Wire Rope Barrier Trial

[Rustynutz]

Wire Rope Barrier Trial

Motorcyclists are up in arms over the wire rope barrier trial that is proposed for the South Gippsland Highway at Koo Wee Rup.
This will see barriers placed down the centreline of the 4 lane highway.

As usual, motorcyclist safety is being ignored.....so much for taking motorcycles into consideration as promised by the recently
released Powered Two Wheeler Road Safety and Transport Strategic Action Plan.

[ img ]

[oscar]

so, lets say a shitfaced driver is driving towards you, on this road, while you are on your bike, riding the other way

option 1 - no barrier
he veers onto your side of the road and hits you

option 2 - cheese wires
he contacts the ropes and does not hit you

the ropes are of course the cheaper option vs armco, and cause nasty damage to riders, but isn't some barrier better than nothing?

[Rustynutz]

option 1 - no barrier
he veers onto your side of the road and hits you

That's always a possibility but while there are no barriers there are at least more options to try to avoid the uncoming vehicle.

option 2 - cheese wires
he contacts the ropes and does not hit you

Or...he hits the barrier...barrier deforms into other lane and still takes you out.
Another downside is if a vehicle in front loses part of a load from a trailer etc and you have another vehicle alongside you, then you have basically nowhere to go. I know chances of this sort of thing happening may be relatively slim but so is the chance of a vehicle suddenly swerving into your lane because of no barriers.

the ropes are of course the cheaper option vs armco, and cause nasty damage to riders, but isn't some barrier better than nothing?

In this case I believe having none is the better option.....
Obviously separating the dual lanes would be the logical and smartest option....especially considering the rest of this highway does have a wide median separating the lanes....
Logic & smart isn't normally associated with our bureaucrats tho...lol.
It wouldn't surprise me in the slightest if this part of the road was purposely left like this just so they could trial these down the track citing the need to do something due to acidents having occured here.

[Comrade Ash]

Or you could just, you know, not crash.

[Rustynutz]

Or you could just, you know, not crash.

If only.......

While it makes sense to put barriers up in some circumstances, installing them willy nilly is absolutely insane.
Don't these bureaucrats ever watch motorcycle races and see how plenty of run off enables these riders to escape with little or no injury time and time again when they take a tumble?

I see it everywhere.....wrb's being installed along roads unnecessarily, and to top it all off it regularly gets installed close to the edge of the road, leaving little if any area to pull over, let alone have a spill and not collect the barrier. It makes my blood boil!!!!!

[ img ]
Classic case of wrb's installed much too close to
the edge of the road....Look at all that wasted
run off area behind it...

[Comrade Ash]

To be fair, they're probably installing them in the median to stop you from flipping over into oncoming traffic.

[Revird]

Looking at that image I can imagine the barrier flicking anything that hits it into oncoming traffic.

As a fellow temporary Australian I find riding my donorbike near these cheese chopper fences pretty scary and I doubt I'd have a viable cornea left for transplant after hitting one.

[Comrade Ash]

Looking at that image I can imagine the barrier flicking anything that hits it into oncoming traffic.

As a fellow temporary Australian I find riding my donorbike near these cheese chopper fences pretty scary and I doubt I'd have a viable cornea left for transplant after hitting one.

Wear a full face helmet?

[Rustynutz]

To be fair, they're probably installing them in the median to stop you from flipping over into oncoming traffic.

Have you been watching that ridiculous TAC motorcycle "safety"?? Ad on the idiot box, Comrade?

Wear a full face helmet?

Don't think a bit of perspex will offer much protection...

[Revird]

Looking at that image I can imagine the barrier flicking anything that hits it into oncoming traffic.

As a fellow temporary Australian I find riding my donorbike near these cheese chopper fences pretty scary and I doubt I'd have a viable cornea left for transplant after hitting one.

Wear a full face helmet?

Yes I do.

[Comrade Ash]

To be fair, they're probably installing them in the median to stop you from flipping over into oncoming traffic.

Have you been watching that ridiculous TAC motorcycle "safety"?? Ad on the idiot box, Comrade?

Wear a full face helmet?

Don't think a bit of perspex will offer much protection...

To be honest, motorcyclists are most annoying when they're *not* lane splitting.

Oh, and when some prick parks in a space for real motor vehicles.

[Revird]

Oh, and when some prick parks in a space for real motor vehicles.

Yeah that's just plain silly when you can park for free in the CBD on the footpath.

[Rustynutz]

To be fair, they're probably installing them in the median to stop you from flipping over into oncoming traffic.

Have you been watching that ridiculous TAC motorcycle "safety"?? Ad on the idiot box, Comrade?

Wear a full face helmet?

Don't think a bit of perspex will offer much protection...

To be honest, motorcyclists are most annoying when they're *not* lane splitting.

Oh, and when some prick parks in a space for real motor vehicles.

ok, I'll take the bait......
Which real motor vehicles would they be???

Yeah that's just plain silly when you can park for free in the CBD on the footpath.

Not just the CBD, motorcyclists can park their motorcycles on the footpath anywhere in Victoria........

[Comrade Ash]

Heres a hint.

They generally have four wheels and no twisty throttle.

[Rustynutz]

Heres a hint.

They generally have four wheels and no twisty throttle.

Ahhh, 4WD's....

So, Comrade.....why do you believe motorcycles aren't entitled to park in one of your "real motor vehicle" parking spots?

[Comrade Ash]

Because despite how much I wish it were the case, we can't dump our cars on footpaths.

I suppose its the same rationale behind not being allowed to run over jaywalkers or ram slow drivers...