Red light runners, rubbish are issues for cyclists

AS a cycle commuter, I wholeheartedly agree with Mark Hely (Letters, 16.9.20) that cycling in Dunedin is a daily experience in selfpreservation.

I ride through 10 major intersections on my commute, and last night was very typical with cars, trucks and buses running the red light at eight of them.

In one case, three cars went through after the light went red. Combine this with the bonejarring state of many roads, glass and debrisstrewn cycleways, and the general animosity towards cyclists in the city, and it takes a brave, or perhaps foolhardy, person to choose to commute by bike.

Instead of spending millions on lightly used separated cycleways, a cheaper and more meaningful difference could be made by increasing the frequency of street sweeping and enforcing the road rules. Duane Donovan

Bradford

Matariki

AS a European New Zealander, I am happy to support the Matariki holiday because it is an important date in the European tradition, as well as in most other of the world’s cultures.

Although Maori refer to it as Matariki, the lunar new year was celebrated by ancient Germanic and Celtic peoples as the first new moon following the winter solstice, or at the exact solstice date using a solar calendar. This marked the return of the sun and the start of the lengthening days.

In Northern European tradition this is referred to as Yule, which was coopted by Christians as Christmas. Because the seasons are reversed in the northern hemisphere, Christmas (and, hence, the pagan festival Yule) is celebrated in December, but given that it is the winter solstice that is the important issue for pagans, June is the appropriate time for New Zealanders.

The Pleiades, known to Maori as matariki, were also involved in the midwinter solstice in the North. Perhaps, in the interests of diversity, then, we could name the festival Matariki or Yule depending on our cultural proclivities.

Chris Brausch

Thames

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