The Melbourne City Council's proposal to seek to fine motorcyclists for parking on the foot path is another example of the City Council's transport policy out of wack with reality.
The City Council would serve Melbourne and the environment better if it adopted a more Motorcycle friendly policy. When we talk about Motorcycles we are not just taking about Harley Davidsons and the Leather and Chains. most motorcyclists that visit the city are motor scooters and bikes less then 350 cc.
The City Council's transport policy ignores the needs and requirements of motorcycle and scooter riders as a preferred alternative to the Car,
The City Council does nothing to assist and encourage motorbikes as a preferred alternative means of transport. Bus and bicycle lanes abound the Cities arterial roads may often are underutilise as cyclests prefer to use less congested pathways. The bicycle and bus lanes could be better designed to facilitate and allow small motorcycles and scooters to share the space. More often then not the city's planners and engineers ignore or are oblivious to the the needs of motorcyclists.
The only benefit and support given to motorcyclists is the advantage of being able to park their bikes on the side of the of foot path, Out of the way from pedestrians. they do not demand much and you do not see them campigining for thor rightful share of road funding. the cost of motorcyle regsitration is excessive.
The recent push by the City Council to seek to fine motorcyclists and prevent them from taking advantage of their ability to park freely in the city is now under attack.
Motor cyclists have decided they will fight back.
If the council continues to pursue this policy motorcyclist Riders association has flagged that they will hit back at the stupidity of the council's policy and will embark on a campaign of taking up space ear marked for Cars. if this happens then the city will be under siege and traffic and commerce will come to a halt. Couriers and Business will be severely disadvantage.
The question is what harm does the motorcycles really create and what is the council planning to do to encourage and assit motorcycles as a viable alternative means of transport.
Or is it the Council policy and hidden agenda to just allow bicyclists and the Lord Mayor and Deputy Lord Mayor's Limos along with the City Council's managers who rights of free parking (Do they pay fringe benefits) the right to access the City.
The Council would be better off providing better services and support for motorcyclists then seeking to bring the city to a halt.
1 comment:
a copy of my letter to Councillor Peter Clark...
Thursday, 25 October 2007
CR CLARKE
City of Melbourne
Town Hall
90-120 Swanston Street
Melbourne, 3000
Cc: Motor Cycle Riders Association of Australia (MRAA)
Cc: Australian Newspapers
OBJECTION TO NOTICE OF MOTION: CR CLARKE, MOTORBIKE PARKING ON FOOTPATHS
Councillor Clark,
The Motor Cycle Riders Association of Australia (MRAA) reports today that Melbourne City Council Head of Community Safety, Stephen Martin, “advised that there have been no complaints received in relation to motorcycles blocking pedestrians”.
Furthermore, my wife and I have worked separately in the Melbourne CBD over the last twenty years; and never; I repeat, never; have we been inconvenienced by motorcycles or their parking locations.
Where is your justification for this terribly flawed proposal? Where is evidence of the public campaigning for this idea? Clearly, there is none. So, did you just dream it up one afternoon because you had to side step a bike on your way back from lunch? That’s about how the content of your proposal reads.
It is extremely fortunate that so many riders are encouraged to ride into work in the CBD because of the freedom of CBD parking. This much should be obvious. I myself have taken to riding a motorcycle into the CBD in the past 18 months because it is better for the community and better for me. We riders are a responsible lot. We think about where we park and we do not need you to impose these choices on us.
Perhaps you should consider how much more inconvenient and dangerous the city will become if a small army of bike riders compete for scarce and extremely expensive car spaces (thanks also to the greedy MCC), as they must and will if you proceed. Or perhaps some will rather drive their cars and yet others add themselves to already cramped public transport.
If you have a burning need to make a law banning everything that offends your sense of “amenity”, since by the zero number of complaints we can judge it is offending nobody else’s, then I respectfully encourage you go and live in a place like Singapore. That way you will stop wasting our money proposing bans that no one except you is asking for.
You should quickly drop any idea of proposing a motion to ban motorcycle parking on city footpaths.
Nimrod Kuti
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