Rob’s Speech 7th May 2005, Parliament House, Adelaide
My name is Rob Lewis, and I represent Wheels of Justice. Our group is made up of ordinary, working, tax paying individuals who happen to ride bicycles. We have no political preferences or allegiances. We have been galvanised into action as a result of injustice and the lack of value for a human life. We care and want to make a difference.

I want to thank you all for coming along and showing just how many of us are outraged. I am pleased to be able to tell you that at this moment, there are rallies being held in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane in support of us. In addition, we have received messages of support from all states, and even overseas – as far afield as Colorado and Puerto Rico. It is a shame that this is what our state has become famous for – but hopefully your attendance here can help change that.

Last week, I heard a person described as a Mullett-Headed Lawyer defending his client, after the sentencing, by saying that it was “only” Due Care and Attention, and that this momentary lapse of concentration was a pure accident, which could have happened to anyone.

I have this to say to him: I suggest that you consult the Motor Accidents Commission, as they maintain that there is no such thing as an accident – there are crashes. Your client was involved in a crash. There was no accident at all. Rather, it was a callous disregard for his responsibilities as a licensed driver, and total lack of morality or value of human life. Be clear your values are NOT representative of a caring society.

If an airliner crashed, and people were killed because the pilot had a couple of drinks and wasn’t really paying attention to what he was doing, there would be an outcry. If he survived the crash, he would be locked up, he would lose his job, and he would never be allowed to fly again.

So why do we have a different attitude to driving cars? There is no difference really. When someone sits behind the wheel of a car, they are in charge of a lethal weapon, and anything less than 100% attention to what they are doing is totally unacceptable.

We, as a society, should approach driving a car in the same way that we would approach flying an aeroplane. After all, statistically, cars are actually the *more* dangerous.

If anyone crashes a car and in so doing kills someone else, or consigns them to spend the rest of their life in a wheelchair, they don’t deserve to be allowed behind the wheel EVER AGAIN. People who maim and kill with no regard have abrogated their rights.

A licence is not a right but a privilege and one that should be taken away forever. TAKE AWAY LICENCES FOREVER and let them ride bikes. Mr Premier – where are you?

Your words no longer pacify us. Action – and quick action is what we now demand.
We want visible and measurable changes in the government and community attitude and call on you, Mr Rann, to get serious about ensuring the safety of cyclists on our roads. You have in your possession recommendations from responsible cycling organisations.

STOP SITTING ON YOUR HANDS and do something now before someone else dies as a result of your inaction.

Ensure enforcement of current road laws – there is no point in increasing maximum penalties, if no penalties are handed down anyway.

Develop and implement laws that require drivers to slow down to 50kph, or less and give one metre of clearance when overtaking not only cyclists but walkers on country roads, as they are meant to do for horse riders.

You have an absolute commitment and duty of care to address these issues and ensure the safety of cyclists.

We demand education, enforcement and accountability NOW!

I challenge the Premier and Mr Conlon to join me on a ride down Pulteney Street during peak hour to see for yourselves what we are up against. Due to the lack of enforcement the bike lanes are nothing more then cosmetics. A lip service to cyclist safety. Or come for a nice ride in our picturesque tourist areas of the Barossa, the Adelaide Hills or McLaren Vale and see just how safe it is after the glamour of the Tour Down Under has passed by.

You want to encourage tourism in this state – well perhaps you need to make this state a safer place for tourists before too many of them get killed here. I can assure you the world is now watching.

I am most disappointed in the words of our new DPP, we are not ignorant people, and we are not easily manipulated, as he obviously believes. We remain hopeful that our new DPP will bring some common sense and work to put right a system that the majority of the community can see is so obviously wrong.

All that we have seen so far is someone who has joined in the game of political point scoring, whilst ignoring the issues that are important to the community that he represents.

As my Dad used to say to his children, will you people please GROW UP, put aside your frolics and your picnics and give us the justice system that we all demand and deserve.

Mr Rann and Mr Polaris, speaking for the cyclists of South Australia , in a language that hopefully you will understand, I say

MORITURI TE SALUTAMUS

My final comment is reserved for our legal community in general. I know many of you are fine professionals who are as truly appalled by the Humphrey families’ experience as are the rest of us. I call upon you to exercise your conscience and demonstrate social justice in action. Provide them with the best legal representation available, for the Royal Commission – AT NO COST - .

They have suffered enough and paid too high a price already. They shouldn’t have to pay any more.

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