It's even worse than it looks in the photo...
I've held back on this grumble since I got back to the commute last week because I haven't been in the mood for getting cranky. But it has to be said: some of the ramps on the Yarra Trail are in a woeful state of disrepair.
I'm frankly astonished that they have degraded so much in the few short months I've been away.
Sadly I'm NOT at all surprised that they have been allowed to get so bad.
Safety
The non-slip surface is starting to break up, exposing the underlying wooden boards and leaving large chunks of debris on the ramps. The heads of screws intended to hold the non-slip material in place are now left exposed and prominent.
The safety implications are obvious, and not just for cyclists but for all people on the trail.
Recap
Bicycle Victoria records that
A spate of crashes in 2003 saw Parks Victoria trial a new non-slip surface on the Church St ramp and install new steel plates at path joints which has helped to put an end to frequent crashes that had resulted in serious injury to multiple riders.
I've a soft spot - or should I say, a sore spot - for the Church St. ramp because I was part of the spate of crashes on that ramp in 2003. (My shoulder hasn't been the same since and will eventually require surgery.)
Parks Victoria also added the non-slip surface to the ramp near Hoddle St.
Failed
BV continues:
If the trial (to see if the surface does not wear or degrade too quickly) is successful, Bicycle Victoria would like to see the surface installed on all slippery wooden boardwalks in the path network to prevent further crashes.
The damaged surface on the Church St ramp
Judging by this outcome, unless Parks Victoria is prepared to renew the surface every two years, I'd say we have a failed trial on our hands here.
Bottom
On a related subject, some of the floating pathways bottom-out when the water is low causing dangerous gaps to open up between the ramps and the pontoons. According to BV already this year there has been an accident resulting in injury due to the problem. There are likely to be more as long as the weather stays fair and the rain stays away.
Corresponding
I presume others have already been in touch with Parks Vic (info@parks.vic.gov.au) about all this, but for what it's worth I emailed a report and a polite request for information on Wednesday. No reply as yet, but we'll see.
20 Jan: reply received earlier this week.