I wrote to you on 9 December, 1997, with regard to the failure of the RTA to properly consider the needs of cyclists during and after the widening of the M4 from four to six lanes.
You may recall that I asked you to intervene in the M4 upgrading project because spending and resource allocation decisions had been made that have serious and adverse consequences for cyclists using what is, in practical terms, the only usable, continuous route between Strathfield and Emu Plains.
Since then, I have received a response from Mr Bruce Taggart on behalf of the M4 Upgrading project manager Mr Bernie Chellingworth. I was very disappointed by the response. Not in terms of its honesty or completeness, which I appreciated, but rather in the way it confirmed, in my mind, the RTA's systemic problems concerning cyclists that I discussed with you in my earlier letter. I have written a response to Mr Taggart that I hope you can find time to read. My letter addresses both specific issues relating to the project (which may be of little interest to you) as well as broader policy concerns which are of direct relevance to you.
As I requested in my earlier letter, I hope you will choose to intervene in this matter. The project managers are operating under very tight budgetary constraints and it is clear that whenever cost savings have been needed, it has been the interests, safety, and lives of cyclists that have been sacrificed. This is not acceptable behaviour for a government department and must be corrected.