The RACV is the peak body representing motorists in Victoria, a respected organisation that often has significant influence on road use issues. The RACV is not overtly anti-cyclist, indeed it supports cycling through active participation in the Share the Road campaign and by providing Bike Assist as part of its suite of Roadside Assistance services.

So I'm somewhat puzzled to find the following letter in the February Edition of their official organ RoyalAuto:

Unsafe Bikes

I commend RACV on its Street Scene program (RA Nov): it is very important to teach road safety to children. I notice the program includes bicycle safety, also very important, but in my opinion there is not a roadworthy bicycle in Australia today! When I was at school in the UK in the 1940s, there was nowhere near as much traffic on the roads, yet we had to have a certificate giving permission to ride to school, based on a written test on the road rules and an inspection of your bicycle by a member of the teaching staff. All bikes had to have front and rear handbrakes, fixed lights, mudguards, a red reflector on the rear, and a bell or horn on the handlebars. I think no bike today has all this, meaning they are unroadworthy and therefore unsafe. Some Australian Design Rules for bicycles need to be introduced.

Stan Miller, Sunbury

While I agree about the importance of road safety education, I don't think that's Mr Miller's real point here. His ludicrous claim that "there is not a roadworthy bicycle in Australia today!" is clearly intended to imply that bicycles are not suitable road vehicles.

Definitions

Hyperbole aside, Mr Miller's definition of "roadworthy" needs some refining. He is mostly correct, except that mudguards are not required and according to the Victoria Government Gazette (28 October 1999) a bicycle must have at least one effective brake and a bell, horn or similar warning device. In normal daylight conditions that is all the safety equipment that is required on a bicycle.

Fixed lights (specifically, a white light at the front, red light at the rear, and a red reflector at the rear) are only required if a bicycle is used at night or in "hazardous weather conditions causing reduced visibility".

Bicycle Victoria provides some excellent advice to riders on compliance with the road rules as they apply to cyclists.

All bikes minus three

Although Mr Miller overstated the legal requirements for roadworthiness I can see three bicycles from where I'm sitting right now that perfectly fit his criteria and he's welcome to drop around at any time to check (as long as he brings his school teacher with him).

Standards? We got Standards!

Incidentally, Australian Design standards do exist for bicycles, including:

Real agenda?

I don't deny that there are a significant number of bikes on the road that don't meet the minimum legal requirements - unlit bikes at night in particular - and I share Mr Miller's frustration with that. And reminders about unroadworthy vehicles (be they bicycles or motor vehicles) are always warranted. However I think Mr Miller's real agenda in claiming that all bicycles are unroadworthy is a mischievous attempt to deny cyclists their legitimate right to Share the Road.

It's sad that RoyalAuto would allow such a view to be promulgated in its pages.

Comments

pedaller

Excellent response Treadly, are you going to submit that to Royal Auto?

I must admit that I have been caught out at at night on a couple of ocassions when the battery in my front light died and I had no spare batteries. I'd liken this to the case of a car when a headlight bulb dies and the car driver is not aware of it, the only real difference is that the car has two headlights instead of one.

Treadly&Me

That's why I always have two front lights: a flashing LED on the handlebar and a rechargeable halogen on my helmet. If one goes, there's still some light out the front.

But then most of my night riding is done on poorly lit bike trails rather than roads, so good headlights are crucial. In fact, I can't think how I coped before I got the helmet-mounted one. It's great - just by pointing your head you get light right where you want it.

I try to remember to have spare batteries, too. Which reminds me I've got to go and get some N-cell batteries for the LED - that's the only problem with those super-compact lights: obscure battery sizes!

Ah, yeah - RoyalAuto did get a letter along very similar lines. No response yet.

pedaller

Obscure battery sizes, but great lighting properties!