The two hurdles are the Government and Law Enforcement.
The Government (primarily state) will praise its efforts, even when non-existent. They publish selected information to support their agenda, they are hard to reach and even harder to get meaningful dialogue. They ignore or block requests for information (when will it happen or how exactly was the money spent). And the ministers change so the agenda changes and it is like starting again.
Law Enforcement appear to have other priorities, cycling safety is rarely important enough to focus any energy until there is injury or a death. There is massive inconsistency in approaches between different stations and if the duty officer is aware of the law and options, a clear procedure can hinder progress.
In a recent article on BNA - focussed on NSW - the Department for Transport referred all questions except one to the NSW Police.
https://www.bicycles.net.au/2018/10/aus ... ng-safety/
In summary, the NSW government saw they make the laws, do marketing but the rest is up to the police.
I enquired about enforcement of the Minimum Passing Distance Law
Christopher wrote:In May 2018, the new “Minimum Passing Distance” transitioned from a trial to a permanent law. How does the NSW police enforce this law and are there plans increase enforcement?
NSW Police Spokesperson wrote:police continue to enforce Minimum Passing Distance provisions by way of enforcement activities, or taking reports from those persons that wish to report such an issue.
Christopher wrote:Are there plans to improve the process for reporting violations, both for bike riders and for police officers processing the report?
NSW Police Spokesperson wrote:police continue to take such reports and investigate such incidents.
'police continue', suggests a status quo and although the responses don't provide any detail or direction, it is still an official response from the Police Force which indicated no priority or improvement.
From an individual cyclists perspective - reporting to a single police station will have mixed reactions and not lead to a broader change. Should or can individual cyclists be directing their energy towards commanders instead? Should this be the role of bicycle advocacy groups or if they are not getting traction, it is about getting enough voices of individuals to draw focus on cycling safety?
In NSW there is an organisation structure and it is interesting to look down into it - the Traffic and Highway patrol (and sections) may appear obvious, enforcement on the road makes sense but for reports to the duty officer, the connection and procedures may not necessarily filter through.
Perhaps the short