Wire strung across bike path... What has stopped you?

[cj7hawk]

Not so much fun today - went out, was pushing hard up a hill and just glanced it a moment before I hit it - a piece of wire strung across the bike path at about ankle level

I don't know if someone was trying to trip someone or something - it was too low for a man-trap and was just around a blind corner - I suspect someone put it there mucking around, or perhaps it just ended up there. Whatever, it was pretty thin wire and as it pulled taught there was a brief resistance as it went taught, then a snap, and I was through it -

Except after I rode about 5 meters I realized that the piece which I had ripped off was now tangled in my rear wheel as the resistance built back up again quickly. So I slowed and realized it snagged on the wheel, and was now wrapped around the gears, had scratched up the hub and ripped a brake pad out of alignment.

So I removed it, put it well off the bike path and continued on - hopefully no further damage. I continued on and overdid it on that ride, arriving more exhausted than I intended...But thought I'd mention the day...

Just wondering what other problems the forum regulars have hit on bike paths... Maybe I can learn from someone else's experience?

David.

[Grgic]

Trolleys, kangaroos and most problematic tree branches that have been blown down after a storm (hard to see before sun up even with lights).

[dmwill]

Might be worth telling us where this was CJ, so we can all keep an eye out.

[OldBloke]

Trip wire could do serious injury to an elderly person and maybe even a jogger. I hope you reported it to the Police CJ.
Sent from my Winows Phone using Tapatalk

[cj7hawk]

Trip wire could do serious injury to an elderly person and maybe even a jogger. I hope you reported it to the Police CJ.
Sent from my Winows Phone using Tapatalk

As mentioned, I couldn't be sure whether it was set there, or ended up there... I only caught a glimpse. But yeah, I took a picture so perhaps I should send it to the locals... After all I give them enough grief over their lack of action on various problems... OK, good point, done.

David

[PommieYeti]

This morning i was stopped ....
OK I STOPPED MYSELF to have a look at at James Moffats Nissan Altima V8, It was parked in the carpark just as you come under the canning bridge, Myself and another cyclist were lucky enough to get our pictures taken with the car and James. They were unveiling the new sponsors on the vehicle and were gonna do a ride around South Perth, and just further down the road they were filming/photoshoot for a HBF advert ..its all go in South Perth



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wGmpSADB2M4" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Cheesewheel]

goannas are also a bit freaky

[m@]

Not on a bike path, but I hit a wire 'fence' taking a short-cut between Ginninderra Drive and Bruce in Canberra years ago - just some rusty strands of fencing wire strung between star pickets, presumably there to stop cars driving around a boom gate; there were some bits of tape that were probably fluorescent once, but had long since faded to white...

I saw the wire and got on the brakes just before I hit it; went in at I guess about 20kmph, copping it across my upper arms and chest. Managed to pull up just as the wire ran out of slack. Ended up with pretty impressive bruises across both biceps and smaller one across my chest; could've been so much worse if the top wire had been a bit higher or I'd been going faster. I stopped on the way home to take some photos to send to someone - but the next day it was gone. Seemed like a hell of a coincidence as it'd clearly been there for years

[Cycleops70]

Tiger snakes, quite difficult to see in the shadows of tree branches.
Roos
And fallen trees.
Mostly around Lake Joondalup.

[Robinho]

I nearly hit a brown bandicoot in the half dark the other night, he was pretty chunky, had I got him I reckon I would have fallen off

[TheWall]

I was stopped at an RBT recently between Tewantin and Boreen Point. Cop said she had booked 4 cyclists in 10 years at the same spot [emoji15]

[yugyug]

I was stopped at an RBT recently between Tewantin and Boreen Point. Cop said she had booked 4 cyclists in 10 years at the same spot [emoji15]

Stopped for breath testing? What state are you in? Didn't think police had authority to do that for cyclists except after collisions.

(Or I should say more precisely, they can ask, but you don't have comply unless you've been in a collision)

[TheWall]

Qld

[yugyug]

Seems what I said applies to QLD too, unless it's changed since 2010
http://m.brisbanetimes.com.au/queenslan ... -pztf.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[wellington_street]

Seems what I said applies to QLD too, unless it's changed since 2010
http://m.brisbanetimes.com.au/queenslan ... -pztf.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Section 80(2) refers to a motor vehicle on a road, not even a bicycle on a road. Unless I'm missing something, Police cannot request a breath test (well they can but they have no legislative power to compel you to give one) on a bicycle rider.

https://www.legislation.qld.gov.au/legi ... prua95.pdf" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

(2) A police officer may require any person found by the officer
or who the officer reasonably suspects was during the last
preceding 3 hours—
(a) driving a motor vehicle, tram or train on a road or
elsewhere; or
(b) attempting to put in motion a motor vehicle, tram or
train on a road or elsewhere; or
(c) in charge of a motor vehicle, tram or train on a road or
elsewhere; or
(d) driving or in charge of or attempting to put in motion a
vessel being used or apparently about to be used in
navigation;
to provide a specimen of breath for a breath test by the person,
a specimen of saliva for a saliva test by the person, or both.

[TheWall]

Interesting. Surely there would not be a loophole so big as to allow cyclists to get stonkered and ride home from the pub? Why aren't there bikes racks at the local!!!!

[RonK]

Seems what I said applies to QLD too, unless it's changed since 2010
http://m.brisbanetimes.com.au/queenslan ... -pztf.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

That article is about riding on the bikepath, not the road.

[eldavo]

Going back a while, a turtle on the path tangled in its own neck/leg, rider ahead ignored it so I stopped.

Most recently an old traffic cone on the west coast highway bounced by traffic near current path works. No reflective marker and after twilight, and I'd just seen a road bike on the road with no headlight who wouldn't catch it with oncoming car headlights... so hopped off, ran back, threw it towards the verge cricket follow through style, then ran back again. Pedestrians walking didn't look like they were interested in the task =P

[yugyug]

Seems what I said applies to QLD too, unless it's changed since 2010
http://m.brisbanetimes.com.au/queenslan ... -pztf.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

That article is about riding on the bikepath, not the road.

Not entirely. The police spokesperson was being disingenuous when they said

''Police have the legislative power to conduct a roadside breath test on a person driving a motor vehicle under section 80 (2) of the [Transport Operations (Road Use Management) Act] but this does not extend to bicycles ridden on a bike path.''

They really meant

''Police have the legislative power to conduct a roadside breath test on a person driving a motor vehicle under section 80 (2) of the [Transport Operations (Road Use Management) Act] but this does not extend to bicycles ridden on a bike path, or actually bicycles ridden anywhere because they are not motor vehicles.''

Welling street posted the legislation above.

[yugyug]

Interesting. Surely there would not be a loophole so big as to allow cyclists to get stonkered and ride home from the pub? Why aren't there bikes racks at the local!!!!

It's not a loophole - the legislation for breath testing was never applied to non-motor vehicles because there never existed enough of a problem to which it would apply. But if u are drunk and crash, you may be obliged to have a blood sample taken at hospital, at least in two states I know about.

I suspect pubs don't deem it appropriate to do anything that may encourage their patrons to drink and ride home. Funnily enough though, in some US jurisdiction there are planning regulations that require a certain amount of car parks to be created for new buildings, the number depending on their size, INCLUDING BARS AND PUBS. How messed up is that? I wouldn't be surprised if such regulations may even apply in Australia, but I hope not.

[wellington_street]

Funnily enough though, in some US jurisdiction there are planning regulations that require a certain amount of car parks to be created for new buildings, the number depending on their size, INCLUDING BARS AND PUBS. How messed up is that? I wouldn't be surprised if such regulations may even apply in Australia, but I hope not.

This is standard in Australia - most Local Govt planning requirements will have minimum rates for "restaurant" or "tavern" type developments.

[yugyug]

It's outrageous really. You could argue that restaurants/taverns are a grey error because they serve food and not everybody drinks, but even if you ignore the serving alcohol and encouraging driving problem, there is still the problem of providing free parking in the first place. As Donald Shoup elegantly explained decades ago:

http://www.uctc.net/papers/351.pdf" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

TLDR: council regulations for the provision of carparks produces urban sprawl and dangerous, unlivable cities.

Yes there are good urban planners around who understand these issues but many local councils will be the last to change. Sometimes I wonder that in the future we will look back on these practices like we now look back on things like Victorian era child labour.

[RonK]

Seems what I said applies to QLD too, unless it's changed since 2010
http://m.brisbanetimes.com.au/queenslan ... -pztf.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

That article is about riding on the bikepath, not the road.

Not entirely. The police spokesperson was being disingenuous when they said

''Police have the legislative power to conduct a roadside breath test on a person driving a motor vehicle under section 80 (2) of the [Transport Operations (Road Use Management) Act] but this does not extend to bicycles ridden on a bike path.''

They really meant

''Police have the legislative power to conduct a roadside breath test on a person driving a motor vehicle under section 80 (2) of the [Transport Operations (Road Use Management) Act] but this does not extend to bicycles ridden on a bike path, or actually bicycles ridden anywhere because they are not motor vehicles.''

Welling street posted the legislation above.

The police spokesperson was being disingenuous? I don't think so.

First, let take some advice from the QLD Legal AId Service.

What is a 'vehicle'?

The definition of vehicle is very wide and includes:

a motor vehicle
a boat or jet ski
and all other means of transport that move on wheels including bicycles.

You are breaking the law if you drive a motor vehicle when you are over the limit, no matter where you drive. For vehicles which are not motorised, you are breaking the law if you are on a road when you are over the limit.

And according to the QLD Police Traffic Manual, section 7.17

When persons are suspected of committing an offence under s. 79(7) of the Transport Operations (Road Use Management) Act (such as a person riding a bicycle or a horse whilst under the influence of liquor or a drug) no authority exists to require that such persons provide a specimen of breath for a breath test. However following the arrest of such persons a requirement may lawfully be made for the subject persons to provide a specimen of breath for analysis or a specimen of blood for a laboratory test.

This simply means a cyclist cannot be subjected to a random breathe test. So they just have to arrest you first. And the result is all these riders were breath tested and charged:

Reported in the Sunshine Coast Daily 27 Nov 2012 Drunk cyclist cops $400 fine after random breath test

Reported in the Queensland Times 4 Nov 2014 Cyclists warned not to ride tipsy on two wheels

Reported in the Daily Mercury 5 Dec 2013 Drunken pushie rider only made it 200m before he passed out

Not a bicycle, but not a vehicle either by your definition, and kinda amusing - reported in Courier Mail 16 Aug 2011 Court slaps $500 fine on drunken driver of motorised esky in Noosa

Not difficult to find more examples.

[queequeg]

I think you are getting mixed up between simply being under the influence versus being charged with a PCA Offence.

In NSW, RBT falls under the relevant act regarding Motor Vehicles Only. It is not possible for a cyclist to be breath tested and issues a PCA Offence.
However. police may observe you riding whilst intoxicated and issue you with a general "driving under the influence" infringement. They don't need the breath test you for that.