Cycle-path rage continues.
One of the big disputes is whether pedestrians should walk on the left or right hand side of a cycle path.
Unfortunately, the law is silent on what pedestrians should do. Pedestrians are merely urged by the Traffic Act to keep a look out, but there is no penalty. Not that passing a law of itself can fix human conduct, but at least it would be a start. I don’t think we need a penalty, but it would help to have some uniformity of behaviour on cycle paths so everyone knows what to expect. Having a fair idea of what the other idiot is going to do is half the battle of avoiding collision.
I am a motorist, cyclist, roller-blader and pedestrian, so I’ll try to look at it from all sides.
On footpaths, stairwells and in corridors around the country pedestrians generally keep left. That road rule is easily translated to pedestrian traffic. Many of us have been told, however, that when pedestrians and motor traffic mix it is safer for pedestrians to walk on the right-hand side, facing the traffic. That is very sensible and there is a good reason for it. A pedestrian is more likely to see a car than a motorist is to see a pedestrian. A pedestrian can see an on-coming car more easily than hear one from behind. That represents an open-an-shut case for walking on the right. On roads, that is.
Why? Because a pedestrian on a road sees the on-coming car and then gets completely off the road giving safe passage to the car which continues on its way on the left hand side of the road.
And this is precisely why the situation on the road does not translate to the cyple path. Pedestrians on the cycle are rarely willing to surrender their right to stay on the cycle path. They do not accept that if you walk in the oppositing direction of the traffic you have to get right off the path if any traffic (that is cycles, roller bladers or other pedestrians) comes at you.
Nearly all pedestrians stay on the path when a cyclist approaches and expect the cyclist to move out on to the wrong side of the cycle path to go around them. This is causes great danger, especially if traffic is coming the other way.
The cyclist is on a collision course: hit the on-coming pedestrian or hit the on-coming cyclist.
If pedestrians keep left, however, there is no collision course. A cyclist can slow down behind the pedestrian to walking pace and over-take the pedestrian when the other side of the road is clear. The onus is on the cyclist.
Cyclists should sound their bell when approaching pedestrians from behind. Pedestrians should keep left. The Government should amend the Traffic Act and put signs up accordingly. The present ambiguity of some pedestrians staying right and others staying left invites confusion and collisions.