It states cyclists can travel at speeds between 15-25km/h on well-designed paths with “minimum risk or decrease in amenity to people walking”,and mandatory speed limits and enforcement are not viable since many bicycles do not have a speed-measuring device.
Brisbane City Highway Patrol Acting Sergeant Duncan Hill told reporters that the day of the enforcement action,part of the “Spring Break” school holiday operation,was about vulnerable road users,targeting speed,helmets and “poor rider behaviour of both pushbikes and e-scooters”.
“We find at locations,like here,at the Kurilpa Bridge,we have a group of people coming off the bridge at high speeds meeting pedestrians and vehicles trying to enter into workplaces and driveways,” he said,pointing out passers-by had thanked officers.
This is not a war between cyclists and pedestrians. But a speed limit so slow it feels like walking your bike would be a more viable option is not helpful.
For anaward-winning green bridge – judged theworld’s best transport project in 2011– fining cyclists for exceeding a comically slow speed limit is disappointing amid efforts to makeactive travel more attractive and reduceBrisbane’s addiction to cars.
To make matters even more confusing,the signs on the Kurilpa Bridge have quietly changed over the years.
Google Street View in October 2018 shows a 10km/h sign at the Tank Street exit,which changed to 20km/h in November 2021,and back to 10km/h in July 2022.
Painted footpath markings remained 10km/h.
After questions fromBrisbane Times,an Energy and Public Works department spokesman said:“the advisory speed limit on Kurilpa Bridge is 10km/h as correctly painted on the bridge surface”.
“In March 2022,the department became aware some additional signage had been changed to 20km/h,” he said.
“The 10km/h signage was subsequently reinstated.”
The Goodwill Bridge,also 6.5 metres wide,was 10km/h,but was raised to 20km/h in 2017.
Why should the more crowded Goodwill Bridge – it carries about three times the pedestrians,cyclists and e-scooter users – have a speed limit twice as fast?
This government datadoes not record any pedestrian or cyclist crashes on the Kurilpa Bridge,which opened in 2009,but 10 people were killed in crashes on the state’s roads during the September school holidays.
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It seems the department is open to increasing speeds,with the spokesman revealing the Goodwill Bridge became 20km/h after a “detailed observational and safety study”.
“A similar study is now under way for Kurilpa Bridge,” he said.
Space 4 Cycling spokesman Chris Cox said he would not advocate for people to ride “fast and furious” on shared paths.
But Cox said fines could scare cyclists away from the Kurilpa and Goodwill bridges.
Queensland Walks executive officer Anna Campbell supported a review,and said members had not raised the Kurilpa Bridge as a safety issue.
“We notice that unsafe driving behaviour is having a more significant impact on our walkers than incidents at river crossings,which is why we call for increasing the policing of vehicle speeds around schools and pedestrian areas,and a review of road vehicle speeds across the network.”