Page 1596 - Week 08 - Thursday, 28 September 1989
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That this Bill be agreed to in principle.
The ACT Motor Traffic Act was introduced in 1936 and relates to the control of motor vehicles and the regulation of motor traffic. This Bill will remove an anomaly in the Motor Traffic Act which technically defines wheelchairs as motor vehicles, thus prohibiting them from travelling on paths in the ACT. It widens the definition of a pedestrian to include disabled persons using wheelchairs not capable of exceeding seven kilometres an hour. This means that the laws covering pedestrians will also include disabled persons travelling in motorised wheelchairs.
The Bill is consistent with the national road traffic code, which provides guidelines to the States and the territories on traffic regulations. Without the Bill, the Motor Traffic Act discriminates against motorised wheelchair users by denying them legal access to public places prohibited to motor vehicles.
While the existing law has not been enforced, this Bill will clarify the issue. It allows disabled persons who use motorised wheelchairs to use legally paths and other public places prohibited to motor vehicles. The improved access for motorised wheelchair users demonstrates that the Government is sensitive to those in our community who have disabilities and accords them the same rights and privileges available to other users of transport facilities. I commend the Bill to the Assembly. I present the explanatory memorandum to the Bill.
Debate (on motion by Mrs Nolan) adjourned.
TRAFFIC (AMENDMENT) BILL 1989
MRS GRASSBY (Minister for Housing and Urban Services) (11.08): Mr Speaker, I present the Traffic (Amendment) Bill 1989. I move:
That this Bill be agreed to in principle.
The ACT Traffic Act was introduced in 1937 and relates to the regulation of non-motorised traffic, including pedestrians and cycles. This Bill amends the Traffic Act to omit the definition of a bicycle path. In the early 1970s when the then National Capital Development Commission adopted a policy of constructing a network of cycle paths in the ACT, it was intended that cycle paths should be gazetted for the exclusive use of cyclists. The ACT has some 130 kilometres of pathways which traverse a number of the ACT's more prominent recreational attractions. As well as being used by cyclists, this network is heavily used by both pedestrians and joggers, to the extent that it is not appropriate to restrict the use of such a valuable asset to one sector of the community. For these reasons there have
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