“For older and disabled people,the risk of being hit by a cycle is considerable,” the complaint says. “Anyone who has encountered cyclists on Sydney’s roads will know the speeds at which they often travel and the propensity of many of them to ignore traffic lights and pedestrians.”
The commission would not confirm whether it had initiated a conciliation and said it did not comment on individual complaints.
The complainants,who include former City of Sydney councillor Kathryn Greiner,want the commission to ask the City of Sydney council to stop construction of the western part of the cycleway,which runs from the CBD to Taylor Square,and to ask Transport for NSW to suspend planning of the eastern part,which continues from Taylor Square to Centennial Park.
Michael Waterhouse,80,who has some deafness and uses a hearing aid,is leading the complaint. The former banking executive and federal treasury adviser said his interest was triggered by a near-miss with a cyclist on a shared path while he was looking at his phone.
“It was my fault. But I realised this could happen to anybody of a certain age,” Waterhouse said. “The more I looked into it,the more I thought,‘This is bizarre’. I’m really concerned about it.
“The whole cycling thing is good on one level. Unfortunately,there are a number of cyclists who will cause problems. The demographic of Paddington is getting older. There are a lot of people around who I think will be affected.”
The full 14-page complaint includes video clips of crashes or near-misses at so-called “floating” bus stops in London,where they are common,posted on X by the National Federation of the Blind of the UK.