Bicycle Network: Behaviour

Autumn 2010

We have reviewed the Campaign which has now been running for five years. See our conclusions.

Autumn 2009

Refresh your batteries in time for those rides in the dark or check out the best of the latest lights in the Ride On Lights Test 2009.

End of Daylight Saving 2008

Please see the National Light Up! 2008 page for current information.

This year daylight saving will end on Sunday 6 April 2008 at 3 am summer time when clocks are put back one hour. This will occur in the ACT, NSW, South Australia, Victoria and Tasmania. Daylight saving ends in WA on 30 March 2008. We remind riders about fitting fresh batteries. Encourage those who are new to riding to fit lights to their bikes. We encourage riders who have lights more than two years old to upgrade. Today's lights are significantly better than those we reviewed two years ago.

Shortest Day 2007

Jun 07 Please see the Light Up! 2007 page for current information.

End of Daylight Saving 2007

Mar 07 The end of daylight saving on Sunday 25 March 2007 signals the start of night-time bike riding. Bike Riders need to buy lights or fit fresh batteries to their existing lights.

Bicycle Network Victoria conducted our end of daylight saving survey on Wednesday 28 March 2007. The results were an improvement on the 2005 survey (there was no survey conducted in 2006) but they were still disappointing. Nearly 40% of bike riders were riding after sunset without adequate lights.

2007 Bike Light study

Mar 07 Bicycle Network Victoria has tested 24 popular bike lights and can recommend the best lights and the best value lights.

The test panel included representatives from the bicycle industry, user groups, clubs, Victoria Police and VicRoads. The test was held on a suburban street at night. The group observed the lights from 200m – the distance stipulated in the traffic regulations – and rated them in a ‘blind’ test.

The averaged results revealed the superiority of the recommended lights. Full results from the test were published in the April edition of Ride On the Bicycle Network Victoria members’ magazine.

Shortest Day 2006: Police check riders on Canning St

Jun 06 Police cautioned 17 riders on Canning St before sunrise (7.35am) of the shortest day (Wednesday 21 June 2006). 13 riders had no lights, 2 had front only and 2 had rear only. 48 Riders had working lights front and rear. Some working lights were not visible at the required distance of 200m and some working lights were obscured by clothing or backpack flaps. These proportions are the same as the average of the six lead in surveys to the shortest day reported below.

The police reminded riders that lights are necessary after sunrise in conditions of poor visibility such as fog or rain.

2006 Shortest Day survey

Jun 06 A recent Bicycle Network Victoria survey has shown that more than a quarter of bike riders are riding at night with inadequate lighting.

‘This is a very disappointing result. Riders need to lift their game. Cyclists riding on the road at night must have working front and rear lights.’ Harry Barber, General Manager of Bicycle Network Victoria said today.

Bicycle Network Victoria volunteers surveyed six locations around the CBD between 5pm and 7pm between 7 and 14 June 2006.

The survey found 27% of cyclists riding at night with inadequate lights, 15% had no lights, a further 7% ride with a rear light only and 4% are riding with a front light only.

The survey showed that riders on St Kilda Road are more likely to have lights with more than 85% of riders had both front and rear lights.

On the other hand, 40% of the riders on Brunswick St had inadequate lights.

Mr Barber said with the shortest day of the year, Wednesday 21 June, looming, the time was right for regular riders to fit fresh batteries so their bike lights lasted through winter.

“Effective lights mean other road users can see you. It’s as simple as that,” he said.

‘In 2004, three of the nine cycle fatalities were after sunset and the riders had no lights.”

2006 End daylight saving study

Mar 06 There was no study at the end of daylight saving as this coincided with the Commonwealth Games which disrupted normal riding patterns.

2005 Attitude and use survey

Nov 05 A Bicycle Network Victoria survey of 1,200 bike riders in 2005 revealed that 40% of riders had no lights and 20% had only one light. The survey showed riders without lights are new to riding and don’t ride frequently at night.

The survey also showed that people who ride frequently at night do have lights fitted on their bikes, but do not change their batteries regularly.

The same survey found riders who ride at night without lights believe that lights are expensive. However the two models that topped Bicycle Network Victoria’s test of twenty popular LED bicycle lights cost $25 each.

2005 Bike light study

Nov 05 Topping the results from Bicycle Network Victoria’s testing of 20 popular front and rear LED bike lights were Bike Essentials four LED front light and Smart RL307 seven LED rear light.

The test group comprised representatives from Victoria Police, VicRoads Road Safety Division, bike shop owners, Retail Cycle Traders Association, the equivalent wholesalers association, Audax, as well as Bicycle Network Victoria volunteers and staff.

The group observed the lights from 200m – the distance stipulated in the traffic regulations – and rated them in a ‘blind’ test. The averaged results revealed the superiority of the two recommended lights.

Full results from the test were published in the April edition of Ride On the Bicycle Network Victoria members’ magazine.

2005 Shortest Day

Jun 05 In the lead up to the shortest day of the year Bicycle Network Victoria Volunteers again counted the number of riders who rode at night with the required amount of lighting as stipulated in the traffic regulations.

Although the number of cyclists with legal lighting had increased significantly since our first count at the end of daylight saving, we are still extremely concerned with the number of people who are riding at night with insufficient lights. “It’s getting better,” said Bicycle Network Victoria’s General Manager Harry Barber, “our March survey found 62% of cyclists had inadequate lighting –but there are still too many cyclists riding without lights and today is the shortest day of the year.”

Our latest counts have shown that 26% of cyclists are riding at night with insufficient or no lights.

2005 End of daylight saving

Mar 05 When daylight saving ended Bicycle Network Victoria volunteers surveyed five locations around the CBD in the half hour after sunset on Tuesday 22 and Wednesday 23 March 2005.

We were shocked to discover 62% of riders on the road during the count period were riding without lights on their bikes.

38% of cyclists are riding at night with no lights on their bikes, a further 18% ride with a rear light only and 6% are riding with a front light only.