Skating

So, I bought a new pair of roller skates with, more or less, the intention to eventually skate to work*. This idea may, of course, be completely insane as we all know roller skates have large chunky wheels that are poorly suited to dealing with obstacles - therefore the possibility of my tripping over a rock and falling flat on my face is a very likely one. Then again, let's face it - this is hardly the stupidest idea I've ever had, now, is it?

Anyway, the potential dangers of the activity might not be all I have to worry about.

Turns out that the Queensland Government has changed the road rules recently to declare all manner of wheels one may stand on to be for "recreational" use only, and not allowed on the roads. So, throughout the state, anyone on quads, in-lines, boards or scooters who dares to ride on any road "major" enough to have markings on it is breaking the law and is up for a fine.

Note that: it's still okay for skaters to ride on the streets - just not if the street might actually have a bike lane marked on it. Once a road is big enough to have a space for people who aren't in cars to have a lane to themselves, skaters can just take themselves off, thank you.

Now, I understand why the Queensland Government would believe the road rules need to be changed to specifically deal with skaters. It's to deal with the idiots. There are an awful lot of them out there - morons who seem to be under the mistaken impression that they can behave in a completely unpredictable and somewhat reckless fashion without getting themselves or someone else hurt. These people justifiably earn the hatred of everyone who sees them. Truth is, we all want them to smack into a pole and take themselves out of the picture.

Idiots can, of course, be found commanding any given form of transport out there, from cars right down to skate boards. However, idiots on skateboards are much easier to identify as idiots than idiots in cars. They're slower, so you can hate them for a longer period of time while waiting for them to throw themselves under your car. Drivers will usually hate other road users with a greater passion than fellow drivers. Except maybe P platers in utes. Everyone hates them.

However, I'm pretty sure banning the use of skates on roads is a poor solution to the problem. In fact, it kinda sucks. Sure, if there was a network of well maintained paths to enable people using skates to get through towns without going onto the roads, it would probably be okay. But I challenge you to find any town or city in this state where someone travelling by board can safely and effectively navigate the landscape without going onto the road. Plus, I'd like to point out that roads are periodically cleaned and maintained. Not so the "footpaths". It takes years before someone cleans the broken glass off those, or repairs damage done by wear and weather.

So, essentially, this law is just telling everyone who legitimately travels from A-B using skates to ping off: "You can't be here. I don't care that you don't have anywhere else to be."

A law stating skaters must wear protective clothing when travelling on the roads would make more sense. However, that law does not exist. You can still travel the glass-ridden, damaged footpaths without a helmet or wrist-guards, but you can't go on the roads even if you're wearing plenty of safety equipment. (For anyone who doesn't know, it's illegal to ride a bike on the roads without a helmet in Queensland).

On a side note, I believe (but have not confirmed) that unicycles are classified with skates as being recreational devices. Legally, you don't have to wear a helmet whilst riding a unicycle. And, I guess, now you can't legally ride a unicycle on the roads. However, you would have to be three different shades of stupid to try to try to ride a unicycle along a Queensland road anyway - with or without a helmet.


*I should probably confess that, at this point, I haven't even made it to the park with these skates, let alone anything resembling a street.