Bike It

How would you solve congested inner city parking problems? Reduce the number of car parking spaces! Sounds ridiculous; I believe it was a former Sydney Lord Mayor who proposed this as a solution. The rationale being the more congestion the more people will switch to public transport, thus less parking congestion. Local drivers are use to their free parking spaces and at times find it difficult getting a park close to their destination, top end of East Street, even Stockland Rockhampton (especially around Christmas) spring to mind. Could part of the solution be an alternate means of transport! Electric push bikes, could they be the key to parking problems that will only get worse. I imagine a few of you are smirking at the idea. How many people would ride to work, even if it wasn’t as strenuous, it still can be dangerous? What if instead of narrow bicycle lanes running precariously on the edge of eroding bitumen, whole lanes were made for the exclusive use of push bikes? Two way streets becoming 1 way, 1 lane for cars the other for push bikes. Four lane roads, becoming effectively 2 car lanes, the outer lanes reserved solely for push bikes. The 5 o’clock dash across the bridges would be interesting as those on push bikes overtook the cars crawling along in the inner lanes. Ridiculous; why in time people might get sick of increased car congestion and start riding bikes! Not only helping solve car parking issues, but also health issues as more people exercise, less carbon monoxide is emitted and riders communicate with others improving their social well being. What a statement this would make of Rockhampton, a game changer, Obesity Capital chooses bike power; it’s a Biggest Loser series in the making. Of course an alternate solution to this is build more roads and paid parking facilities resulting in more pollution and health issues. And you probably still won’t be able to park close to your destination while more of our taxes and rates will be used to pay interest on government debt. Is making Rockhampton a true push bike friendly community a ridiculous idea, or just looking at a problem from another perspective.