It will soon be harder for Victorians to get a motorcycle licence under a new graduated licensing system.

Hard wired: cable barriers installed by VicRoads on the Hume Freeway are a fire risk, say CFA members Tony Owen, Max Cox and Graeme Seach. Picture: Mark Griffin

THE CFA has warned motorists' lives are being put at risk by a VicRoads decision to erect cable barriers along forested stretches of the Hume Fwy.

THE federal Opposition says a Government congestion tax is still on the table following a speech by Prime Minister Julia Gillard today.

Road congestion in Australia's capital cities would cost the country $20 billion a year by the end of the decade, Ms Gillard said during an address to the Eidos Institute in Brisbane.

But she offered no specific solutions to the problem.

ACT

SPEED is not killing motorcyclists on Canberra’s roads – bad habits by car and truck drivers are the real killers, Motorcycle Riders Association ACT said. Motorcycle Riders Association spokesman Peter Major said the focus on speeding by the ACT Government was misplaced, with inattentive drivers running motorcyclists off Canberra’s roads, causing accidents and costing motorbike riders their lives.

“There’s been this demonization of speed by the Government.” Mr Major said.

NSW Coffee thrown at bike paramedic Others throw food, refuse to move Told to get off footpath

PARAMEDICS trying to get to injured and sick people in crowded city streets are being abused and attacked by ignorant passers-by.

The attacks - which paramedics said were occurring on a daily basis - have even included coffee being thrown in their faces.

In the latest case of abuse, paramedics on motorbikes were confronted by hostile crowds on their way to save lives.

After the February Truck crash on Eastlink the MRAV met with ConnectEast to discuss the failure of Wire Rope Barriers being used as Median separation. At this meeting it was found that the standards for barriers are the responsibility of VicRoads. This accident proved a flaw in the use of WRB as Median separation for a route that is designed for Heavy Haulage as these barriers do not arrest these types of vehicles. This is not just a concern for Motorcyclists; it is a concern for all road users.

With the bizarre circumstances from the Wayward truck driver on Thursday 6th May, this contention is highlighted again.

MOTORCYCLE riders are out of control on Yarra Ranges roads, the area’s top traffic cop says.


Police resort to covert action.

Yarra Ranges traffic management (TMU) unit boss Sgt John Morgan said many motorcyclists who rode on the shire’s open and winding roads - such as the Black and Reefton Spur roads - were doing “bloody ridiculous” speeds.

MOTORCYCLE riders have slammed State Government plans to install wire rope barriers along the Princes Highway and South Gippsland Freeway.



Motorcycle rider Dev Rowan passes wire barriers on the highway. Picture: KRIS REICHL.

Roads and Ports Minister Tim Pallas said the barriers would save lives.

“Over the past five years, run-off-road crashes have accounted for 40 per cent of fatalities and 28 per cent of serious injuries on Victorian roads,” Mr Pallas said.

But Motorcycle Riders Association member Dale Maggs said the barriers posed a deadly threat.

“We’re extremely disappointed that the government has run ahead with the installation of wire rope barriers, which have been proved to be dangerous to motorcyclists’ safety,” Mr Maggs said.

“They also give no protection to motorists against heavy transport accidents.”

Mr Maggs said the group would talk with government representative for motorcycling, Don Nardella, about the matter.

MELBOURNE'S western suburbs are the hoon headquarters of Victoria, figures out today reveal.

The region occupies the top three places in a list of 10 suburbs where motorists reside whose cars have been confiscated by police for hoon driving.

St Albans tops the list of home suburbs of people who have had their cars impounded under State Government hoon laws, ahead of Werribee and Hoppers Crossing.

Frankston, Craigieburn and regional Shepparton and Mildura also feature prominently on the list of where hoons live.

An Australian legal academic has joined critics of new anti-association laws, saying they could be used to target groups other than bikies.

This Contradicts an Earlier Study Which Showed a Reduction in Accident Rates

Riders have bleged to go ahead with the annual Ride for the Hills event with or without an event permit.

AN annual motorcycle ride which attracts thousands of riders and raises money for Victorian bushfire victims could turn into the state’s biggest black run if Parks Victoria reneges on its permit, organisers say.

A MAN has been arrested and had his motorcycle impounded for 48 hours after he was caught driving about 60km/h over the limit.

Police estimate the man was riding at 130km/h in a 70km/h zone in Doncaster at the height of the incident on Sunday afternoon.

A drunk man riding a motorbike with no helmet, no lights and a flat tyre has done wheelies while travelling the wrong way up a major Darwin road while being pursued by police.

The MRA(vic) board are pleased to announce that former President Dale Maggs has accepted the MRA(Vic) Resource committee position of Wire Rope Barrier Officer. Wire rope style fences have now been in Victoria for 12 years and the concerns of motorcyclists are only now beginning to be heard. It is of such importance to the MRA(Vic) members that we have created this special position which Dale is eminently qualified for, focusing specifically on the continued roll out by the government of these dangerous fences. As part of the campaign Dale has been writing letters to the Minister who has now replied. Click here to read the reply.

THE Princes Highway in Victoria's east is the state's most dangerous open road, statistics have revealed.

Crash data compiled in the five years between April 1, 2004 and March 31, 2009 show the stretch of highway between Berwick and the New South Wales border accounted for the state's highest number of crashes, injuries and fatalities.

Outlaw bikie gangs have banded together in Western Australia in a bid to stop tough laws preventing their existence.

NSW

ROAD safety experts say the growing popularity of motorcycles and the recovery in the economy are behind the spike in the state's road toll.

IT’S a rivalry that is showing few signs of slowing down.

Statistics released by the Motorcycle Council of NSW this month indicate that 58 per cent of NSW road users feel tension between motorists and motorcyclists on the state’s roads.

Fed up with a number of new “scare tactics” advertising campaigns about motorcyclists, Honda Australia is instead emphasising the importance of appropriate training and riding advice in the lead up to summer. Matt Brogan