If the December 14, 2012 Herald Sun Editorial does not meet with your approval,
write a complaint.
editor@heraldsun.com.au
and cc it to
info@presscouncil.org.au
We just spent a year working with the government in Victoria trying to get a FAIR GO for riders and improve our safety on our roads.
THE PRESS COUNCIL
The Editorial in today's Herald Sun is biased and factually wrong.
That would be bad enough but it directly, negatively effects road
safety and attacks the credibility of the Victorian Parliamentary
Road Safety Committee.
Please find attached the offending editorial and two letters to the
paper.
If the Herald Sun does not fix the problem by publishing a correction
and apology to its' readers for misleading them on this road safety
matter, I would like to make a formal complaint against the paper.
Sincerely,
Damien Codognotto OAM
Spokesman
Independent Riders' Group
Melbourne
Tel: 03 9846 8621
d.codognotto.oam@bigpond.com
THE HERALD SUN
Page 72 - December 14, 2012.
LICENCE FOR ROAD CHAOS
www.heraldsun.com.au
The editor of the Herald Sun is clearly ignorant of the facts where
motorcycles & scooters in traffic are concerned.
Obviously one main contributor to road rage associated with traffic
filtering is the paper today. In an extraordinary editorial showing
contempt for the Parliamentary Road Safety Committee and apparent
prejudice against Victoria's motorcycle and scooter riders, the paper
misleads its' mostly car-driving readership.
The parliamentary report is based on over a year of good science and
hearings involving VicRoads, TAC, police and medical practitioners as
well as a wide range of stakeholders. But the editor of the Herald Sun
knows better than all of them blurting out a bias against riders
rather than a balanced view promoting road safety.
The fact is motorcycle & scooter riders are at less risk when they traffic
filter. There is no evidence from anywhere in the world that riders
crash while moving between slow moving or stationary cars on congested
roads. Crashes while traffic filtering are very rare events and likely
to be minor.
Most serious crashes are due to car driver error at intersections, when changing
lanes without looking and when bikes are hit from behind.
Riders are far safer moving to the front of lines of cars than sitting stationary
in a lane taking up most of a car space.
The fact is that motorcycles & scooters reduce traffic congestion by
leaving their cars at home, by assisting traffic flow in peak hours and they
free up parking spaces for people who have to use their cars.
The fact is that there is no specific law against traffic filtering. Various rules
about indicating and overtaking on the left (a thing that road authorities
encourage bicyclists to do) give police some excuses to book riders for a safe,
sensible practice that eases congestion and happens every day in our cities.
In my opinion, the editor of the Herald Sun using emotive phrases
like -
"...lane changers are likely to be hit by a zigzagging motorbike, with the rider being
thrown under the wheels of other cars."
"The worst offenders are often bikies on big bikes with 'gorilla' handlebars."
"Anyone who has seen a motorbike rider thrown into the air, or left sprawled unconscious
on the road, will judge this as a disastrous idea and one that's likely to add to the state's road toll."
- degrades the editorial to propaganda. This editorial is not evidence based, it's opinion/prejudice..
That's what the Road Safety Committee warned about. Road safety measures must be
evidence based.
I think the editor of the Herald Sun owes the Parliamentary Road Safety Committee an apology.
Damien Codognotto OAM
Independent Riders' Group
Melbourne
THE HERALD SUN
LETTERS
A paper that prides itself on "... accurate, fair and fearless
publication of news and commentary." should not have run the editorial
"LICENCE FOR ROAD CHAOS". It was factually wrong, full of biased and
emotional phrases that vilify motorcycle & scooter riders and it showed
contempt for the all-party Victorian Road Safety Committee.
There is no evidence showing traffic filtering is dangerous. It happens routinely
everyday in our cities. There is no specific lawagainst traffic filtering. Promoting
road rage is likely to add to our state's road toll. Road authorities encourage bicyclists
to traffic filter. And, in 40% of bike insurance claims the rider is hit from behind
while sitting in the lane taking up nearly as much space as a car.
Traffic filtering is a safer way for riders to travel on congested streets and it shortens
trips but it also helps traffic flow and frees up car parking space. The Road Safety Committee recommended looking at traffic filtering because it exists and could benefit all road users
if done safely.
Let's hope the Herald Sun is committed to "... the highest editorial and ethical standards."
and will "...promptly correct errors when they occur."
Damien Codognotto OAM
Independent Riders Group
Melbourne
This negative editorial straight after the very positive parliamentary inquiry report indicates that we have not won a FAIR GO yet. It makes the Melbourne to Seymour FAIR GO ride more important than ever. Saturday, March 16, 2013. Put it in your diaries and on club calendars. Spread the word. Lunch after wards at the Flowerdale Hotel. Publican Steve will put on a sausage sizzle.
Editor
Herald-Sun Newspaper
Dear Sir,
Your Editorial (Licence for Road Chaos - 14th Dec) is neither responsible nor evidence based. The filtering recommendation of the Vic Parliamentary Inquiry, as with many of their recommemdations, was based on the weight of evidence, experience in many European countries, and with SAFETY in mind.
In the vast majority of motorcycle accidents and fatalities involving another motor vehicle, it is the motor vehicle at fault. Filtering has been shown to be a safe practise to reduce the vulnerability of motorcyclists. Experience with congestion filtering in the UK, where it is actually promoted, with courses conducted by Police, has shown that such filtering reduces congestion by as much as 40%.
Had you taken time, as the Inquiry members did, to acsertain the facts, rather than promote road rage, you would have quickly recognised the inherent community benefits and safety features in the Committee's recommendation for filtering to enhace safe motorcycling.
Peter Baulch
Chairman
Victorian Motorcycle Council
0428 246 174.
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