The horses of Belconnen

Davo111 said :

vg said :

In your world please tell me exactly what evidence of the commission of any offence you see in the above picture?

…”Red circle means STOP. Wait at the stop line marked on the road until the signal changes to green.”

I think vg was more pointing out that part of the road rules that says every vehicle on the public road must abide by every law while on that road, except a police officer, who can exempt themselves from any law at any time.

Does anyone else remember that beautiful Victorian Police horse Gendarme? Should be more of them on the beat!

Canberra Times has an article about them today – http://www.canberratimes.com.au/news/local/news/general/pure-horsepower-adds-muscle-to-afp-ranks/1997084.aspx

For AFP officer Kylie Woodyatt and her beloved horse Bikkardi, no hurdle is too great.

Together they form the head of the AFP’s little-known mounted police unit.

The Australian Federal Police Ceremonial Mounted Cadre, as the unit is formally known, is made up of four horses ridden by a combination of sworn and unsworn federal officers.

Although relatively unknown to many Canberrans, the AFP’s mounted police have been operating in and around the territory for about five years.

After originally being formed to support the 2005 opening of the National Police Memorial in Russell, the mounted police have continued to cater for the AFP’s constant workload of ceremonial and community duties.

When I first saw the picture I thought “Wow, that horse has 2 arses” And then I realised it wasn’t a pair of arses.

Horses use to have right of way in traffic situations in Australia.

It seems that the current version of the Australian Road Rules no longer has that clause. Horse are defined as a vehicle, same as a motorcycle, except you can ride a horse on a nature strip and/or path. Otherwise, they need to obey the rules just like everyone else.

Any horsey people out there who can tell me whether horses have any ‘special’ right of way anymore?

UrbanAdventure.org said :

The male horse is called Bacardi, like the rum.
Ask me how I know. 🙂

“cause its in the paper?

vg said :

In your world please tell me exactly what evidence of the commission of any offence you see in the above picture?

Page 6 – http://www.tams.act.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0011/64478/Part_C1_-_Knowing_the_Road_Rules_2010.pdf

“Red circle means STOP. Wait at the stop line marked on the road until the signal changes to green.”

you’re welcome 🙂

Spideydog said :

There are some people feeling a little stupid about now I suggest. There are some that enjoy shooting from hip with little thought outside the box and then look pretty stupid when a valid reason presents itself.

Not at all. That’s how you learn.

UrbanAdventure.org said :

The male horse is called Bacardi, like the rum.
Ask me how I know. 🙂

Cause you’ve had a taste?

The male horse is called Bacardi, like the rum.
Ask me how I know. 🙂

bitterness said :

BenMac said :

nescius said :

I don’t think horses are made of metal, so maybe they moved forward of the line to allow a car to trigger the lights rather that stand there for all eternity?

Traffic lights are triggered by pressure plates in the ground. A horse is heavy enough. I’ve seen cyclists trigger lights, then ride off causing others to have to wait for no one, but that for another thread.

Benmac: nescius was 100% correct. Inductive coils (see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Induction_loop) are used, not pressure plates. As such, a horse is unlikely to trigger them. It’s the same reason some bicyclists have to hit crosswalk buttons to indicate their presence depending on the sensitivity of the induction loop and type of metal in their bike.

There are some people feeling a little stupid about now I suggest. There are some that enjoy shooting from hip with little thought outside the box and then look pretty stupid when a valid reason presents itself.

BenMac said :

nescius said :

I don’t think horses are made of metal, so maybe they moved forward of the line to allow a car to trigger the lights rather that stand there for all eternity?

Traffic lights are triggered by pressure plates in the ground. A horse is heavy enough. I’ve seen cyclists trigger lights, then ride off causing others to have to wait for no one, but that for another thread.

Benmac: nescius was 100% correct. Inductive coils (see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Induction_loop) are used, not pressure plates. As such, a horse is unlikely to trigger them. It’s the same reason some bicyclists have to hit crosswalk buttons to indicate their presence depending on the sensitivity of the induction loop and type of metal in their bike.

bd84 said :

They did the right thing by stopping safely in that location rather than continuing through.

One pace forwards, or one pace backwards would be sufficient.

nescius said :

I don’t think horses are made of metal, so maybe they moved forward of the line to allow a car to trigger the lights rather that stand there for all eternity?

Traffic lights are triggered by pressure plates in the ground. A horse is heavy enough. I’ve seen cyclists trigger lights, then ride off causing others to have to wait for no one, but that for another thread.

dvaey said :

Too bad if you were a pedestrian who wanted to cross at the intersection.

Why are horses allowed to stop after the thick white hold-line? Is it only if theyve got police ‘watching’ their back?

Maybe the reason for that is the horses won’t be able to trigger the traffic light sensor so they have to move up further so the car behind them can trigger it?

Davo111 said :

vg said :

You are effing kidding aren’t you?

It might be a hard concept to understand, but police are required to follow the road rules.

Check out section 305 of the Australian Road Rules.

It might help you not looking like an idiot next time.

In your world please tell me exactly what evidence of the commission of any offence you see in the above picture?

Davo111 said :

bd84 said :

The speed of the signal change of the traffic lights would be quicker than the stopping distance of the horse..

Then they should be riding at a speed that allows them to stop safely in time.

Truck drivers can’t drive through reds for the same reason.

You really didn’t put much thought into your comment did you?

The police horses would have likely been travelling at walking pace, what speed would you like them to ride at? The change of lights gives vehicles travelling at the speed limit enough time to exit the intersection, anything slower (like walking horses approaching an intersection) will get caught in the intersection. They did the right thing by stopping safely in that location rather than continuing through.

I don’t think horses are made of metal, so maybe they moved forward of the line to allow a car to trigger the lights rather that stand there for all eternity?

dvaey said :

Too bad if you were a pedestrian who wanted to cross at the intersection.

Why are horses allowed to stop after the thick white hold-line? Is it only if theyve got police ‘watching’ their back?

Just add that to your list of pathetic gripes.

dvaey said :

Too bad if you were a pedestrian who wanted to cross at the intersection.

Why are horses allowed to stop after the thick white hold-line? Is it only if theyve got police ‘watching’ their back?

Well, to be fair, I don’t think a horse rider can ever exercise complete control over a horse. As Jerry Seinfeld said, they are jittery, glassy-eyed dinosaurs.