RickInOz

Not long after arriving in Adelaide I commented on the generally parlous standard of driving. Having been here for more than 2 years now I am still convinced that there are many drivers on the Adelaide roads who really should not be behind the wheel. This is not just my opinion as even friends and colleagues who have lived here all their lives tell me about their horror stories too.

Unfortunately the lack of consideration and spatial awareness doesn’t just extend to fellow motorist. Those on two wheels are inconvenienced too by selfish and obstinate behaviour. These “cretin” drivers in this city seem to fall into one of two categories. Firstly the drivers who get flustered and confused around cyclists. They tend to hesitate, drive right on our rear wheel and then overtake recklessly. It is almost as if they don’t know what to do with the biker, and as a result their attempts at avoidance actually make them unpredictable and a significant threat.

These would be bad enough on their own, but the second type of driver seems to percieve cyclists as a threat. This results in equally unpredictable and erractic behaviour to their more cautious counterparts. The main difference is that they scream past, and accelerate aggressively in order to get past. This often results in them squeezing past through tight gaps just so they can get in front. I’ve lost count of the number of times I have almost been hit. To make matters worse the traffic light sequence often sees the cyclist catch up with cars at the next set of lights. This provides yet another chance to dice with death.

Unfortunately the city road layout doesn’t really lend itself to cycling and bike lanes are few and far between. When present they are often simply created by painted lines on existing roads rather than being dedicated and physically separated from car lanes. Also, many tend to end abruptly and simply dump cyclists back into busy traffic lanes. I’ve also seen motorist cross into these cycle lanes either to cut corners or simply while meandering all over the road. The city council have pledged to improve the cycle track network, but it seems to be slow going so far.

I do what I can to immunise myself from risk. Wearing a day-glo jacket and using lights both during the day and night will hopefully make me noticeable even to the most dozy and blinkered motorist. However the cyclist still needs to have 360 degree vision and assume risk is everywhere. My worst fear is that one day I may need retrieval by the service I work for. All I, and the other bikers on the road, can do is be careful and keep fingers crossed that it’s not our turn to wind up in the RAH each day.