March 15, 2007

The Amy Gillett Foundation and Mark Webber Unveil Ground-breaking InitiativeDetails were today announced of a ground-breaking initiative that plans to target Learner drivers throughout Australia. Developed by the Amy Gillett Foundation, with the support of the Australia Driver Trainers Association and State/Territory licensing authorities, Road Right is the first program of its kind designed to heighten Learner driver awareness of bicyclists on Australian roads.

Formula One motorist and Amy Gillett Foundation Patron Mark Webber believes the program will help influence Australia’s emerging generation of motorists.

“Road Right tackles from a grass roots level the issue of bicyclists and motorists sharing the roads. It acknowledges that in order to reduce death and injury resulting from bicyclist/motorist interaction, we need to start educating our youth well before they start driving without supervision. Road Right helps to communicate that becoming a responsible motorist is more than just knowing the rules; it’s about entering an environment that demands heightened awareness for the safety of all,” said Mr. Webber.

With 370,000+ learner permits issued nationally each year, the Amy Gillett Foundation General Manager Melinda Jacobsen regards Road Right as an essential element for promoting safe and responsible driving.

“Until recently, road cycling was not an intrinsic part of our recreational culture like it is in some overseas countries. As such, drivers and bicyclists are still relative strangers to one another, although this is changing. Road Right introduces a fresh generation to this new landscape. We hope that through the program a new wave of young motorists will be more aware and therefore more tolerant of bicyclists.”

“We’ve also been extremely encouraged by support given from state and territory licensing authorities and the ADTA to the concept, suggesting to me there is a gap in the provision of this information,” said Ms. Jacobsen.

Road Right will be a compilation of printed material and website links detailing information and scenarios involving bicyclist and motorist interaction. It also includes a series of questions pertaining to bicyclists and motorists sharing the roads, one or more of which may be used randomly during the compulsory licence test all learner drivers are now required to sit to obtain their provisional licence.

Learner drivers will be directed to the AGF website to answer a series of questions and, if answered correctly, will be placed in a prize draw for instant, monthly and yearly prizes. It is anticipation the program will commence in quarter two this year with updates available on the AGF website for more details.

(from )
BEN WAY
March 1, 2007

STRICKEN patients will get a pedal-powered boost with bicycle ambulance crews making their debut at major events this month.

Bike unit paramedics Paul Norrey, John Bradley, Jenny Lewis and Jasmine Usher

For the first time in South Australia, first response units which include paramedics and intensive care paramedics, will use bicycles to operate more effectively in large crowds.

The new service will be used at major events such as the Clipsal 500, Womadelaide and the Fringe.

SA Ambulance director of Metropolitan Operations Keith Driscoll said the bikes would give increased access to trauma patients in large crowds.

“Bike teams can respond quickly where access for a normal ambulance is next to impossible,” he said.

“The fast response will have a lot better outcome.”

Mr Driscoll said the pushbike first response units, which have already been introduced in Victoria and overseas, carry a full range of medications and treatments for emergency situations.

“We are not providing a first aid service. These rapid response units are exclusively for the purpose of responding to medical emergencies and getting to the patient as quickly as we can to begin treatment,” he said.

The teams are similar to police pushbike crews, but paramedics will carry a medical kit including oxygen and defibrillators suitable for responding to seizures, heart attacks and collapses.

(from )
March 26, 2007

SOUTH Australia has already recorded its average annual number of cyclist deaths after a fourth death yesterday, prompting a warning for drivers to show extra vigilance.

A 49-year-old Truro man died when he was hit from behind by a delivery truck in the Barossa Valley about 6.30am.

The collision happened on the Kapunda to Truro Rd, 8km east of Kapunda, as both the truck and cyclist were travelling west towards Kapunda.

At the same time last year, one cyclist had been killed and in the previous two years, none had died up until the same time.

Christian Haag, general manager of Cycling SA said the average annual number of cyclists killed on the state’s road was four.

“It is very worrying that at a time where car crash fatalities have reached an all-time low, we have already reached our year’s average in March,” he said.

“It is time for us to sit down with the Government and look at the road sharing campaign. We want to encourage education, enforcement and infrastructure investment - such as more bicycle lanes.”

Nuriootpa Senior Sergeant Martin Kennedy said it was too early to tell what may have caused yesterday’s collision, which was being investigated by major crash police.

“The cyclist was knocked from his bike and was pronounced dead by ambulance crews at the scene,” he said. “Fatalities, particularly when it involves a local person, impacts on the whole community.”

The truck driver, who was later taken to Angaston Hospital suffering shock, was with the fatally-injured cyclist for about 20 minutes before paramedics arrived. Truck owner Kevin Fairclough said the driver had been delivering products since 3am. He left from Adelaide and was to travel through the Barossa Valley and then on to Clare.

“It is a tragic accident and I’m sure it is going to impact heavily on the driver because it’s something he would have never had to deal with before,” he said.

The cyclist’s death took the state’s road toll to 29, which is identical to the same time last year.

(from )
March 12, 2007

A CYCLIST has died this morning after colliding with a car at Port Parham, south of Port Wakefield, bringing the road toll this long weekend to four.

The accident happened on Port Parham Rd about 7.30am.

Emergency services were called to the scene but the man died of his injuries a short time later.

(from )
with AAP
February 13, 2007

POLICE have warned men mounting up for next month’s nude protest bike ride in Brisbane to “put a sock on it”.

Indooroopilly police officer in charge, Acting Senior Sergeant Chris Peters said protesters taking part in the World Naked Bike Ride risked public indecency charges if they let it all hang out.

He said women would have to wear knickers but would be allowed to ride topless and men had to wear “a discreetly placed sock”.

Environmentalists in 56 cities across 16 countries will strip down in a co-ordinated protest on March 10.

Brisbane co-ordinator and naturist Dario Western said the riders would go “as bare as you dare” and decorate themselves with body paint for the inaugural 20-minute ride along Coronation Drive between Toowong and Milton from 4pm.

Mr Western said he hoped the unusual protest would get their message across about the destruction of the natural environment.

“Nothing like that has been done in this city before,” he said.

(from )
BEN WAY
February 7, 2007

A 28-year-old female cyclist was killed after being hit by a truck in Mount Gambier this morning.

Mount Gambier Police said the crash occurred just before 7am on Caroline Rd, just west of Vorwerk Rd at Yahl.
Major Crash Investigators are currently at the scene and it is believed the victim died instantly.

(from )
LAUREN NOVAK
January 15, 2007

EVERYONE knows that riding a bike saves money and the environment, but now commuters can calculate the true value of swapping four wheels for two.

UniSA researcher Stuart Clement has weighed up the environmental and financial costs of driving a car and riding a bicycle to prove how much better pedal power is for both the environment and the bank balance.
Testing of cars and bicycles on an 18.3km route from North Haven to the city showed motorists could save up to $17.50 in car running and maintenance costs and prevent up to 6.6kg of carbon dioxide from entering the atmosphere if they rode a bike instead.

Every litre of burned petrol produces about 2.2kg of carbon dioxide and one tree absorbs only 20kg of the greenhouse gas a year.

Dr Clement used the Green Vehicle Guide, developed by the Australian government, to show a Toyota Corolla emits 150g of carbon dioxide per kilometre.

A Holden Commodore emits 250g/km and a Toyota LandCruiser emits 390g/km.

Cyclists and drivers also generate the gas when they exhale - about 40g/km for cyclists and 10g/km for drivers.

Driving a Corolla on the North Haven-to-city route produces about 2.7kg of carbon dioxide. “If we ride our bike, it’s going to take 15 minutes longer, but we will be helping the environment because we will have saved about 2.2kg of carbon dioxide from entering the atmosphere,” Dr Clement said. Riding a bike produced a “whopping” 6.6kg less than driving a LandCruiser, he said.

The financial savings were also significant. “If we compare the different travel modes on the North Haven-to-Adelaide route, the bike will cost $1.83, the Corolla $9.22 and the LandCruiser burns a $19.32 hole in the wallet for the one-way trip,” he said.

Dr Clement will present his findings at the two-day Thinking on Two Wheels conference, which starts today.

(from )
January 15, 2007

PREMIER Mike Rann has renewed his call for the Tour Down Under to become the first ProTour cycling event outside of Europe.That follows an announcement by the United Cycling Institute it would consider proposals from non-European countries to host ProTour races. On the Cycling News website, Institute president Pat McQuaid acknowledged attempts from SA and the U.S. to host ProTour races.
“There is interest there and not just from America. I have also had a direct request from Mike Rann, who is the premier of South Australia, where the Tour Down Under takes place,” he said.

Mr Rann said: “This is the strongest indication the UCI is seriously looking at expanding the ProTour series outside of Europe.” The ProTour is the elite level of international road cycling.

(from )

ANNA VLACH and CHRIS SALTER
December 19, 2006

The scene of a recent fatal accident between a truck and cyclist on Grand Junction Rd.

THE recent spate of road deaths involving riders has renewed calls for better training of all road users.

Three motorcyclists and three cyclists have died across the state in the past month.

This year 22 motorbike riders and five cyclists have died on the state’s roads, compared to 18 motorcyclist and four cyclist deaths last year.

Police have urged bike users to be extra careful and be aware they are vulnerable road users.
However, Bicycle Institute of SA chairman Sam Powrie said yesterday that message did not tell the whole story.

The State Government, while eager to promote SA as the “Cycling State” through events such as the Tour Down Under, was failing to adequately support cyclists, he said.

For example, the “Share the Road” message was not being adequately delivered through driver training, he said. “There is a small component, but in some European countries motorists spend time on bikes as part of their driver training to experience the road from a cyclist’s point of view,” he said.

“Thorough driver training would include that.”

Training for cyclists should also be available through local councils, Mr Powrie said.

“You can’t make it compulsory, but there is evidence cycling proficiency training works well,” he said.

Drive to Live managing director Tony Hastings agreed greater emphasis must be placed on teaching all road users to respect one another.

“It cannot be one-off advertising - it must be ongoing,” he said. Mr Hastings said many off-road motorcyclists were also placing themselves at risk by failing to wear helmets when riding on private properties.

Mr Powrie said there was also a concern motorcycle technology was rapidly overtaking training available.

“Motorcycle riding is a highly skilled endeavour - more than driving a car,”he said.

Road Safety Minister Carmel Zollo yesterday said the State Government was committed to the safety of all road users, including cyclists and motorbike riders through its Share the Road and Motorcycle Road Safety Strategies.

“This Government is also serious about improving cycling networks - bike lanes and cycle paths - and provides councils with access to funding for planning and improving cycling networks through the State Bicycle Fund,” she said.

“This (financial) year the fund will result in projects being built to a total value of $830,000.”