Local cyclists vent anger at RTA

Several Kiama residents have warned that a potentially fatal accident could be unavoidable unless the RTA does more to protect cyclists travelling along the North Kiama by-pass.

Cycling enthusiast Rod Cunich said unless the RTA begin to sweep the road weekly he feared a major accident could be forthcoming.

It is definitely a concern there is no doubt, he said.

I talked to Matt Brown about the dangers facing cyclists along the stretch and I received a letter back saying the RTA had promised to clean the cycleway however it is not obvious how often they are doing this.

They are sweeping it but it is not helping that much as the debris returns very quickly. Passing by in a vehicle it looks reasonably clean but it is still littered by small sharp quarry rocks falling from trucks which are dangerous and there is also glass from bottles that are thrown from moving vehicles against the concrete barriers at the side of the road.

Mr Cunich said he and his cycling group had received a number of punctures in the last few weeks saying every puncture they encountered put the friends in imminent danger.

The quarry rocks are small and sharp and almost impossible to avoid as you cannot see them until on top of them, he said. I have had to replace two tyres in the past three weeks due to rips caused by rocks shredding the tyres, at $90 a pop it is an expensive exercise.

One puncture almost resulted in other cyclists running into the back of me as they could not enter the road lane to avoid me due to passing vehicles.

I can tell you it is not fun getting a puncture along that stretch at all. It is very scary fixing a tyre in the lane between the wall with cars and trucks screaming down the hill.

Mr Cunich believes the abundance of debris on the side of the road is only part of the overall example of the RTAs attitude towards cyclists. The avid cyclist expressed his concern at several other danger spots along the by-pass saying that although you would expect teething problems with a new stretch of road hazards particular to cyclists along the by-pass have seemingly been ignored.?

You just to have to look at the cycleway at the roundabout at the top of the off ramp on the Bombo Quarry heading from Kiama towards Kiama Downs. The flash cycleway up the ramp simply ends and one is left with a narrow single lane at the entry to the roundabout. Where are bikes meant to go at this juncture? Mix it with the cars on the roundabout and if you survive there is a lovely cycleway on the other side that you can enjoy, he said.

Greg Brodie was knocked from his bike when he hit an unfinished part of the cycleway at Bombo. It was un-sign posted, dangerous and not easily seen by a cyclist. The danger went un-sign posted and unfixed for weeks despite reports to the RTA.

Mr Brodie received severe injuries in the accident, having to undergo two lots of surgery on his severely lacerated arm.

I just came down the edge and I was braking but it was too late and I went up and over the lip, he said. I was in hospital for days on an IV drip and my arm was badly cut needing around 20 stitches. Realistically though I was probably pretty lucky. With the amount of debris on the road it is very possible that someone could come off their bike straight into the path of a truck or car. It is quite frightening really.

Kiama MP Matt Brown said he would be raising the matter with the RTA saying he did not wish to see any cyclists get injured along the new stretch of road.

The whole idea of the North Kiama by-pass was to create a faster and safer stretch of road, he said. :We do not want to see this undone if cyclists are constantly having to swerve and dodge debris or pull over to fix their punctures.

The RTA was contacted by the Kiama Independent however did not return the phone calls.