Amazing that an apparently well known dangerous road was chosen as part of a racing route. The mind boggles. I wonder if the cyclists were single file or riding in a huddle that filled the majority of the lane as those groups are often seen to do. The mind boggles again.

Racing cylists on the Cotter road?!!! Inevitable.

It was negligent of the organisers of this event to choose a course which includes sections that the ACT Emergency Services describes as dangerous and accident prone.

I don’t know how many competitors there were in total, but if they were to do this properly, it should have been on a closed circuit. Bike rider coupled with people having a Sunday morning/afternoon drive through the Cotter makes a dangerous combination.

Our observation on Saturday morning was that it was only a question of when.

Our near miss occurred as we were driving a truck slowly up the steepest bit of Brindabella Road, just past Cotter, when we met a group of about 30 cyclists racing down this mountainous stretch and at least 5 members of that group were on the wrong side of the road coming around a bend, and all were moving fast.

We were in a large vehicle travelling on the correct side of the road and moving at a slower speed than the cyclists. Yet I had to take evasive action to avoid an accident.

Myself as both road and MTB rider, I have to agree with the comments here- Cotter road is dangerous, even more so when you combine a competitive element. I would see no problem if they could close the road to cars to race along that road. I wonder; were there any support cars behind/in-front of the riders warning other vehicles or maybe significant signage? Either way, hope those involved (driver & cyclists) come out ok.

Oh no!

Expect lots of public outcry for cycle lanes on the Cotter Road. Then all over the rest of ACT roads. Then expect this government to waste a lot of money putting them in.

It’s a regular course, would have been significant signage.

This is after we have been party to spending $8mill on a dedicated bike race circuit?

I think the $8mil was for a mountain biking facility. By the sounds of it this was road racing.

And significant signage is meaningless if cyclists are riding along twisty, winding sections of road on the wrong side of it.

Further to this comment, and at the risk of moving off topic, just how much money has been spent on pushbikes in this Territory.

The unused Velodrome, the bike paths, the bus bike racks, the bike lanes on major roads, and the above mentioned racing complex.

Per head of population, pushbike riders have to be the most spoilt citizens in this city.

Irresponsible bike riders riding *as a pack* on an un-closed hill road.

Tough titties to the organisers: Hope your smugness has not been too hurt. I hope your insurance is in order too.

Riding bicycles on the road is such a smart idea!!

I wish I was bright enough to put my life in the hands of the ACT driving public!

Cranky – Bike paths are one thing…they (should) keep bikes off the road (if only the people that ’should’ be using them would use them…slightly OT but jeeze it pisses me off when there is a perfectly good bike path RIGHT NEXT TO THE ROAD yet some knob dressed like he/she is in the tour de France blocks half a bloody lane….that idiot the other day crossing scrivner dam, I’m looking at you).

Anyway…..bike paths = good (and they do get a lot of use)….mass groups of self rightious cyclists claiming ownership of a windy, narrow road = bad. It’s a shame some people got hurt but for some reason I have this feeling of ’serves you right’ towards the cyclists. Cars are bad things that burn dead dinosaurs but guess what…they are bigger that you and my highschool physics tells me that they’d have a lot more kinetic energy than 60kg of flesh, bone and aluminium.

If you want to hold a race on the road….apply to have it closed for the duration.

rant off

If not roads closed, at least signs up warning drivers, reduced speed limits, maybe altering courses to avoid dangerous situations (like Pickle’s). Accidents are bound to happen with cyclists on roads, but they could make a few more attempts to minimise them.

So much for the ACT Road Safety Strategy and Action Plan. Why don’t people understand that Bicycles and Motorized vehicles simply don’t mix.

It is a sad story, but I am surprised that it has taken this long!

I regularly drive down the cotter road on a Saturday or Sunday, and have encountered cyclists behaving badly more often than not.

They *do not* own the road.

Neither do I.

While they are entitled to a lane (without paying the taxes like I have to), I think that deliberately blocking a lane with them riding 3 or 4 abreast is simply dumb.

Sad that people had to be hurt. Looks like we need mandatory licencing for cyclists – at least then, there would be some sort of education program.

I can’t see the logic behind allowing a cycling race on a public road. If it is impractical to close the road, then the race is in the wrong spot. I can’t think of many roads that are more unsuitable for a cycling race than Cotter Road. Blind corners, fast downhill sections that cyclists will get some speed on, single lane. This accident is the inevitable result of those poor planning decisions.

Captain – I think that you have hit the nail on the head

They are road users – If I were *racing* (even without breaking the speed limit), then I would have some serious explaining to do with our local cops.

They should not be *racing* on open public roads – Just like car races, and rallies – all roads should be closed for their event.

Safety 101.

sad that a person has died.

but they really should stick to bike paths.

or arrange for the road to be closed.

Without seeming too insensitive, these guys go close to fitting the criteria for a Darwin award.

Or catch a tram bon!

get 4wd’s off the road as well.. anyone who drives one and doesn’t go off road is a waste of space.

Out on the cotter road AD? High probability it was being used off road.

AD, from the story presented, the 4WD in question was in no way at fault and the result would have been the same if it had been a Hyundai or a Trabant Duroplast.

On Sat morning a a few mates & myself headed out to Namadgi to do a bit of 4WDing. We came back around 2:00pm along Brindabella Road then up Cotter road. The exact route of the race. We were driving in a Jeep Wrangler set up for off roading with a big F%@k off bull bar. We passed dozens of idiots on bikes & I made the comment to my mate that someone was going to get hit, it was just a matter of when.

More then once we would go around a corner to find a group coming at us with some crazy idiot trying to overtake on the inside, riding with his wheels ON the centre line. They wouldn’t even back off when they saw us coming at them, they would just ride straight at us and make us put two wheels off the road to avoid them. We even had the same thing happen with a lone cyclist. The attitude of the cyclists seemed to be that it was their road.

FB, from the lady on the news today regarding the accident, she said that the road is made for cyclists!

I’m a cyclist and I think this is horrible.

However, ’slaughter of cyclists’.. no one’s actually dead?

James T-Kirk-
Are you suggesting that the cyclists don’t have jobs or don’t pay rates and other taxes? And how do you think they got to the event in the first place – of course they have cars and contribute just as much to the roads and infrastructure as anyone else.

And everyone who rode out there on the weekend was also bike-licenced – it was an elite event not a primary school fun day. To suggest that it was a surprise to drivers is ridiculous. everywhere we drove out that way on the weekend we saw signs, marshalls, advance and tail vehicles warning you to be slow and take care for cyclists. It’s a sensational spectator sport so pull over and watch the tactics of the bunch, why speed past?
If it can’t be on the road who is going to create a 150km dedicated track for these events?
I’m not even a road cyclist and i’m sick of the unimaginative rants.

I have seen plenty of sparkling pristine clean 4wd’s on the cotter road.. I can admit though that my comment stems from my dislike of 4wd’s on the road so may be well and truly biased.

Les, grow-up!

couldn’t they have thought to reduce the speed limit on the road whilst the race was on and put up some warning signs?

Why shoud Les “grow up”, he’s speaking perfect sense!

the road should be closed. don’t expect a motorist to pull-over on every crest, bend, in case a pack of cyclists half away across the road (illegal btw) are oncoming so as to enjpuy watching them go by.

eggman: i believe they usually do – however, a car doing 30-40 km/h colliding with a cyclist probably doing more than 40 km/h is still going to be horrific.

No one is dead. The cyclist worst affected in is ICU in a very critical condition. Please people, she’s not dead. Have some thought for her family.

It is a simple sense

When people are *racing* they are likely to behave erratically – Swerving to overtake, etc.

If they are *racing* they should do it on closed roads.

I Pitty the poor driver who collected the bikes – from what the rest of the media has suggested, it probably wasn’t their fault.

And dropping the speed limit wouldn’t help – I cyclist is still creamed at 20Km/h…

I still stand by my comments regarding cyclists being licenced – I have sat at too many lights, watching bikes go through red lights, to determine otherwise.

While I am ranting – I’ll also mention the cretins who ride on the roads, then decide to be ‘pedestrians’ on bikes (just because the light is red – the walk light is green..), then get across the intersection, and go back onto the road.

Darwinian evolution at it’s best

Is there a reason you’re opposed to the legal swapping of mode from road user to pedestrian and back?

Other than jealousy and prejudice?

Agreed about the race though, it’s hard to see how racing bikes and cars can be made to play safely.

Les – if all the safety precautions you mentioned were in fact taken, then this accident is proof that you can’t have a bicycle race on a public road. I think you’ll find that most of the comments here aren’t disputing the cycling community having the “right” to race on the roads, just that the road should have been closed to vehicle traffic.

If the road can’t be closed to vehicle traffic, and I don’t think that particular one should be, then the race needs to find another venue.

I guess it depends where the line is drawn for what counts as racing…

It seems to me that clubs are out there nearly every second week, so closing the roads for any ‘racing’ event would be impractical, and for the very large events (i think the sri chinmoy was the last one?) they did indeed close the roads, but perhaps the grade/heat sizes were not deemed large enough to go to the extra expense? of getting the roads properly closed/controlled?

I know that the law basically states that riders can’t be more than two abreast, however this isn’t particularly practical in racing, and would be nearly impossible to enforce.

and what draws the line between a competitive event and a social club ride? the packs are probably simular in size in both cases?

Johnboy – as long as they’re not breaking the law by riding across a pedestrian crossing

I have no problems with a cyclist riding on the road, then dismounting, walking across the crossing and then mounting the bike on the far side of the intersection and continuing on.

I know that the law basically states that riders can’t be more than two abreast, however this isn’t particularly practical in racing, and would be nearly impossible to enforce.

Seems pretty easy to enforce, if police can go out and arrest drag racers (number of drag racing related accidents this year? anyone?) they can go out to cycle racing hot spots and arrest all those more than two abreast and confiscate their bikes.

johnboy: true, but like police arresting street racers – i can’t help but think there are better uses for police time.

You know what’s really dumb? Not having a bike lane on a major road that leads to a dedicated cycling facility.

An emotive issue here but let’s have some balance and stop going off like a bunch of crackers at Chinese New Year. The injured cyclists were the victims of an accident. When one undertakes an activity of this sort there are known risks, and the cyclists were prepared to take the known risks. Something happened beyond the control of anyone on the day and some cyclists paid the penalty. But, and this is a big but, compared to the number of cyclists out and about over the weekend, and out and about over the months since the previous accident, the rate of injuries and accidents is, in the overall scheme of things, quite small.

To point out where the balance has been lost in this debate, consider the road death over the weekend. I haven’t seen anyone calling for the closing of the road where that accident took place, or a review of whether female passsengers should be in cars after dark, or whether the road in question should be closed after dark, or any of a myriad of possible ways to prevent another tragedy in the same spot.

So, before people jump up and down and say that this race on that road is inherently dangerous, stop and look at the history and the statistics. If the statisitcs are so far skewed towards the dangerous end of the spectrum then by all means consider taking measures, but if not as I suspect one would find, then leave people to have fun and accept a small risk in their lives.

By the way I am a regular cyclist and I agree with some of the comments above about the stupid thoughtless cyclists who occupy more road space than is absolutely necessary, I personally feel that unless there’s an organised event even two abreast riding should be banned, knowing how much it gets motorists offside. When my group has to ride on the road we do so in single file until we reach deserted roads where it’s safe to ride abreast, and even then if a vehicle is approaching from behind we’ll go back to single file until it has passed.

But the other comment about cyclists who use the various options open to them to get places quicker, such as onto paths and back to the road, is based on pure jealousy and spite. Although such behaviour might appear to the idle lethargic and cosseted car driver as potentially dangerous, it’s not, as long as the cyclist has good vision and a clear path, which in Canberra is more abundant than most people realise.

No one is dead. The cyclist worst affected in is ICU in a very critical condition. Please people, she’s not dead. Have some thought for her family.

Whilst driving home at 630am this morning FM 104.7 reported that there had been a fatality during yesterdays race. A 43yr old woman died after clipping tires with another racer and fell into the path of a 4wd driver and killed instantly – Does the radio have it wrong AGAIN ??

Anyone know more ??

And if they are going to have a road race with alot of cyclists – why the hell WASNT the road closed!!??!!

From the Canberra Times:

“Earlier yesterday, a 43-year-old woman was fatally injured when the car in which she was a passenger left the roadway in Outtrim Avenue, Calwell, and hit a letterbox about 2am.

This is not related to the Canberra Tour cycling race. Perhaps 104.7 had things mixed up?

“But the other comment about cyclists who use the various options open to them to get places quicker, such as onto paths and back to the road, is based on pure jealousy and spite.”

No – it is not based on jealousy – I personally ride. It is based on the fact that it is a PEDESTRIAN crossing (meaning foot), so the cyclist should dismount.

That behavoiur is just the start: The distance between being ‘legal’ and running a red light is about 6 feet. It just takes time till the cyclist decides not to bother to swerve onto the crossing, and go straight through on the road.

I wonder if the cyclists who do this are alos happy to use a car park, or a driveway of a service station to ‘avoid’ a red light (in their cars of course).

Where is the line?

damm – alos = also…

Maybe it’s 4WDs that should be kept off public roads. They cause far more deaths than cyclists do, and are about as useful as common sense to a politician

In future–stick to dirt tracks, or move to the US. Your kind is welcome only over there.

snowstorm,
I do not drive a 4WD nor am I a fan of them being used to run the kids to school everyday, but if you don’t want them on the roads then please inform the rest of us how they are meant to get to the dirt tracks that you mention.
I am not sure what you drive, but if it something I don’t like should it be taken off the road? I don’t like Holdens so maybe we should get rid of them?? And I hate cars that can’t do 0-100 in less than 10 secs, because they hold up traffic at the lights, maybe they should go too?