Response to BB Mis info Vic

[bazzle]

Response to BB Mis info - Bazzle


MEMORANDUM

TO: ALL ARB VICTORIAN SALES STAFF AND DISTRIBUTORS

FROM: GREG MILTON

SUBJECT: BULL BAR LEGALITY

DATE: MAY 21ST 2004


Some of you read an article in the Sunday May 16th edition of the Sunday Herald Sun by Ian Haberfield with the outrageous headline of “Bullbars Facing Axe in the City”.

This disgusting misrepresentation of the facts will no doubt have been seen by potential customers who may have been put off owning a bull bar as a result.

Please assure such potential customers that the real facts are as follows:-

There has been a report prepared by the Victorian parliamentary committee into road safety on the subject of “Road Safety for Older Road Users”. Of the 41 recommendations made, only two concerned bull bars. The first suggests a publicity campaign to discourage the use of bull bars on vehicles used solely in urban areas.

The second suggests that VicRoads investigates the possibility of introducing a permit scheme for the use of bull bars on vehicles registered in the Melbourne metropolitan area.

The Government’s response to these recommendations was to support them both, in principle, however they noted that the permit scheme would require some further research as to how it could work, and that it would require an amendment to the 1986 Road Safety Act.

Enforcement was not discussed, nor was the cost of such a scheme however those issues will be significant barriers to the introduction of a permit system even if it were politically acceptable.

The Government made no commitment to any publicity campaign other than a vague reference to considering it as part of some future budgetary planning process.

So, in brief, bull bars are not facing the axe; anywhere!

People outside of the user base and in Government who do not understand the safety benefits of bull bar fitment continue to stir up this sort of misleading and negative publicity.

We will continue to keep a low profile on this subject, as retaliation tends to generate further ill-informed publicity seeking responses and we suggest you do the same.

It is noteworthy that none of the Government authorities have adopted the recently finalised Australian Standard for bull bars in their regulations. None the less we stand ready, willing and able to comply should the need arise.

We suggest that everyone in our network should be pushing the case for responsibly designed bull bars with their customers. We should also be discouraging the use of 4 post and aggressive designs and dangerous brackets and things like bar mounted fishing rod holders which do pose safety risks to other road users.


Thanks and Kind Regards

Greg J Milton

Greg Milton
National Sales and
Operations Manager

[robbie]

We will continue to keep a low profile on this subject, as retaliation tends to generate further ill-informed publicity seeking responses and we suggest you do the same.

good work

well, there goes my idea for the "online petition".. might as well finish coding it for my port-folio of websites I guess