Page 297 - Week 01 - Thursday, 11 February 2010
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video
founded. Cyclists are over-represented in statistics of hospital episodes. Amalgamated hospital data from 2001 to 2003 shows that almost one-quarter of hospital episodes due to road trauma in Canberra involved cyclists. Pedestrians accounted for 20 per cent of ACT road fatalities in 2005 and 14 per cent in 2007. Reducing car speeds in key areas can significantly improve road safety—which, of course, will increase the number of people travelling by foot and by bike.
The positive psychological impact of reduced speed and improved safety extends further than one might think. Research has shown that the actual perceived safety risks of walking and cycling are likely to specifically affect women. This tends to create a gender divide in people who are undertaking active transport. It also impacts on children’s opportunities to walk and ride to school or other places.
Another positive impact of slower speeds is the benefit it has for community life. The vibrant public realms of Canberra and the benefits that come with that are in constant danger of being eroded by the patterns of modern living. As Cheryl Wright from the Heart Foundation has written, “the private car in particular has reinforced a growing emphasis on private well being at the expense of a vibrant and interactive public realm”.
By contrast, walking and cycling around city centres and neighbourhoods allow people to make contact with other people and communicate in ways that just do not happen with car use. When traffic is slowed down, people can talk to each other. When you stop at the intersections going down Northbourne Avenue, or wherever you slow down, you say hello to your fellow cyclists or the pedestrians waiting to get through. It is just much more fun and nicer. It encourages people to stay longer in public areas, so there is more business for shops and more opportunities for community life. It improves personal safety. Having more people on streets makes people feel safer about being on streets.
Removing the barriers has a wonderful feedback effect. It has been recognised that an increase in walking and cycling corresponds to a significant decrease in the number of casualties. Copenhagen is a great example. Between the late 1990s and 2006, the cycling population increased massively and the number of serious bike casualties fell dramatically. It is a feedback loop: more cyclists, more feeling of safety, more users, fewer accidents.
I was very interested to hear from Mr Stanhope that we got such a strong level of reaction to the speed limit proposals. The figure of some 700 comments is quite high for ACT government consultation. It is disappointing that about half of those were negative. I guess I have to agree with Mr Stanhope that a lot more education is needed. Part of the way the education is going to happen is by doing the pilot project so that everyone can see that it works well. It is actually a positive thing for Canberra, not a negative thing. For most drivers, it will not significantly slow down their trip anyway.
It is worth while noting that in virtually all European cities non-arterial roads have a 30 kph speed limit. I spent some of my summer holidays in Germany visiting my daughter. They have fast autobahns there—the Germans love speed—but every residential road there is 30 kph. It is safe. Cyclists, pedestrians, mums with prams and
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video