Sydney). Seems this angry young man wanted to take on a bus driver who was just doing his job, although the cyclist thought otherwise. Bad press and publicity for all of us on two human powered wheels. Wouldn't happen in Melbourne, would it now?
Tags: cycling road rage, sydney
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Cory on -
That guy would have to be one of the most hated people in Sydney at the moment. I wonder if he'll ever be identified?
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Permalink Reply by Jack on -
Always wondered about the Buslane. Last year I rode along Stud Road around FTG Road with the nice paved Buslane, I don't remember seeing any "no cyclist" signs but there were the Bus only type symbols on the lane. It feels weird riding so far from the kerb when there is nothing in the lane.
I expect Bus Lanes are taboo maybe one of you guys can put me straight.
Usually I ride on bike trails and when I hit the bitumen I don't come across many Buslanes.
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Permalink Reply by Richard Monfries on -
In Sydney I think the rules are pretty clear. The roads are so congested - and in the public transport reliance on buses - bus lanes are sacrosanct, unless a 'vehicle' (including bikes) is turning left from the lane. The lanes look wide and empty, but only for the nano-second that a bus isn't thundering down the lane, a centimetre form the kerb. I'd feel safer out in the traffic if I rode a bike a Sydney; the traffic doesn't move fast enough to feel squeezed.
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Permalink Reply by Steve Jay on -
True, but I'd be relegated to cycleways and driving out to the country on days off :-(
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Permalink Reply by Adrian Tritschler on
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@Jack, Stud road buslane is a bus lane, in Victoria if it isn't labelled as a "bus/bicycle" lane and expressly ALLOWING bikes then it is only legal for buses to drive in it. By VicRoads rules, any bus lane where the speed limit is over 60km/hr is never marked as a Bus/Bike lane - bicycles are forced to ride to the right of the bus lane and have 70km/hr+ buses shoot past on their left while 70km/hr+ motorists shoot past on their right and abuse them for riding "in the middle of the road" and not in the buslane.
Same thing happens along North road/Wellington road between Huntingdale station and Monash University. Of course occasionally you get abused by bus drivers who don't believe bicycles are allowed on the roads at all.
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Permalink Reply by Emma on -
Still there's hundreds of millions of drivers who kill, maim and injure cyclists every day. I'm a young female and I've had a male driver verbally abuse me in a full on aggro way. People are just angry. Everyone should just chill out a bit.
...and car drivers are bogans, anyway.
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Permalink Reply by ChrisS on -
Well, some of them are, although I prefer to perceive people via their behaviour not solely on the form of transport they maybe utilising at the time.
Although choice of transport does tend to magnify some personality flaws. And that does cut both ways. ;)
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Permalink Reply by Richard Monfries on
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We are all road users, and it seems intuitive that we should behave on the roads - when we choose to share the road with other bikes, cars, motorbikes, mopeds, trucks, rickshaws, semis, so on and so on - in a manner of respect. Cyclists have rights - mostly the right to be respected as being the smallest (human-powered) vehicle on the road, and 'protected' as such - but we also have the responsibility to ride defensively, that is safely, but not aggressively. Looks plain silly otherwise. Some rights are absolute, but they don't come without responsibility.
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