New Safe Passing Laws in Effect in WA

[Aushiker]

Plenty of media today on the coming into effect of the safe passing laws in WA. In particular this statement by a Western Australian Police spokeswoman caught my attention:

A WA Police spokeswoman said the new rules removed any ambiguity about proper behaviour and distance for motorists and cyclists. She said sanctions would be issued when there was clear and legally admissible evidence of a breach.

Seriously full of .... is this WA Police Spokeswoman ... "clear and legally admissible evidence" means a 100% failure to act by WA Police as any WA cyclist who has tried to report such behaviours well knows.

So much for the Commissioner of Police's statement ...

[Cycleops70]

I was out this morning & found the drivers I came across to be very well behaved & patient.
Waiting behind at a safe distance, until a safe opportunity to pass, or we were through an intersection.
I hope this was not just a fluke, or my own confirmation bias. Long may it continue.

Although I suspect, without adequate enforcement, it's likely to fade.

[Mububban]

Rather than just posting about the 1m passing laws, I've been trying very hard to repeat this message to calm the angry knee jerk reactions of those who only read a headline and not the whole article. May I suggest we all do the same thing? We still spread the safe passing message, but actively defuse the most common complaint before it can even be mentioned:

[Aushiker]

@Cycleops70 I cannot say that I have experienced better behaviour but then my local rides this week are in areas where anyone seems to get along nicely most of the time. Will be hitting the highway out of Esperance for a bit next week ... that will be test with some of the people driving wheat trucks.

@Mububban agree 100%. I like to point to/refer people to the Road Safety Commission FAQ and I like Rob's reply on Facebook too.

[Thoglette]

And the West Australian publishes an incoherent rant by Stuart Smith of Maida Vale.

Unfortunately he correctly quotes misleading information published the Road Safety Council here

Anyone know who pulls their strings?

[Philistine]

I have always understood that double white lines were painted along the middle of the road when the curvature and undulations of that road made it imperative that you never stray from your own side. If it is ever safe to cross them to overtake a cyclist, or for any other reason, why are they there in the first place?

[Thoglette]

I have always understood that double white lines were painted along the middle of the road when the curvature and undulations of that road made it imperative that you never stray from your own side.

They are about passing. And passing another vehicle at or near the speed limit, with perhaps a 20kph difference in vehicle speeds. ("Straying" is prohibited regardless of road markings)

With the increase in nannyism the lines keep expanding well beyond "imperative" to just about anywhere that bad things might happen, perhaps. (According to one blogger, some parts of the US have got so bad you can't legally pass for dozens of miles at a time.)

Traditionally, sane motorists ignored the prohibition when slowly passing slow moving traffic (e.g. tractors and road plant). And sane cops would ignore these "transgressions". However this was always one of the whining points for the anti-passing crowd.

From where I sit it's nice to see sane exemptions explicitly making it into the regulations. Even if it does make them longer.

[dmwill]

Didn't take long....unsurprisingly, it was a Landcruiser.

https://www.facebook.com/thewestaustral ... 0566104439

[Aushiker]

Didn't take long....unsurprisingly, it was a Landcruiser.

Excellent news, just don't read the comments

I ride 125 km yesterday. All up some noticable improvement in driver behavoiur; some of it was a bit over the top but I an not complaining. Had two close passes and one horn blowen by tail-gater in a 4WD ute. Better than the past.

[jaythefordman]

Excellent news, just don't read the comments

Yes, and definitely yes. I swear I'm a step closer to cancer reading the retardedness that people spew behind keyboards in this regards.

[ColinOldnCranky]

Rather than just posting about the 1m passing laws, I've been trying very hard to repeat this message to calm the angry knee jerk reactions of those who only read a headline and not the whole article. May I suggest we all do the same thing? We still spread the safe passing message, but actively defuse the most common complaint before it can even be mentioned:

Can you link us to where this is from pls Mububban? Or name the brochure or whatever?

[Mububban]

Rather than just posting about the 1m passing laws, I've been trying very hard to repeat this message to calm the angry knee jerk reactions of those who only read a headline and not the whole article. May I suggest we all do the same thing? We still spread the safe passing message, but actively defuse the most common complaint before it can even be mentioned:

Can you link us to where this is from pls Mububban? Or name the brochure or whatever?

it was from another thread about a truckie copping a fine.

http://epaper.communitynews.com.au/frem ... e/20171128

Scroll to the 1 NEWS section, a few pages in