Incompetent Government Signs
Imagine what would happen if a government built major roads around a city that did not go anywhere.
Bridges that did not meet in the middle.
Roads where the bituman suddenly stopped for no reason leaving vechiles with nowhere to go, such as in this image below.
You may be thinking that this is just silly. Obviously no competent government would build roads like this and expect to get re-elected. It would never really happen.
Well actually the South Australian Government does as you can see in the next image
If you're thinking, that's only a bicycle lane, look at the first picture again, because that is the reality for people who ride bikes
in Adelaide and this is not just an isolated case. The following diagram shows some examples from all over Adelaide
where the lane provided for the most efficent vehicle on the road suddenly disappears
To see more of these irresponsible lane terminations or to add your own images, go to Facebook Group: Incompetent South Australian Government Signs - Bike Lane End
The Government claims to be spending large amount of money on cycling infrastructure. If this is true, to end up with the kind of situations above, the Government must be completely incompetent. How can we expect the Governement to deal with complex issues such as water and health when it can't even join a bicycle lane together.
In the past, the South Australian Government has failed to show any leadership in relation to cycling infrastructure. While the government has a plan, so far implimentation has been ad-hoc with much of the limited funding wasted on isolated segments of bicycle lane that are effectively useless unless they are joined together. Responsibility for cycling infrastructure seemed to be buried in portfolio of Minister for Road Safety, who only seemed to have made token responses as a result of pressure from cycling lobby groups. The Government needs to have a minister who is prepared to not only take responsibility for cycling infrastructure but to take ownership of the issues and to be a driving force for improvements in cycling infrastructure in this state. Mike Rann is happy to bask in the glory of the tour down under, but when it comes to providing basic infrastructure for ordinary South Australians, there has been no visibility whatsoever in the Government. The Transport Minister, Patrick Conlon has however recently advised that he is absorbing cycling back into the transport portfio. This is a logical first step and unlike the previous road safety minister, he does actually ride a bike. Will Mr Conlon be visionary or reactionary in relation to cycling issues and will the Rann Government follow through with the implimentation if he does? Time will tell, but to help build momentum, I would encourage you to write to Mr Conlon at minister.conlon@saugov.sa.gov.au and make him aware of the deficiencies in the cycling infrastucture which affect you. The more people who write, the more seriously the issue will be taken.
By David Bowler
Relevent Links
Bicycle Institute of South Australia
http://adelaidecyclists.ning.com