Car Clash

I saw an accident today at lunch time. A lady in a Skoda Octavia estate got t-boned by a man in a Nissan Maxima.


Well, I didn't see it happen, but I heard the horrifying screech of the tyres capped off with the bone-chilling crack of plastic, metal and glass. Waaah! I did turn around to see the last bits and pieces of debris come to a halt.

The big issue is that the lady is pregnant... I hope she's ok. She was in tears as a passer-by helped her out of the car. The fuzz came within 5 minutes (Carlton station is a block away), hurrah! The ambos within 10 mins. The man (in his late 50's) remained in the car (I hope he's ok).

The accident would have happened at a good 45km/h and by recollection, I'd estimate there was a maximum of 10-12m stopping distance. Whether or not the baby is ok, the Skoda driver was jolted but walking around, even though she was hit on the driver's side. The Maxima driver was talking and seemed ok. This highlights just how safe we are in modern cars. I'd expect that kind of safety from a Maxima or any other medium-large Japanesey car, and though it's a Czech Rep. car, the Skoda is a Golf underneath.

I wonder who was at fault...

Treface

This is a tree on Gertrude Street.


And he's most unimpressed.

bike lanes...

... there should be more of them!

This one is in my street. It's ok because my street is rather wide and there's good visibility. Unfortunately, this isn't the case for most bike lanes in Melbourne.

The Melbourne City Council claims that Melbourne is one of the world's bike cities... but in reality and in general our bike lanes and the whole subject of bike commuting are not addressed appropriately.

The Melbourne Bicycle Account - Cycling Census 2007 shows that peak hour commuting increased from 4% to 8% of vehicles in key areas between 2006 and 2007. When you consider that many bike lanes and routes in Melbourne just vanish at the end of a street, or taper to allow for cars to turn corners, or share the side of the road with CAR PARKS so that for most of the day they're occupied by cars... it makes you wonder how MCC can claim we are a bike city.

Fair enough we have some successes - Canning Street in Carlton/Carlton Nth is a fantastic street for cyclists. Swanston St in Carlton has been made very safe (until you hit the city that is) with the Copenhagen style bike lanes. And the southern half of Rathdowne Street now has green bike lanes and audible road lines to correct straying drivers. I'm sure there are other projects around the city too.

But road safety isn't just a concern on major commuting routes. More time and effort is needed for those smaller bike routes in the back streets where drivers are just as likely to screw up and cyclists are less likely to ride defensively. On top of direct safety efforts, improved driver education and cyclist education must be implemented somewhere!

Bizarre Messages at Fed Square

Tonight we went to the Federation Square monthly wine-tasting. This time it was wine makers of the Mornington Peninsula. Fabulous wines - we bought a super bottle of 2006 Elgee Park Pinot Noir. The efforts of the lovely lady named Pat did not go unnoticed by us. She gave exemplary customer service.

When we returned to our bikes (sloshed and ready for Chinese food) I found this note on the bike next to mine.


WTF?

Is it a genuine message from a good natured passer-by? Is it part of a recruitment drive for a cult? Or is it the result of a guerrilla marketing campaign?

There's a way to find out. Ring the number +61 3 8636 8834 and ask - if you have the guts.

This is not the first strange message I've found...on a bike that isn't mine... at Fed Square:

Someone is playing a trick on me.

On second thoughts, the first message is very neat. Ultra neat writing, a purpose-made card tag and a rubber band. Compare that to the latter message, scrawled onto a scrap piece of cardboard and wedged into the drink bottle cage of the bike.

All of a sudden I'm suspicious of the former message... methinks a cult is involved!

The Value of Training

Today I had an all day training session at work. And as far as training goes, it was actually quite interesting.

But I did see even more interesting things out and about. They were:















Window washers. Their... sticks(?) were quite long. Maybe 15m long.
















A pigeon dive-bombing some sparrows impeding on his turf.
















My colleague playing the piano during a training session.

Blogging: It'll Never Catch On!

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TTE