P
Phillip Brown
Guest
They dont seem to have an online version of the letter. Suffice to say it
was typical of motorists views towards cyclists (at least those who write
letters to the editor)
Here is my reply
Dear Sir
R.Lee (6th November) is so aggrieved by the rampant hordes of lawless
cyclists taking his precious road space, and threatening serious harm to
him and his vehicle, that he endorses 'road rage' as a valid response.
His list of 'transgressions' is, frankly, laughable. It may come as a
surprise to many motorists to learn that riding two abreast is entirely
legal, as is a cyclist taking the whole lane where it is appropriate to do
so to ensure the cyclist's safety. 'Not moving off quickly at a green
light'? Is he that desperate to make it to the next set of traffic lights?
I could give an equivalent list of offences regularly perpertrated by
motorists on cyclists which occasion cyclists actual serious injury, as
opposed to the inconvenience suffered by R.Lee when a cyclist 'leans on
the side of a truck'.
Not surprisingly, R. Lee plays the financial card as a final justification
for treating cyclists as second class citizens on the roads. Have the
people who regulary trot out this excuse seriously thought about why
motorists are required to pay the charges they do? Motorists are wielding
two tonnes of metal, glass and rubber at 60-100 km/h, causing death and
injury that costs the community billions each year, and requiring
infrastructure that costs hundreds of millions of dollars to build and
maintain. Does anyone seriously believe any significant proportion of
those actual and social costs are imposed by cyclists on the community to
the extent that cyclists should pay for the priviledge of sharing the road
with motorists like R.Lee?
phillip brown
was typical of motorists views towards cyclists (at least those who write
letters to the editor)
Here is my reply
Dear Sir
R.Lee (6th November) is so aggrieved by the rampant hordes of lawless
cyclists taking his precious road space, and threatening serious harm to
him and his vehicle, that he endorses 'road rage' as a valid response.
His list of 'transgressions' is, frankly, laughable. It may come as a
surprise to many motorists to learn that riding two abreast is entirely
legal, as is a cyclist taking the whole lane where it is appropriate to do
so to ensure the cyclist's safety. 'Not moving off quickly at a green
light'? Is he that desperate to make it to the next set of traffic lights?
I could give an equivalent list of offences regularly perpertrated by
motorists on cyclists which occasion cyclists actual serious injury, as
opposed to the inconvenience suffered by R.Lee when a cyclist 'leans on
the side of a truck'.
Not surprisingly, R. Lee plays the financial card as a final justification
for treating cyclists as second class citizens on the roads. Have the
people who regulary trot out this excuse seriously thought about why
motorists are required to pay the charges they do? Motorists are wielding
two tonnes of metal, glass and rubber at 60-100 km/h, causing death and
injury that costs the community billions each year, and requiring
infrastructure that costs hundreds of millions of dollars to build and
maintain. Does anyone seriously believe any significant proportion of
those actual and social costs are imposed by cyclists on the community to
the extent that cyclists should pay for the priviledge of sharing the road
with motorists like R.Lee?
phillip brown
