I received my tax refund last week and spent most of it today buying an electric bicycle for $1795.

The official term is “power-assisted” bicycle”, because there are legal issues in Australia about whether these machines are motor vehicles. While a person has to pedal to propel the bicycle it’s okay.

I’ve only had one test ride of 7km from the store to home, so these are just first impressions, but I am impressed.

The bicycle looks and feels like a normal bike. It can be ridden like a normal bike. It has seven gears and weighs 23kg.

The unimposing battery is locked securely to the frame and doesn’t stand out unless you know what to look for. I was concerned about security, but the battery can’t be removed without a key.

You also turn the key to start the bike, which can be ridden in three modes: Normal (manual pedal), power assisted or throttle.

The man at Cumberland Cycles said first-time users find the power surge surprising and that was certainly my experience.

Departing the store I headed west along a quiet residential street, pumping the pedals. I then pushed a red button on the handlebar and “power assist” fired up with an immediate kick.

The red button starts and stops the electric motor, and the motor stops if you apply the brake.

There is also a throttle on the right handlebar grip to power the bike. I found this useful if I was pedalling manually and wanted a sudden boost to accelerate. Although you can’t easily ride the bike under full electric power, you could feasibly do so using the throttle.

I used the throttle riding up short hills and found that pedalling was necessary to supplement the 200 watts motor.

At the end of the trip I felt like I had been exercising, but I wasn’t tired or hot.

Why use an electric bicycle?

In my case we’re shifting in a few weeks and I’ll have to travel 10km to work in the city (instead of 3km now), which is too far to walk. I could work on my fitness and ride a normal pushbike, but chances are I’d have to wear sports clothes or lycra (heaven forbid), transport my day clothes and shower at work, which I can’t do.

On the power-assisted bike I expect to wear my work clothes and maybe change into casual gear for the trip home in warmer weather. On the trip home I can also pedal more if I want exercise.

The other main reason is financial. I bought the bicycle instead of a second car. There are no insurance or registration costs and the speed is not much slower than a car for short trips. The recharge cost is said to be 20 cents a day.

A weekly bus ticket would cost $30.90 in the outer zone I’m moving to, which represents $1483 over 48 weeks. I expect to take the bus occasionally if it’s raining or 40 degrees, but the saving should still be around $1000.

My older children can also use the electric bicycle because a licence isn’t required.

A fully charged battery should last 50km depending on how much it’s used. That means I can ride to work and back, with enough juice left for son Michael to travel 14km to tennis or work and back.

Riding in heavy traffic is a concern and I haven’t tested that on a work day yet. This morning I rode home along South Road, which doesn’t have a bike lane, and that was challenging. At least Sir Donald Bradman Drive has a bike lane all the way from our new home to the city.

I’ll post again in a few weeks after I’ve tested the bike in workday conditions.

The terminal is for interstate trains to Melbourne, the Indian Pacific and The Ghan. Suburban trains bypass the station.

According to Wikipedia, the terminal was built in 1984 as a dedicated long-haul passenger railway station when Adelaide Railway Station was redeveloped for suburban trains only.

Adelaide is said to be the only city in the world where passengers can catch trains on two distinct trans-continental routes.

I would love to make a long-haul rail journey one day. It’s on my mental list of things to do before I die. The Ghan to Alice Springs is the most appealing option.

The rail system in South Australia is not as extensive as it is in Victoria. There are no country passenger services and only a handful of suburban lines.

However, Regional Express (REX) has set a new benchmark in transparency with the cover of its latest annual report, released on Monday.

The airline not only concedes it was a tough year, but acknowledges the challenges on the cover of its annual report, with pictures of storm clouds and a headline saying “Annus Horribilis” as per the Queen’s famous words a few years ago.

Rex actually performed fairly well in the financial year just completed. The company increased revenue and maintained profit in the face of rising fuel prices and 50 percent pilot turnover in a tight job market.

The report’s cover was refreshingly honest in reflecting the company’s turbulent year.

I used the service thrice, and although expensive it was a marvellous time saver.

They say it is not economically viable at 50 percent capacity given high fuel prices, operating costs “and the deteriorating economic conditions in Australia”.

However, if one part of Australia is immune from the economic downturn it is Kalgoorlie.

Why didn’t Skywest just cut the service to once a week?

I think it’s a cop out. Skywest cancelled one flight I was booked on without explanation and I was routed via Perth on Qantas, arriving four hours later in Kalgoorlie than planned.

I think they had trouble servicing the route with pilots and aircraft, and never invested sufficiently in marketing.

It’s disappointing the city council and chamber of commerce have been so downcast and resigned in their acceptance of the decision.

We attended to some of the essential paperwork in advance of moving from Kalgoorlie to Mount Gambier. Electricity, water and telephone all had to be changed before we shifted.

I earmarked today for notifying the host of other services we use.

In no particular order:

• BankWest (online, easy)
• National Australia Bank (branch visit, okay)
• RAC Insurance (phone, okay)
• AAMI Insurance (phone, extended wait)
• Driver’s licence (office visit, not too scary)
• Vehicle registration (inspection at one site, registration at another, red tape galore)
• Westpac (online, easy)
• AHM health insurance (online, confusing)
• RAC roadside assistance (branch visit, complicated, unfinished)
• Ebay (online, easy)
• PayPal (online, confusing).

There are a couple more to go including Telstra mobile and Vodafone wireless broadband.

I went through the hoops of changing my RAC membership only to be told in South Australia they “follow the motorist” not the driver.

That means if Juliet is driving her car (which happens to be registered in my name) she wouldn’t be covered if it broke down. In Victoria, the RACV “follows the vehicle” not the motorist.

Something that impressed me was the “Service SA” office which is a sort of one-stop shop for State Government services. We obtained driver’s licences there and registered Juliet’s Kia Rio. They also handle water accounts, fishing licences, etc.

Switching the licence was easy enough. I checked online first and went in with a wheelbarrow load of paperwork.

I’m sure the girl at the counter was accustomed to turning people away for not having all the relevant documents. She seemed almost disappointed when I was able to produce them all.

To register the vehicle we had to first visit an inspection site to obtain a certificate verifying the car’s identity and confirming it hadn’t been pinched.

The inspection bureau was a large shed with advertised opening hours of 12.15pm to 4pm. It’s the only facility of its kind in South Australia outside Adelaide; elsewhere people need to visit a police station.

An officer thoroughly checked the car. It took about half an hour altogether, but we didn’t have to wait long.

Afterwards we had to return to Service SA, produce the certificate, fill out another bundle of replica forms and handover a wad of cash to receive some black and white number plates promoting South Australia: The Festival State.

I wanted Mount Gambier plates, but they cost $180 more, too dear.

Repeating the records of engine number, VIN, etc reminded me of a conversation I heard on the radio yesterday.

Apparently people entering Kyrgyzstan or some such Central Asian country have to pass through three identical border posts. The second and third posts check the earlier processing procedure.

Oh well, it’s good to create employment in the public service.

I picked up the house keys and everyone was excited to look around. Unfortunately the power wasn’t connected. The fuse box is inside the house and despite us arranging to have it turned off by the real estate agent, the power company failed to connect.

We made an adventure of it, got the wood fire burning and slept in the lounge room.

The world looked brighter in the morning, which was cooler than we’d expect in Kalgoorlie. The day was quite mild though.

The removalists from Wridgways arrived just after 7am. They were very professional and did a great job unpacking our furniture over the next few hours.

Their quote was 30 percent cheaper than the others and we’re very happy with the service at both ends.

Red Energy eventually organised ETSA to get our power connected.

I spent the morning showing the kids around and shopping. Jim (4) really liked the fact the Blue Lake was formerly a volcano.

The Blue Lake is Mount Gambier’s signature attraction. It has a circumference of 5km and is 220 feet deep. It changes color with the seasons.

I took Kathleen (14) to visit her new high school, which has 1060 students. They were very friendly and the principal showed us around.

We sorted out Kathleen’s elective subjects and I think she will take up athletics coaching after hours.

The high school has a reputation for being one of the best in South Australia. I was impressed with the facilities and the positive attitude of everyone we met.

So far so good. Juliet doesn’t like the small kitchen at our new house, but the extra bedrooms give us more space overall and everyone has their own bedroom.

We head to Victoria on Sunday to see Dad, who is back in hospital tonight, and return here next Thursday.

Normal transmission on this blog won’t resume for a couple of weeks, but I’ll make occasional posts.

I haven’t got the ADSL internet connection working yet; not sure if it’s a line issue or a modem problem. Just one more thing to sort out …

I wouldn’t be exaggerating to say we saw about 40 or so between Norseman and Port Augusta in two days. I can’t recall seeing any on my previous crossing in January 2006.

The Eyre Highway has plenty of space on the Western Australian side, but in South Australia there is almost no shoulder at all.

Encountering a road train is scary enough, but making way for one of the massive transporters is no fun at all.

Most of them appeared to be carrying mining machinery. There was no consistency in how they present themselves to oncoming motorists.

Some had a sign on the front of the truck and a flag waving from the side. Others had an advance vehicle with flashing lights and in one case there was a police escort driving ahead on the wrong side of the road to force oncoming cars off the highway.

I have serious questions about this whole business.

1) Why are there so many oversize vehicles on a vital public highway? Surely the machines should be shipped to the nearest port.

2) Why isn’t there a consistent set of rules for the drivers/owners of oversize vehicles instead of the apparently ad-hoc arrangements that exist now?

3) What are the protocols for allowing traffic to pass these beasts? We were fortunately driving towards them; I’d hate to be stuck behind one driving into the sun as many poor motorists were.

4) Who is responsible for allowing this to happen and what consultation was there?

Update: In Western Australia it seems Main Roads is responsible and they reckon monster trucks are okay.

“Large vehicles are important contributors to Western Australia’s economic development. There are many types of oversize vehicles, all of which must display a sign indicating that the vehicle is greater than the standard width or length.”

The average motorist (like me) doesn’t know the difference between the many types of oversize vehicles, nor do we expect to encounter them every half hour on a major highway.

I probably speak for road train drivers on this too. They work vehicles that ordinary motorists do expect to see on interstate routes. They drive at the same speed, can be safely overtaken and they are mostly driven responsibly.

I can’t imagine how a road train would overtake an oversize vehicle, especially on the South Australian side of the Eyre Highway.

The authorities have a system of regulation, it seems. They now need to educate the general public about the system and limit the number of oversize vehicles on the road at any given time.

The roads weren’t designed for these large vehicles and motorists should not be expected to regularly encounter them.

Compared with state leaders Ted Baillieu and Troy Buswell he’s doing a pretty good job in unenviable circumstances.

I didn’t hear his budget reply speech, but reading the news summary it sounds quite good.

Nelson has got a long tough road ahead of him to restore the Liberal Party’s fortunes. He can’t simply wait for Rudd to stumble, he needs to develop an alternative vision.

Cutting the fuel excise by five cents a litre has been criticised as populist. But isn’t that what politicians should be trying to do … be popular?

Of course, they also need to be responsible and that’s an arguable proposition in relation to the petrol excise. But that’s also the job of politicians … to argue and formulate policy.

At least Nelson is having a go. The Liberals were totally rattled after the election defeat and it’s in the national interest for them to regroup and form a strong opposition.

Satellite navigation devices designed to guide drivers could prove even more dangerous distractions than using mobile phones at the wheel, according to a report in The Age.

Road safety experts are urging motorists to use the devices with caution, warning that they could distract drivers and increase the risk of crashes.

I’ve been surprised on my last couple of visits to Melbourne how many people are using these satellite maps. I think every taxi has one now.

In my experience it didn’t seem to assist the tax drivers at all. The first one went in the wrong direction!

The second driver pulled off the road to key an address into the GPS device, but couldn’t get it to work. I finished up finding the street for him in a good old-fashioned map book.

The state-of-the-art high speed Prospector, introduced into service on June 28, 2004, can travel at up to 160kmh, enabling it to complete the 653km trip from Perth to Kalgoorlie in under seven hours.

Track works are under way at the moment to make it faster. It’s a single line most of the way and The Prospector is often delayed waiting for freight trains. Extra passing loops will enable the passenger train to have a clearer run.

I’m a train buff without being obsessive like a “spotter”. I just think it’s a great way to travel. In Europe I went from Zurich to Amsterdam on a train, also to Venice and back from Zurich.