I wonder how many trips Mr Stone does on trains. I wonder if he has travelled on trains in London and Paris and the US which comparatively, are filthy.

I wonder when people like those quoted in articles like this are going to realise that cycling is NOT the panacea to transporting people to and from work, but rather is a small contributor and always will be. Public transport options, yes. Walking, yes. Car-pooling, yes. Cycling no, because there are people who are never, ever going to get on a bike -- they simply cannot be forced to.

I also love this stuff about carbon emissions targets that Ms Rice refers to. The trains and trams in Melbourne are powered by electricity which is generated by... wait for it... brown coal! Yep, get the drivers out of their cars and using electrically... errr, um... coal-powered vehicles.

There is also this other factor that seems to elude the minds of cycling advocates and quasi-advocates like Ms Rice -- or maybe they just don't understand it. But if you are going to create a demand for something (such as cycle commuting), then you need to be ready to deliver what is demanded. Right now there is almost nothing available in the way of co-ordinated, reputable rider training courses, appropriate bikes on the retail market, and facilities that are conducive to commuting (I will leave separated facilities such as bike paths out of this, but will include undercover storage and change facilities). This is apart from any education programs for drivers and a legislative process that actually protects cyclists' interest (as in some countries in Europe where a driver is always held responsible in a collision wtih a cyclist until proven otherwise).

Bicycle Victoria is virtually impotent unless it's organising rides in other States or countries. VicRoads used to try (at least when I had some association with bicycling advocacy), but it's brief was more for on-road facilities. There is no co-ordination or cohesion amongst cyclists and cycling organisations, much less an interest by those groups in creating meaningful, working partnerships with various levels of community (including the RACV) and government; in other words, if there isn't confrontation, there's nothing

So when Ms Rice glibly calls for people to ride bicycles instead of drive motor vehicles, does she know that cycling is in a much much much more parlous state than Victoria's public transport system ever could be?

EDIT: I also have to call into question the headings on this thread and on the articles as linked. Nowhere does it say that Melbourne is worst at public transport use -- it says that the decline in public transport use is the greatest in Melbourne... which indicates not an increase in Sydney, but ALSO a decline. And the comparison is only of two cities -- Sydney and Melbourne. Hmmmm... statistics and errant manipulation. No wonder cycling doesn't have a favourable public face.