Echo Issue Outline: copyright Echo Education Services
First published in The Echo news digest and newspaper sources index.
Issue outline by J M McInerney
Should cyclists, skateboarders and in-line skaters be allowed on public walkways?
On 13 April, 1992, the Melbourne City Council introduced bylaws prohibiting the use of rollerblades (in-line skates) and skateboards in the area bounded by and including Flinders, Queen, Victoria and Russell Streets between the hours of 7am and 10pm, Monday to Sunday.
The bylaw has proved difficult to enforce and in-line skaters and skateboarders have continued to use some key pedestrian areas in the city.
The riding of bicycles on footpaths is illegal throughout most of Victoria. However, on May 7, 1996, it was reported that the National Road Transport Commission had recommended that Victorian cyclists be given the right to ride on pedestrian walkways. This proposal has met with opposition from the Australian Pensioners and Superannuants Federation.
Both of these developments raise the issue of whether pedestrians should share footpaths with cyclists, in-line skaters and skateboarders.
Background
There is currently no general law prohibiting the use of in-line skates or skateboards on footpaths.
Regulations governing their use are the responsibility of individual councils which will introduce bylaws as they believe appropriate. Thus the Melbourne City Council, in 1992, placed limits on the areas where rollerblades and skateboards could be used.
The same situation does not apply to bicycles. Currently it is not legal to ride a bicycle on footpaths in Victoria and the laws governing the manner in which they are to be ridden are a state responsibility. Apparently this legislation is not uniform across the country and some states allow the riding of bicycles on footpaths.
In Victoria trials have recently been held in Nunawading, Bulla and Shepparton to determine the effect of allowing cyclists to ride their bicycles on footpaths.
Arguments in favour of cyclists, skateboarders and in-line skaters being allowed on public walkways
One of the principal arguments being offered in favour of footpaths being made legally available to cyclists, skateboarders and in-line skaters is that while this behaviour is illegal it is impossible to ensure that it is done safely.
This argument starts from the assumption that no matter what the law states, the footpaths will be used on occasion by cyclists, in-line skaters and skateboarders. Following on from this assumption it maintains that while it is against the law to use footpaths in this manner, organisations, such as Bicycle Victoria, cannot conduct education campaigns to ensure that when footpaths are used by cyclists this is done safely.
Bike education programs are conducted throughout Victoria among primary school aged children in an attempt to ensure they know the road laws and handle their bikes safely.
Currently it is not possible for organisations such as Bicycle Victoria to include instruction on how to ride on the footpaths safely because this behaviour is illegal.
The general manager of Bicycle Victoria, Mr Harry Barber, has argued that were it legal to ride on the footpaths this would be to the ultimate advantage of both cyclists and pedestrians.
Mr Harry Barber has claimed, `While footpath cycling remains illegal we cannot teach people how to do it properly.'
Mr Barber has argued that making it legal to cycle on footpaths would have two desirable consequences.
Firstly, it would `trigger a road safety program to stop young riders zooming off footpaths onto the road. This idiot behaviour caused nearly one third of the cycle deaths in the past seven years in built-up areas,' Mr Barber has stated.
According to this line of argument until it is legal to ride on footpaths it will not be possible to address the issue of how young cyclists can do so without endangering their lives.
Secondly, it has been argued that making it legal to cycle on footpaths will make it easier to ensure that pedestrians are not put at risk by this behaviour.
According to this line of argument, if it were legal to bicycle on footpaths then included in bike education programs could be instruction on where is was possible to ride on footpaths without endangering pedestrians and where this was not possible.
This is the position put by Mr Harry Barber, who has further argued, `It will be easier to stop footpath cycling where it is not appropriate, in busy shopping streets, for example...'
The same argument could also be applied to in-line skaters and skateboarders.
Additionally, with regard to skateboards and in-line skates, the impotance of these items to young people socially and recreationally has been stressed.
It has also been suggested that footpaths need to be accessible to young people also and accessible to them for the purposes for which they wish to use them.
It has further been argued that making it legal to cycle on footpaths is not likely to significantly increase this behaviour.
Mr David O'Sullivan, the chief executive of the National Road Transport Commission, has stated that comparisons between cyclist behaviour when it was illegal for them to use footpaths and trials during which it was made legal `showed that when it was illegal, 26 per cent of people(cyclists) used footpaths, while 63 per cent used roads ... When it became legal, the number using the footpath was virtually unchanged at 27 per cent.'
In addition to this it has been argued that bicyclists do not represent a significant risk to pedestrians.
Mr O'Sullivan has stated, `Our risk analysis showed the chance of a cyclist hitting a pedestrian was 0.2 on every 10 million pedestrians passed.'
However, between July, 1990 and July, 1994, 50 cyclists were killed in Victoria. In the four years prior to this, 92 cyclists were killed. (The difference in these figures has been largely attributed to legislation introduced in 1990, which obliges cyclists to wear helmets.)
This comparison suggests, firstly, that pedestrians face no statistically significant danger from cyclists when cyclists use footpaths legally and, secondly, that cyclists, especially those using roads or moving from footpaths to roads, are still at some risk of death and thus additional means should be sought to help increase their safety. This could include giving them the legal right to use footpaths.
Finally, it has been argued that, in the name of making road laws uniform across the country, cyclists should be able to ride legally on footpaths.
This view has been endorsed by the Herald Sun in its editorial of May 7, 1996, which stated, `No one could reasonably argue with the view that our piecemeal road laws are dangerous in the way they vary from state to state.' (Despite this view, the editorial was not in favour of cyclists being legally able to ride on footpaths.)
Arguments against cyclists, skateboarders and in-line skaters being allowed on public walkways
The principal argument offered against cyclists, skateboarders and in-line skaters being given legal access to footpaths is that this would be an unacceptable hazard for pedestrians.
One young in-line skater was reported stating, `As soon as people see you on wheels they look at you funny. It scares people and I understand that.'
The Herald Sun in its editorial of May 7, 1996, pointed out that the riding of bikes and skates on footpaths is a particular risk for foot travellers.
The editorial noted that bicycles approach silently, because they have no motors.
According to this line of argument, pedestrians could very easily be caught unawares by bicyclists and in-line skaters as they would not hear them approach.
This argument has been stressed with relation to the elderly, as these pedestrians also often have impaired hearing.
Mrs Joan Bidlow, State Secretary of the Combined Pensioners and Superannuants Federation, has also noted that `the elderly cannot get out of the way quickly enough because of slow reflexes.'
Mrs Bidlow further claimed that very few cyclists seemed to use bells and that most seemed to think it was the pedestrian's responsibility to get out of their way.
`Some cyclists won't get out of your way; you have to get out of their way ... Pensioners feel that cyclists can be a law unto themselves. If they take the footpath, where are the pensioners going to go?'
The same editorial also claimed that it would be much more difficult to bring offending cyclists or skateboarders before the courts as, unlike cars, they have no registration plates.
According to this line of argument, if a pedestrian were struck by either a cyclist or a skater, it would be much harder to determine who had caused any resulting injury. If the cyclist or skater did not stop there would be no easy way to determine his or her identity.
It has also been pointed out that it is possible for cyclists to ride safely, without having to use footpaths.
Keith Dunstan, a journalist for the Herald Sun and also a noted international touring cyclist, has commented that Melbourne has a particularly fine network of bike tracks, currently equalling some 300 kms.
According to this line of argument, a city which offers so many alternative bike tracks, has no need to allow its skaters and cyclists to take to the footpaths.
It has also been observed that cyclists are not always law-abiding and responsible and that formally allowing them access to footpaths might encourage other unsuitable behaviour.
This point was made in the Herald Sun editorial of May 7, 1996. `In Melbourne, some cyclists are already a law unto themselves. They ignore traffic signals, ride the wrong way up one-way streets, and to escape traffic, take to footpaths - joining skateboards and rollerbladers playing chicken with pedestrians.'
A police blitz on cyclists conducted in Melbourne found that the most dangerous cycle offences included riding on the footpaths and running red lights.
The same blitz highlighted the difficulty police in cars or on foot had in catching offending cyclists. Senior Constable Farrar, a spokesperson for the Melbourne bicycle patrol group, noted that bicycle-mounted police found it easier to catch cycling offenders.
Further there are those who argue that allowing cyclists on footpaths is an inappropriate way to overcome whatever safety hazards they may face.
Keith Dunstan has claimed that proper provision should be made for cyclists rather than having them infringe on the rights of pedestrians.
`Bicycles need to be treated as a serious form of transport, with the right to their space on the road,' Mr Dunstan has argued.
Keith Dunstan claims that one of the principal problems cyclists face is that motorists do not respect their right to use the road. By implication, a better way to address the safety problems cyclists encounter would be to conduct driver education campaigns emphasising how to safely share the road with bike riders.
The issue of giving in-line skaters and skateboarders access to footpaths is somewhat different.
While cyclists can be defended as using a legitimate form of transport, skateboarding and in-line skating are sports or recreations, and, their opponents claim, have no place on public walkways.
Further implications
There is a growing demand among cyclists and skaters for separate provision to be made for them.
According to this line of argument, if roads are frequently unsafe for cyclists and skaters, while cyclists and skaters pose a threat to pedestrians, the answer is to supply both cyclists and skaters with areas of their own.
The Melbourne City Council has been reported to be searching for a site to set up an in-line skating and skateboarding complex.
In Ballarat, it has been claimed, the council liaised with shop owners, pedestrians and skaters and built a $60,000 facility in the heart of the CBD.
A similar position has been put in relation to cyclists.
Herald Sun columnist, Keith Dunstan, has noted with approval the recent announcement by the Victorian Government of the Capital City Bike Trail.
The Trail will, apparently, allow cyclists to begin cycling at the casino and follow an attractive and secure circuit around the entire city.
The route takes cyclists past the Botanic gardens, Como Park, Burnley Gardens, Studley Park, through Collingwood to Royal Park, then back to the casino. The total distance thus covered is 22.5 km.
Similarly, the Victoria Government has recently announced that it intends to develop some 270km of abandoned railway lines as bike trails during the next financial year and a further 210km in the following 12 months.
If it is decided to allow cyclists the use of footpaths there is the possibility that an age limit may be set on this. The Pensioners and Superannuants Federation has stated that if cyclists are given legal access to footpaths this should apply only to children up to 10.
Sources
The Age
28/10/95 page 4 news item by Tim Winkler, `Law-breaking does come in cycles, police blitz proves'
21/4/96 page 11 news item by Darren Gray, `With bicycle helmets, as in life, it's not coll to be square' (Does not deal specifically with the issue of bicycle use on footpaths, however it gives statistics on fatalities among cyclists and attempts to reduce the number who die)
8/5/96 page 14 letter to the editor, `Wanted: a home for city skaters'
14/5/96 page 4 news item by Brett Foley, `City skating venue sought'
The Herald Sun
28/3/96 page 4 news item by Matthew Pinkney, `Trail plan for old railways' (Does not deal specifically with the issue of bicycle use on footpaths, however it treats an alternative to cyclists using footpaths)
7/5/96 page 9 news item by Michelle Coffey, `Elderly fight footpath bikes'
7/5/96 page 18 editorial, `The pedal extremity'
7/5/96 page 19 comment by Keith Dunstan, `A whiz city for wheels'
8/5/96 page 18 head-to-head opinions, `Should cyclists be allowed to ride on footpaths?'
What they said ...
`We get complaints all the time about this. Allowing cyclists on footpaths means there will be nowhere left for people who want to walk. People will end up walking on the road'
Mrs Betty Blackmore, vice president, Australian Pensioners and Superannuants Federation
`While footpath cycling remains illegal we can't teach people how to do it properly. Legalisation will trigger a road safety program to stop young riders zooming off footpaths onto the road'
Harry Barber, general manager, Bicycle Victoria